St. John’s grad adds Rhodes scholarship to math wins
A Houstonian — and a senior at Harvard University — is one of 32 Rhodes scholars picked to study at Oxford University in England next year.
Harold Xavier Gonzalez, 21, a standout tennis player and student at St. John’s School in River Oaks, began his studies at Harvard in 2014. He was chosen for the prestigious British postgraduate scholarship after an interview and will study mathematics.
Gonzalez’s interest in math began in third grade, when he read “The Number Devil,” a book originally published in German that follows a boy’s dreams about math concepts such as prime numbers and infinity.
A St. John’s math teacher, who noted Gonzalez’s standout performance on a competitive math team, encouraged his studies. His studies deepened in college, where he wowed professors with his research among the nation’s top math undergraduates.
Gonzalez said recently that he was “so grateful” for his academic opportunities. The scholarship, established in 1903 by British philanthropist Cecil Rhodes, provides all expenses for two or three years of study at Oxford.
The Rhodes scholarship appealed to him because of its focus on character, he said. Rhodes scholars are selected based on their scholastic achievements, moral character and energy to pursue one’s talents.
Outside of the classroom, Gonzalez played on Harvard’s varsity tennis team, presented a paper on Shakespeare, volunteered at a Cambridge homeless shelter and served as a peer adviser — all while maintaining a perfect 4.0 grade point average.
Gonzalez said the interview for the scholarship was a chance to “proselytize to the importance of math” with judges.
“It was a really special opportunity,” he told the Chronicle. “Regardless of the outcome, I would have cherished it for the rest of my life.”
Gonzalez’s talent in math stood out to teachers at St. John’s as early as sixth
grade, said math teacher Sandy McLanahan, recalling his former student’s drive to learn.
“He had done a lot of reading in math outside of school,” McLanahan said, which was unusual among his students.
Gonzalez also stood out in math competitions that required both individual talent and group excellence.
“He was competing against seventh- and eighth-graders, (and) he did the best on the team,” McLanahan said.
Moonshine concept
Later, during one college algebra class, a professor introduced a concept called moonshine in a brief comment, Gonzalez recalled. The theory lets scholars translate from one language in mathematics to another, building connections and a stronger understanding of both, he said. It piqued his curiosity. Gonzalez researched the theory last summer at Emory University, which he called “the best summer of my short life.”
Ken Ono, the professor who supervised Gonzalez’s undergraduate team at Emory, called his student a “superstar.”
“There are some things about Xavier that suggest that he’s not even real,” Ono said, citing his work outside the classroom.
He said he was struck by the student’s application among hundreds to the summer program.
Gonzalez impressed him further in person over the summer, when he would meticulously examine existing research papers on the topics they studied. He made one observation in a joint paper, Ono said, that taught the longtime professor a new application of a prior-used technique.
“It’s not every day that an undergraduate shows someone like me (that) I haven’t made the best use of some of the techniques I’ve been using for a long time,” he said.
Importance of fair play
Gonzalez learned to play tennis as a child, when his father, mother and sister would divide into doubles pairs at the Houston Racquet Club. The sport, he said, has given him “some of the highs of my life,” including earning sportsmanship awards from his peers. He expects to continue his tennis play on the grass courts in England, since Oxford allows graduate students on their tennis team, the Harvard Crimson reported.
Gonzalez said he is “grateful and at times surprised” to maintain a 4.0 grade point at Harvard.
“It’s certainly not a goal in and of itself,” he said, adding that he focuses on math, tennis and his friendships at school. “Those things are really meaningful to me.”
From tennis, he said, he has learned the importance of fair play and sportsmanship.
Gonzalez, who applied for the scholarship this fall, learned he’d won while in a room with the other Rhodes finalists from his geographic district. They shook hands and expressed mutual admiration, he said.
“It’s not every day that an undergraduate shows someone like me (that) I haven’t made the best use of some of the techniques I’ve been using for a long time.”
Ken Ono, Emory professor