Gian Paul 冈萨雷斯 ’07

Gian Paul 冈萨雷斯 ’07 doesn’t waste time dwelling on limitations. 吉安·保罗(Gian Paul)是来自家乡联合城的一名高中生教育工作者, 新泽西州以及全州的高中学生，也曾担任寻求教育学硕士学位的研究生的兼职教授. 除了, 他是一名成功的励志演说家，也是一个以社区为基础的青年倡议的创始人. 有了这样的日程安排，冈萨雷斯决心让每一分钟都有价值.

当冈萨雷斯, a recent Montclair graduate and first-year history teacher, 被邀请在2011年12月为纽约巨人队发表鼓舞人心的演讲, he seized the moment. With his infamous “All In” speech, 冈萨雷斯激励了一些国家最优秀的运动员，扭转了他们的赛季，赢得了2012年的NFL超级碗.

It is tempting to think of 冈萨雷斯’s speech, and the national recognition that followed, as a fortunate twist of fate. 但这样做会忽略这位教育家和社区倡导者倾注在他所做的每一件事上的奉献精神——无论在什么情况下.

“I was a high school athlete, so naturally I had sports in mind when I was researching colleges,他说. “我从宾夕法尼亚的弥赛亚大学开始，该校为我提供了篮球奖学金. 这是一段很好的经历，但招募我的教练在第一年结束时就离开了. It didn’t feel like a good fit anymore.”

冈萨雷斯 visited several colleges, 他了解到，在大多数情况下，转学意味着有一段时间不能参加他最喜欢的活动，直到他能够融入球队. 他回忆道:“我妈妈和叔叔都是十大博彩推荐排名大学的毕业生，他们建议我考虑一下他们的母校。. 泰德·菲奥里教练, Head Basketball Coach at the time, 邀请我加入他的球队，说我一注册就可以开始打球. I wanted very much to play, but there was more to my decision. 菲奥里说他希望我作为一名球员和一个人留在球队. It was the first time a coach spoke to me in that way. I really appreciated that.”

It was an approach shared by 冈萨雷斯’s professors. “They respected me as a person,他说. “They posed challenging questions and guided me on how to make decisions. I learned how to have a purpose and conviction of my own.”

冈萨雷斯 indeed kept an open mind as he sampled a variety of majors. 他说:“当时我只知道我想服务并回馈他人。. “I tried sociology, social work, anthropology. Then I took a history course with Professor Michael Whelan. He made every class feel like we were watching a movie. 我被迷住了.”

“Montclair is a community that allows freedom, as well as encouragement and support, 探索,” 冈萨雷斯 continues. “例如，健身房的空间有限，所以菲奥雷教练提出在早上5点为我开放健身房.m. to allow me to practice my skills. My advisor encouraged me to attend an NCAA leadership conference, which introduced me to players from around the country. 我仍然在使用我在那次会议中学到的一些团队建设练习.”

冈萨雷斯对机会的眼光和对回馈社会的热情在他大四的时候引发了一种新的思考方式，当时一位助理教练让他作为一名名人全明星赛的替补上场. “After the game, kids were coming up to me for my autograph,他说. “I started to think about the power of sports in peoples’ lives.”

很快, 冈萨雷斯 was reaching out to athletes he had played with, 和反对, 邀请他们和埃塞克斯郡少年拘留所的青少年一起打篮球. “We played ball and had pizza,他说. “这些都是我们经常认为理所当然的简单事情，但我看到这对这些孩子来说意味着什么.”

These visits became more regular and continued after he graduated, drawing the attention of George 麦戈文. 麦戈文, who was chaplain for the NY Giants at the time, 听说冈萨雷斯的工作是在新泽西少管所和参与司法的青少年打篮球. When a scheduled speaker for the team had to cancel, 麦戈文找到了这位篮球运动员，他认为他给问题青少年带来了如此多的希望.

冈萨雷斯 is reflective when he talks about his moment as an NFL speaker. 他说:“事情似乎来得很快，但实际上，一切都是在适当的时机发生的。. “A lot has to do with building relationships over time.”

有时候，关系和时机似乎是正确的，但目标本身并不重要. “After I graduated 十大博彩推荐排名州立, I had the opportunity to train for the NBA Combine,冈萨雷斯说。. “Since I had kept in touch with my coach from my freshman year at Messiah, who was training players like Greg Oden and Mike Conley of the Utah Jazz, 他训练我参加NBA联合训练，我从洛杉矶的夏季大名单中被选中. I was on track for a career in professional basketball.”

“Living the dream” was falling short for 冈萨雷斯, however. 他说:“我一直渴望在家乡有所作为。.

冈萨雷斯在联合城教九年级学生世界史，由此开始改变世界. Once again, however, his keen eye caught a detail that others missed. “I noticed that there were few after-school programs in the community, and none that were open into the late evening, when most of the crime in our neighborhoods was happening,他说.

这一观察结果在课后健康项目Hope + Future中得到了体现. Working hand in hand with teachers and school administrators, Hope + Future is teaching students to lead, and then providing them with opportunities to do so. 2人以上,希望+未来青年社区中心自2015年成立以来，已有200名学生参加了该项目.

希望+未来通过对体育的关注来吸引学生，但它并不止于此. “我们最近获得了一项反帮派暴力项目的竞争性州政府拨款，另一笔拨款将使我们能够开设一家咖啡馆，培训年轻人成为咖啡师,冈萨雷斯补充道, noting that the latter program sprang from his own love of coffee. “咖啡师的资格认证是一种有市场的职业，如果你愿意，你可以带你环游世界.”

还有一笔拨款将用于购买一个隔音舱，作为认知行为项目的基地. 每个“希望+未来”项目都是考虑到社区的需求而开发的，更重要的是，冈萨雷斯正在从内部培养该组织的下一代领导人, to ensure that it will thrive beyond his own involvement.

当冈萨雷斯 was invited to represent Montclair in 大学之旅, 这是一部在亚马逊Prime视频上播放的电视剧，帮助学生和家庭虚拟地参观全国各地的大学, he jumped at the chance.

“It was so exciting to see Montclair on the national stage,他说. “Montclair is right here, ready to give you an excellent college education. For the athletes out there, Montclair might be a Division III school, 但你仍然可以付出一级的努力，从体验中收获很多.”

冈萨雷斯, who was inducted into the 大学’s 体育运动 Hall of Fame, also makes time to speak with Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) students. 事实上, 今年春天与他交谈过的一些即将毕业的EOF学生还记得他在2017年对他们的访问, when they were just beginning their college journey. “我向他们保证，他们可能是家里第一个上大学的人, but that they wouldn’t be the last,他说, 他补充说，作为一名古巴裔美国人，他特别高兴看到哈佛大学越来越多地向西班牙裔社区伸出援手.

As he travels the country offering words of encouragement, 冈萨雷斯 loves telling audiences about Montclair. “My time at Montclair challenged me to reach for big dreams,他说. “It’s a story I love to share. 大学创造了一种重视学生个体的氛围, 这反过来又给了我勇气，把人们聚集在一起，让社区变得更好.”

他说:“当我们一起工作时，当我们向彼此抛出一条线时，我们就开始了一个新的循环。. “有目标地行走，你会惊讶于有多少人愿意与你同行。. And there is peace to be found in giving your all. You will inspire those around you and doors will open for you. You will go farther than you ever thought possible.”