Hostos President David Gomez.
 
1. WHERE DID YOU GROW UP, AND WHERE IS HOME NOW?
I grew up in New York City’s Lower East Side. While I have been in the Bronx for more than 40 years, I spent a great deal of my life there as a younger man, and I have wonderful memories of that part of the city.

 
2. YOU HAVE A HISTORY WITH HOSTOS. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB HERE, AND WHEN WERE YOU FIRST HIRED?
Before the days of tablets and iPhones, I was a counselor for an experimental computer-based advisement system. This was back in 1974, and I can tell you from experience, that technology has changed quite a bit at Hostos since then.

 
3. WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE BRONX?
I feel that the Bronx is perhaps the only Borough left in New York City where you truly feel that you are still part of a community. Each neighborhood has its own distinct and unique characteristics that have not changed too much compared with other parts of New York City.

 
4. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST PRIORITY HERE AT THE COLLEGE?
Simply put, our main goal is supporting our students so they can be the best that they can be. Student outcomes, their achievements, have to be our main priority. We must all work toward continued improvement in areas of retention and graduation.


5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FOOD?
My family comes from Puerto Rico, so I would have to say my favorite food is pernil (pork). It reminds me of home.

 
6. ARE YOU A SPORTS FAN? IF SO, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TEAM, AND WHY?
I do enjoy sports, and I root for the New York Football Giants and the New York Yankees. I have always liked the Giants, because they were the only team in town when I was young. As for baseball, I was a huge Willie Mays fan growing up, and when the New York Baseball Giants left for California, the Yankees were the only team left in the city.

 
7. WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE NOT AT HOSTOS?
For me, it is all about family. I come from a large family—two sisters and four brothers, plus one sibling who did not survive—who all had a huge impact on my life. Today, I enjoy spending time with my wife and three daughters, either driving upstate to the country or doing the typical “tourist stuff” here in the city.

 
8. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORTIE SUBJECT IN SCHOOL?
History. Which comes as little surprise to those who know me well.

 
9. YOU SEEM TO DRAW WORDS OF WISDOM FROM OTHER GREAT EDUCATORS AND IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN HISTORY. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE AND WHY?
Since I have always loved history, I often pull words of inspiration from great people and works from the past. My favorite quote is sometimes credited to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but it actually was first said by Dante Alighieri: “The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crises.”


10. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE WORKS OF LITERATURE?
I love “The Great Gatsby” for fiction; “John Adams,” by Pulitzer Prize–winning author David McCullough for history; and Dante's “Divine Comedy” is my favorite poem.
 
Click here to read President Gomez’s Fall 2015 welcome letter.