The staff of Cleburne ISD finally heard the message—and met the messenger--behind #All In which has been a resounding theme for the district since 2020.

                That messenger was New Jersey high school teacher Gian Paul Gonzalez, who served as the keynote speaker at the CISD Back to School Convocation Celebration held in the Jeff D. Cody Arena, with the majority of the District’s 1,100 teachers and staff in attendance.

                Gonzalez made national headlines in 2010 following the New York Giants’ unpredicted win over the New York Jets. Preceding the game, Gonzalez was invited by the Giants’ chaplain to provide an inspirational talk at the team’s chapel service. In interviews with key players following the win, Gonzalez was credited as being a major motivator.

As he prepared to face the Giants at that chapel service, the ninth grade history teacher came equipped with a box of poker chips. As Gonzalez handed a chip to each of the players in attendance, he asked them to write their uniform number on one side, and what they wanted to be committed to on the other. He then discussed the meaning behind the poker term “all in,” in which a player commits all his chips. Gonzalez ended with a question relating to each Giants’ commitment—as players, teammates, spouses, fathers and family members—in asking “are you all in” to giving all you have in the game of football, and life.

                The Giants would remain in the win column throughout that season and beyond--including Super Bowl 46 in which they outscored the New England Patriots 21 to 17. Gonzalez’ “All In” message became a rally cry for the Giants, with many giving him the credit for turning their season around. Gonzalez was coined as a “teacher of Giants,” receiving invitations to share his message with other teams, corporations, the FBI and, what he claims as his greatest honor, cadets at West Point and members of the U.S. Army.

                “When we first heard about Gian Paul and his All In message, we knew it would be great to have him speak to our staff at our Back to School Convocation in 2020,” Superintendent Dr. Kyle Heath said. “His message is a perfect alignment to our CISD Values of Excellence, which includes integrity, passion, loyalty, accountability and relationships. Unfortunately, we didn’t conduct an in-person Convocation last year as a COVID precaution. We have anticipated his message for more than a year—and it was worth the wait.”

                In his opening remarks to the CISD staff, Gonzalez said that those who knew best to give it all, to do things that were not their job—were seated around him in the Jeff D. Cody Arena.

                “You care so much, you come in early and stay late,” he said. “You may be the only one to give a student a smile and listen to their story. I still remember my first day of school as a new teacher. I was ready, my lessons plans were done. But as the students from my first period class left, and with each period to follow, by the end of the day I wondered ‘why am I here?’ But they were watching, and listening that day, and every single day. Everyone here knows you don’t have to watch ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ to know that what we do in the classroom, in the gym, in the cafeteria, on the bus—matters.”

                Someone who took the time to show Gonzalez how much he mattered was his high school history teacher. That teacher cared enough to challenge Gonzalez to become “all in.”

                “I was on the basketball team, and when we lost a game, I didn’t want to go to school the next day,” Gonzalez said. “I didn’t want to hear the negative comments. I just didn’t want to deal with the failure. But that one teacher—and each of you had one, too—noticed my absences from class, saw what I was doing and called my hand. He got personal.”

                “Mr. Phillips told me “I fear for you because you fear losing in life,’” Gonzalez said. “He told me that everyone in the history books we were studying had chosen to give it all, even if it meant their lives. He told me that all of us have choices, and he challenged me to come to school—win or lose in basketball or anything else.”

                In deciding to accept the challenge, Gonzalez not only faced up to his fears, but in the process went from a C student to graduating in the Top 20 in his class. He learned to let go of the day’s failures, in anticipation of hope in the days to come.

                “In my senior year of college I was honored as an NCAA All-American in basketball,” Gonzalez said. “I thought about Mr. Phillips the whole time. The hope we give every student doesn’t die or fade. It stays with them, and often gets passed on to someone else. When we give our students hope, they start to believe in the future.”

                Gonzalez’ commitment to students needing hope began while he was still in college. He was a starting forward at Montclair State University, scoring nearly 1400 points for the Red Hawks over three seasons. But he found time in his schedule to tutor boys housed in the Hudson County (NJ) Youth Detention Center.

                Knowing his talents in basketball, Gonzalez was asked to organize an in-house team. When he learned his team would be receiving uniforms, Gonzalez had the word “hope” embossed on each shirt.

“It’s hard to have hope when you’re in jail,” Gonzalez said. “But there’s no better place to have it.”

                Gonzalez’ talents on the basketball court landed him in the NBA Summer League in 2007. He was offered several professional basketball contracts—but he chose instead to continue his work with at-risk youth. He has also declined a fulltime position with the Giants, but is often on the field with the team on game days.

In addition to his ongoing work in the classroom, he is the founder and executive director of Hope + Future Foundation, which he established in 2010 for at-risk youth in the community where he lives and teaches. His ongoing message to his students and the young people he encounters: “greatness is in what we do for others.”

                Gonzalez makes it very clear that “All In” is not a slogan or words on a t-shirt; it’s a lifestyle. Now a husband, and a parent, “All In” is engraved inside his wedding band.

“It’s easy to be all in when you’re winning,” he said. “It’s harder when you’re losing. The thing that keeps us from being all in—is us. It’s a commitment, not a feeling. It’s an action that begins with a commitment. It’s not something to be done on one day, but rather a consistency of showing up every day ready to put all your chips out there, in being all in.”

                  As the employees of CISD begin the new school year, each has been presented with a “challenge chip” to remind them of the importance of being “all in” in their work with students and in their personal lives.   

“This means something different for all of us,” Gonzalez said. “I hope everyone here doesn’t just remember their chip on the first day of school, but puts it where they can see it all day, throughout the year. It may give you 30 more seconds of patience or the courage to be a Mr. Phillips in the life of your students.”

                Cleburne ISD’s theme for 2021-2022 is “Whatever it Takes” for the success and wellbeing of students. Heath said this could not be achieved without being all in.

                “This year, it’s going to take all of us, teachers and staff, making a difference every day,” he said. “I am so thankful for what everyone on our staff did last year, but we have more work to do. It will require whatever it takes—starting with all of us, every day. It’s going to be a great year. With each of us working together, we can do whatever it takes. Our kids deserve it, and because of that, we are all in.”