Analise DeLeon

‘Coming to Gateway was the best decision I ever made.’

Growing up, Analise DeLeon loved animals. Now 21, she recalls always having household pets, mostly dogs and cats, as well as bringing home a variety of wildlife, including slugs and squirrels! She and her 10-year-old brother, Evan, were raised by their mother, Isabel, and father, also Evan, until Analise was 16. Their Dad, however, continues to be a “huge presence” in his children’s lives.  

Analise, who lives in Bridgeport, attended Central High School, later transferring to Platt Technical High School. Unsure of her career goal after graduation, she was daunted by the effect college tuition might have on her working-class Hispanic family. She also wondered if going to an affordable community college was the right decision. That all changed when she toured Gateway. “I loved it,” she explains. “I saw so much diversity!” Once she saw GCC’s library, where she now spends most of her time studying and doing homework between classes, she was “hooked.”  

The call to veterinary medicine came after Analise lost her pet chameleon, Trevor, who, she was told, was a male. Unfortunately, Trevor was a “she,” whose instinct was to bury her eggs in sand. Without regular release of her eggs, and despite expensive veterinarian care, Trevor passed. Hoping to save other “pet families” from the same pain and expense, she decided to become a veterinary technician. Her Dad, however, told her, “Don’t be Robin, Analise … be Batman,” so she began her journey to becoming a veterinarian at Gateway. 

Analise is financing that journey by pet-sitting and working retail 32 hours a week. That, along with her GCC Foundation scholarship and federal Pell grant, will help her reach her goals. “My parents get emotional when they realize I will be the first college graduate in our family. Coming to Gateway was the best decision I ever made.” 

To watch Analise’s scholarship thank-you message, CLICK HERE.