The Aquilian 4
Thousands of Students, A Million Thanks
Coach Joe Jackson By: Charlie Neill ‘21
One of the first questions any student or alum will ask a Gonzaga freshman is which of the two legendary gym teachers they have. Both Mr. Jackson and Mr. Maddox’s gym classes are a staple of the Gonzaga experience. For the last four decades these two coaches have introduced freshmen to our school culture while whipping them into shape and creating some freshman year memories for incoming classes. Unfortunately for future freshmen, Mr. Jackson is retiring after this year. While his presence on campus will be missed, his influence on our school is here to stay. Throughout his Gonzaga career, Mr. Jackson coached football, track and field, and tennis. The success of the athletes leaving his teams are
Mrs. Ann Hoffman By: Mike Husk ‘22
What you do at Gonzaga? I support the College Counseling Office and the Counseling Department. Typically in the Fall, we have 175 or more College Representatives visit our Senior students here in Forte Hall. I am responsible for scheduling and hosting the Admission Representatives visits and student College Admission interviews here on campus. I also proctor the yearly AP, SAT & ACT testing for juniors and seniors, and help coordinate student, counselor, and family meetings as they take place throughout a student’s College admission process journey.
a testament to his coaching abilities, and each has been a source of pride throughout the years. The Gonzaga gym uniform is not just a great jersey to wear to football and basketball games, it is full of memories from freshman gym class. It’s not a coincidence that most uniforms are much too big - they’re “life uniforms,” as Mr. Jackson puts it, meaning you’ll fit into your freshman gym uniform your whole life. Beyond the physical fit of the jersey and shorts however, Coach Jackson has always helped freshmen create memories and that last for a lifetime. So while Mr. Jackson will surely be missed, we wish him the best in whatever the future brings. In lieu of his daily presence at Gonzaga, we’ll make sure to keep our toes on the line. someone that I could rely on for good advice. He worked at Gonzaga for over 40 years and just retired last year. He always had great insights and reflections that created a fun atmosphere here on the 2nd floor of Forte Hall. We all miss him!
Mr. Mike Howell
By: Patrick Fogarty ‘21 These past two years, Gonzaga has seen the retirement of many iconic faculty members. Academic Dean, Gonzaga alumnus (‘70), math teacher, and scheduling extradenoir, Mr. Mike Howell, has announced that he will be retiring at the end of the 2020-2021 school year. With this news, concerns arose if any Gonzaga student will ever have a complete class schedule again! To some pugnacious students’ disappointment, Mr. Howell informed me that you cannot interrupt Mr. Pugliese’s World Cultures just any period of the day since schedules and attendance will still exist after his departure. More importantly to Mr. Howell than his administrative duties is his job as a teacher. When he was a student, both Mr. Howell’s good and bad teachers motivated him to become an educator. The good ones inspired him, and the bad instilled an appreciation for quality instruction. “Cura personalis,” a classic component of Jesuit education, prompted Mr. Howell to return to Gonzaga as a teacher himself, where runs his courses based on guiding students toward both academic and personal success. He chose to teach mathematics specifically because of how fundamental and factual the discipline is. As Galileo said, “mathematics is the alphabet with which God has
What has been your favorite moment at Gonzaga? I have always loved Halloween at Gonzaga. I was on the Halloween committee and had fun judging the student and faculty costume contests over the years. It was always a blast to team up with fellow colleagues on group Mr. Jim Rogers costumes, such as Ghoulish By: Luke Elliott ‘21 Brides, 50s Poodle Skirt Gals, Wheres Waldo, and A trek all the way to the Starbucks Baristas, and many end of Forte Hall’s first floor would lead you to the office What do you enjoy most more! of Mr. Jim Rogers, Gonzaga about working at Gonzaga? What do you plan to do after Class of 1973. I like watching the freshman Mr. Rogers has played grow into seniors over the leaving Gonzaga? I plan on becoming a full a vital role in the Gonzaga years. It is always a fantastic transformation and each one time Grammy. I have a community since 1987 - that has their own, unique style. granddaughter that is 2yrs. is as a staff member. His now old and expecting my grand- twenty year stint as the Vice How long have you worked son’s arrival in the middle President of Finance started of June. I look forward to with a job as the Business at Gonzaga? I have worked at Gonzaga taking them on many field Manager. Now, Mr. Rogsince 2010 and was a trips. And my husband and l ers describes his day-to-day Gonzaga Mom for 4 years look forward to lots of trav- work as “being the chief fibefore that (Scott Hoffman el, when it is safe to do so! nancial steward of the revenue inflows and tracking all ‘09) What advice would you give expenditures of the school including the most importantly Who has been an inspiration Gonzaga students? Celebrate your accomplishall the salaries and benefits of to you at Gonzaga? While there have been many ments! Let’s face it, graduat- the faculty and staff.” Thirty years later, Mr. colleagues that have inspired ing high school is a big deal! Don’t forget to give yourself Rogers is excited to embark and influenced me during my time at Gonzaga, Mr. the credit you deserve. Re- on his retirement. “It’s all Bill Wilson, a Counselor member to live life in the part of the next part of life,” he said. To ease into this next and basketball coach, was present and enjoy! period, Mr. Rogers plans to a true mentor to me and
written the universe.” However, Mr. Howell is more than the administrative and mathematical genius he seems at first glance. In early elementary school, he was a model. Although Mr. Howell abandoned the career before the age of nine, this naturally set him on course to be a Gonzaga student. Once at Gonzaga, Mr. Howell was an athlete. Intramural football and weightlifting competitions occupied his time on Eye Street, and coaching basketball and baseball did when he returned as a teacher. Even though he will no longer be working at Gonzaga, Mr. Howell has no intention of leaving the community. Thankfully, the GDA’s productions and Gonzaga’s major sporting events will not lose their spot on his schedule. One thing all graduating seniors and Mr. Howell will agree on is that they won’t miss Gonzaga’s commute next year– unsurprisingly, sitting in traffic is just as frustrating for Mr. Howell as everybody else (luckily for Mr. Howell, he manages to avoid the morning traffic by arriving on campus before 6:00am every day). I know I speak for the entire Gonzaga community when I say that we will all miss Mr. Howell’s presence on Eye Street. We wish Mr. Howell the best of luck in whatever he chooses to do with his newfound freetime and encourage him to consider learning the value of sleeping in past 6am. take on a part time financial position at another religious organization in DC. Surely, with so much time spent in this community, Mr. Rogers knows he’s leaving much behind. “I’ll miss seeing great friends and great educators here on Eye St, some of which I have known for over 50 years.” While it certainly will not be easy, Mr. Rogers is leaving with essentially a lifetime of memories. His top two Gonzaga moments were seeing Saint Mother Teresa at the 1989 graduation and handing his son James his diploma in 2009. Godspeed, Mr. Rogers! The Gonzaga community thanks you for your many years of service and stewardship. We at The Aquilian thank you for paying our printing bills all these years, and wish you well on your new retirement journey!
Coach Alvin Maddox By: Jesse Dolojan‘21
A truly legendary figure, Coach Alvin Maddox has coached various birdbrains throughout his time at Gonzaga. Many of his former students stop by to say hello and give him a grand time because they all loved him so much. Even myself, admittedly one of Coach Jackson’s brain surgeons, has had many great opportunities to strike up a conversation with the affable Coach Maddox. Coach Maddox originally was the Director of Athletics at the Georgetown Athletics Club, and ran the Boy’s Summer Basketball League when there. He said that it was one of the most prestigious leagues in the country, with coaches from all over the place coaching there. He met some people from Gonzaga, and got an offer to coach football here. At first Coach Maddox said no, but over time he mulled over his decisions and changed his mind. After more than 40 years of coaching on Eye Street, Coach Maddox is preparing to call it a career. He has enjoyed his time here with us and admits that it will be hard for him to imagine life after spending so long here, but if anyone deserves a rest from the constant onslaught from various bird brains, it’s of course him. Coach Maddox plans to spend time on his summer projects such as building patios and decks for his house. He usually spends a small amount of time each day on such projects, but he says that he likes it that way. He once asked for an estimate from a builder the value he would charge on a deck he once built, and he told Coach Maddox it was a $7000 deck. Coach Maddox spent $1800 on supplies. He used to coach football here at Gonzaga, but now only coaches track. He currently coaches football at Bishop O’Connell as well. Coach Maddox is an icon for many of us here at Gonzaga, and to say that he will be missed is an understatement. For a lot of people, including myself, he is someone who has been a great part of making me into who I am today. His final piece of advice for the birdbrains: just be yourself. Enjoy what you’re doing, enjoy life, and be happy with what you accomplish in your day.