Every year, Jesuit invites a certain number of alumni to come back and help the school through the Alumni Service Corps. This year, Mr. Bernardo Gonzalez ’19 is one of them.
Mr. Gonzalez attended Southern Methodist University following his graduation from Jesuit in 2019. There he studied finance and French, getting a bachelor’s in business administration and a Bachelor of Arts in French. Initially, he wanted to get into the restaurant business. However, he always kept the Alumni Service Corps as an option, even as a student, saying, “I knew that this is a great place where I would like to give back and give up a year of service.” Eventually, after giving it much thought, he made the decision to return to Jesuit.
” I knew that Jesuit is a great place where I would like to give back and give up a year of service.”
Typical Duties
As a member if the Alumni Service Corps, Mr. Gonzalez mainly helps out with two departments: Campus Ministry and Community Service. He helps coordinate the retreats, along with going on Kairos with the seniors.
Along with helping with retreats, Mr. Gonzalez and the other members of the Alumni Service Corps moderate service sites for the seniors on Wednesdays. Mr. Gonzalez moderates the Austin Street Center Fighting Homelessness. There, there are two teams: one called Human Services and the other called the Austin Street Center Team. After community service on Wednesdays, they teach Social Justice and Public Policy to the seniors.
Their work it not only on Wednesdays. Between the four of them, they all moderate the testing center during Alpha Period. They also do it during PRT. In addition to the testing center, they are also in the Learning Resource Center, helping Mrs. DesOrmeaux by tutoring students and providing tips to students who might want them.
Members of the ASC also help with extracurriculars. Mr. Gonzalez is a football coach, working with the freshmen and helping the varsity team on gameday.
Noticeable Changes
When I asked him how he noticed Jesuit has changed since he left, he pointed out two things: measures of academics and schedule changes.Â
When Mr. Gonzalez was a student, Jesuit operated on a 100-point scale. While some departments still operate like that, we are slowly transitioning to a 4.0 scale. Another change is the way service hours are measured. As opposed to service being measured in hours, it’s measured in number of projects.
The second major change was the schedule. A couple of years ago, a typical school day would have seven 45-minute classes with a 5-minute passing period. Now, we operate on a 55-minute, five class day schedule. Another thing is that Jesuit used to have every class every single day. Now, we’ve seen the Wednesday schedule we all know and love come into effect.
“But definitely, I’ve seen that there has been an emphasis on allowing the students to be kids, allowing us to enjoy ourselves, and have some fun.”
 Stories from Jesuit
When I asked him this question, he didn’t hesitate with mentioning his two service trips to Guadalajara, Mexico and Toulouse, France. Mr. Gozalez says that he wasn’t supposed to go on this trip. IT started with another service trip to a conference in Washington D.C. hosted by the Jesuits. There he hit it off with students that attended another Jesuit school. These students attended the Jesuit school in Guadalajara. After returning to Dallas from D.C., Mr. Gonzalez was told by Mr. Perry that he (Mr. Gonzalez) could get on a last-minute trip to that school through an exchange program.Â
However, Mr. Gonzalez describes his most impactful memory was his time in Toulouse. This was during the spring semester of his sophomore year. During this year, Jesuit Dallas partnered up with the Jesuit school in Toulouse, France. During this program, Mr. Gonzalez was hosting a student from France. During the time he spent with this student, they bonded so much that today they are still in contact, and that last year he was able to visit him and his family during the summer.
Being Open to Growth
When I asked Mr. Gonzalez on his thoughts of this year’s theme, he talked about the connection between being Open to Growth and Humility. He says that being open to growth isn’t just about trying new things, it’s about growing in mind, body, and soul. It’s having the humility to admit when your wrong and to learn from it. Along with that, Mr. Gonzalez states that we’re going to make mistakes, and acknowledging that that’s part of our human nature and having the humility to admit we made a mistake is what is crucial to being Open to Growth. He says, “Whether you’re going to meet new people or potentially a situation where maybe you did something that was wrong, you have to learn from it. Whether you accidentally hurt someone’s feelings or said something wrong, all you have to do is ask for forgiveness, that’s what open growth means. It means having the humility to understand that you yourself are not perfect and that you still have a lot to learn. By learning, you can maybe grow into a better person by understanding that we’re just trying to make the world slightly better.”
If you see Mr. Gonzalez in the hallways, make sure to stop by and say hello! Stay tuned to the Jesuit Roundup for more teacher and faculty profiles!
