Mountjoy believed that George Mason University was complacent about church-state issues, so she decided that she wanted to become a more active freethinker.  In 2007, Islamic foot baths were installed in George Mason's meditation center, and visitors were required to adhere to Islamic gender segregation practices: Mountjoy was outraged.

 

“This whole situation upset me. I was upset that my [tuition] money was spent on a religious practice.” Mountjoy channeled her anger and frustration during the next year mobilizing the Rational Response Squad (RRS) and gaining recognition as an official school organization. After the group was established, the heat from the foot baths had cooled down. “RRS (National) is a place for activist atheists to come together. My student group, however, has become more of a place for like-minded students to hang out… We also show movies, host speakers, and have monthly regular meetings. We're having a Darwin Day Pasta Dinner on February 12th.”

As a result of her leadership skills, Mountjoy has done some special things for the atheist movement in the Washington, D.C. area. “I define leadership by empowering others to action, as opposed to just doing things myself.” One of Mountjoy’s strength is her ability to mobilize local freethought groups and get them to work together. For example, she not only brought Freedom from Religion Foundation co-president Dan Barker and atheist activist Ellery Schempp to George Mason University to speak on secular issues; she organized more than seven events each for Barker and Schempp in the Washington, D.C. area.

 

Despite her successes, Mountjoy was deferential in accepting the award. “I feel very honored to be chosen...to be among people like [past winners] Ashley [Paramore] and Hemant [Mehta], who have really had an impact on the movement.” However, Mountjoy is also a leader in a number of freethought organizations: she is the founder and president of the RRS at George Mason, the co-founder and vice president of outreach for the Virginia Freethought Renaissance, and the organizer of the Beltway Atheists.

 

Mountjoy has done more than merely found groups; she has helped expand a network of successful freethought organizations. For example, her RRS chapter has 31 active members, and she has overseen the Beltway Atheists grow from 388 to 581 members in just a year. The group has even hosted atheist writer Christopher Hitchens. “I spend well over 40 hours a week on atheist activism,” Mountjoy explains, and all her hard work pays off. For her tireless advocacy on behalf of atheism, the Secular Student Alliance congratulates Mountjoy for receiving the 2009 $1,000 American Atheists scholarship.