 |
interview by Meghan Grady |
Stephanie Gonzalez was born in Providence and raised in Central Falls. She is a product of the Central Falls School System and graduated in 2004. She became the first member of her family to attend college and graduated from Boston College in 2008 with a BA in English. Currently, she works at Boston Children’s Hospital as a project manager in the Program for Patient Safety and Quality. Back in Central Falls, she is a member of the Central Falls School Board of Trustees, Board Member of the Nowell Leadership Academy and Chair of the Central Falls Charter Review Commission.How old are you? I am 26.
What is your connection to YWCA? “My connection to YWCA began when I was eleven. It became the safe haven for my sister and I before and after school. My mother had to work long hours and the YWCA enabled her to do that for us. In the past two years, I have had the honor to serve as a member of the Board of Directors for YWCA.”
Why did you get involved with YWCA Rhode Island? “The opportunity to join the Board came to me at a moment where I was gaining more awareness about the needs of my community. I was being inspired by young leaders such as Central Falls Mayor Diossa and Sandra Cano (School Committee member of Pawtucket). As a woman, I was especially intrigued by Sandra’s passion for the mission of the YWCA and I decided this would be a great opportunity to advocate for women, for young girls, and for Central Falls and communities like it.”
Can you tell us about the Sheila ‘Skip’ Nowell Leadership Academy? “The Sheila ‘Skip’ Nowell Leadership Academy is perhaps the most innovative initiative I have been part of and I am honored to have been selected as a Board Member. In short, the Academy will provide access to quality education to a targeted cohort of students who run a higher risk of dropping out. Traditional public schools may sometimes fall short for students with extraneous circumstances, and the Nowell Leadership provides a structure of learning that combines a virtual and in-class component. This will set a precedent nation-wide.”
What is your role? “My responsibility now is to advocate for the work of the Academy and once the School starts recruiting and enrolling students I hope to serve to bridge communication between the academy and the Central Falls School District and the surrounding charter schools.”
As a young woman, did you play sports? What kinds of physical activity do you enjoy now? “I have to be honest and say that I wasn’t much of a sports fanatic while I was in high school. However, I was on the cross country team my junior year. I was on the Central Falls Step Team my senior year. Though technically not a sport, it was my way of staying physically active. It required just as much endurance, stamina, and an affinity for teamwork. Currently, I enjoy running outside and more than running I love hiking. Both give me such peace, while at the same time give me the opportunity to stay active.”
What do young women need to become healthy and independent adults? “I think the most important thing for young women to do is to become informed about ways in which they can keep their bodies healthy and safe. Staying informed is something that needs to be accessible at home and at school. If that access is missing at either of those places, then young women need to know about alternative ways to access information (i.e. clinics, local YWCA, other local organizations). Knowing is everything.”
Do you think it is important for girls and young women to be involved in sports and physical activity? I think it is very important for women to be involved in sports, because we need to further break the stereotype that only male sports matter or that male sports are more important. We see this every year as millions of people gather around to watch male sporting events, but seldom are we exposed to the excitement of females in sports. We need to break that cycle of thinking.
What sports or exercise opportunities are made available by the
Central Falls School District? Do the majority of young women participate? “The Central Falls School Department offers all the most popular sports. Young women have the opportunity to participate. We can always do better to engage more women to participate.”
In tough economic times, budget cuts are often made to co-curricular activities like sports. Do you think it is important that girls have access to these opportunities? “I think in tough economic times and budget cuts, are when activities like sports need to be saved. These kinds of activities help our students’ spirit, and buttresses their willingness to participate in the school community at a co-curricular level as well as an educational level. At the very best, there needs to be a compromise. Soccer and football cannot be at the top of our list in budget cuts. We have to be creative about other sources.”
What value does the Central Falls community put on high school girls sports? “When you attend Central Falls High School, you become a warrior in every sense. A warrior in the classroom, as well as a warrior on the field or as a spectator of sports. Our students look forward to these sports and when they persevere and are winners of championships, it molds their spirits like nothing else. The Central Falls Community embraces this.”
