"Whatever doors He opens before me, whether I think I'm capable or not, I know that He is with me, which means I get to bring Jesus into every community, relationship, and teaching moment I step into." - Stephen Gonzalez

What post-secondary schools did you attend? Degrees held?

Rochester Institute of Technology, Bachelor’s w/ Honors (Major: Photojournalism, Minor: Advanced Writing)

Have you taught or been involved in schools somewhere else prior to FCS? If so, where, and how long?

You could say that this will be my first “official” school teaching position. However, for five years I served as an instructor and teacher at the U.S. Coast Guard Helicopter Rescue Swimmer School, where I was responsible for leading students through a rigorous six-month curriculum in physical training, rescue operations and strategies, personal protective equipment, life-saving skills, emergency response, aviation aircrew responsibilities and maintenance, sewing and parachute rigging, pyrotechnics, and cold weather and sea survival.

During my military time, I also served weekly as a volunteer tutor in math and reading at a local elementary school. For 14 years, I was also responsible for annual training of over 200 aircrew men and women in wilderness survival, emergency response, sea survival, and shallow-water egress training. Post-military retirement, for the last four years, I have had the privilege of teaching local law enforcement and SWAT teams modern solutions to control and apprehension as well as defensive tactics to reduce over-reliance on use-of-force situations. Additionally, I have owned and operated a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy called 1441 Jiu-Jitsu for the last five years, instructing adults and youth ages 3 and up. I’ve also coached girls' high school swimming and diving teams.

What are your hobbies or things you enjoy outside of the school?

I love time spent outdoors in the wild—places untouched and unadulterated by development and our society’s attempts to tame and manicure. I enjoy fly fishing and bow hunting for sustenance, NOT for wall trophies. I am an advocate for butchering and processing game from start to finish, and I love putting food on my family’s table that God has provided. I like the sport of judo; it is incredibly taxing aerobically and keeps you honest. But most certainly my two favorite things are spending time with my family adventuring together, hanging around a bonfire on cool evenings, reading together, or teaching them more about God. Lastly, I enjoy time, time being still with God. Sitting in His presence, walking with Him in the early hours before light attempts to fight away the darkness, listening and hearing His voice—He is so kind and merciful.

What or who inspired you to work in education?

God has made me a leader, helper, and a guide. When He directs me toward something, I move to follow Him (even when I mess up, He picks me up, sets me straight, and corrects my posture). He has given me gifts in wisdom, discernment, faith, and encouragement, and He has equipped me to lead and communicate. Whatever doors He opens before me, whether I think I’m capable or not, I know that He is with me, which means I get to bring Jesus into every community, relationship, and teaching moment I step into.

What's your favorite book you've read?

My favorite book is Papillon (which means “butterfly”). The story is a testament to one man’s immense perseverance, resilience, creativity, and unyielding commitment toward a cause. The main character is purportedly wrongfully imprisoned, and the adventures of his multiple attempts to escape and flee from the dire circumstances of internment in foreign countries and remote island detention facilities, paired with the dilemmas of dealing with the unsavory characters that may actually belong in such places, are worth reflection.

How many books do you have stacked on your bedside table or in your "To Read" pile?

My Bible maintains continuous presence in my daily reading. Currently, supplementing this is The Sacred Overlap by J.R. Briggs, Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan (which I’m reading with my two daughters), and Manifesting Your Spirit by Graham Cooke. Reading keeps me growing, and I think reading actual books versus listening to an audiobook carries a greater value.