| |
Joaquin
Gonzalez
------------------------------------
Born 9/7/79
Currently an MBA candidate in UM's graduate school of business.
Chose to attend Miami over Louisville, Central Florida, Wake Forest and Oklahoma
State...
Son of Joaquin and Maria Gonzalez,
Full name is Joaquin Antonio Gonzalez.
|
|
 |
Student-Athlete
Joaquin is a three-time member of the BIG EAST All-Academic Team for maintaining
a grade-point average over 3.0. He joined the Hurricanes as a walk-on and was
awarded an athletic scholarship prior to his sophomore season.
Join A Team, Not A Gang
Gonzalez is active in Miami's “Join A Team, Not a Gang” community service program;
to encourage area youth to seek positive alternatives to gangs... |
|
| |
Iron Arrow
The senior from Miami, Fla. is a member of the academic honors society Omicron
Delta Kappa and a 2000 inductee into Iron Arrow, the highest honor bestowed to
any University of Miami student or staff member.
Welcome to Miami
Gonzalez came to Miami on an academic scholarship after graduating high school
with a 4.0 grade point average. He scored 1,320 out of 1,600 on the SAT and turned
down academic scholarships to Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Brown, Dartmouth and Cornell
in order to walk on at Miami.
Representative
As one of the high-profile Hispanic athletes at this school you've become a representative
of the Cuban-American community. What are your thoughts on that?
"It's fun. I love it. You know
why? Because I grew up here. If I wouldn't have grown up here it wouldn't mean
as much to me. A lot of guys get recognized - I know (quarterback Ken) Dorsey
does - but it's harder to get recognition when you're an offensive lineman. But
being an offensive lineman that's also Cuban-American in a community with such
a large Cuban population, I think a lot of people see me in the media and can
point to me as a Cuban kid that made it. So, a lot of Cuban parents have kids
like me. I'm not the greatest athlete, I don't have the greatest numbers, I just
came here and worked hard and made it. I think a lot of Hispanic people can relate
to that. Not to take anything away from any other culture, but it hasn't been
easy for us here. It's a lot easier than it used to be, but there is still a lot
they have to go through."
Family
Who in your family do you idolize? I idolize my brother and father, Tony and Joaquin.
I admire that in their lives, everything hasn't been given to them. They have
always had to work hard and give a lot of effort.
The Future
What do you see off the field for yourself in the future? "I graduated in December
with a Marketing major and I'm in graduate school now. I'm taking three classes.
I need 10 more classes to finish. I'll be going to both Summer sessions and, hopefully,
by next December I'll graduate with my MBA.
I want to get into the advertising segment of marketing. That's what I really
like. Not so much the research part. The advertising part appeals to me because
it deals a lot with entertainment. I've always been into that because it's fun."
|
|
|
