He’s been called a hero, a motivator and a beacon of inspiration. Now, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Greg Gadson (G'10) can add one more word to the list -- Hoya.

At 42, the Iraq war veteran and former college football star is somewhat of an untraditional student, but he says he decided to enroll in the Executive Master of Policy Management within the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI) because of the university’s ability to attract some of the nation’s top policymakers and experts.

The Chesapeake, Va., native decided to get a jump on the fall semester by enrolling in summer classes that explored the complexities of public policy and also some of the challenges faced by the military.

“He has the right stuff already. His experience at Georgetown will only refine his experience so that he can go out and make positive changes for the Army and his country,” says GPPI associate dean Joseph Ferrara, who taught Gadson’s public management class.
 
Gadson says GPPI’s relationship with the Department of Defense and partnership with the U.S. Army have proven beneficial since he’s not only in classes with civilians, but fellow military officers.

“There’s no doubt that Georgetown’s reputation as a great school probably made it the No. 1 choice,” he says “Another reason was the proximity and location to Walter Reed, where I could continue my rehab.”

Serving His Country

Gadson has been undergoing medical treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center since May 2007. He lost both legs when he encountered an improvised explosive device during his last tour of duty in Iraq.

“We were going back to headquarters,” he says referring to himself and members of his Second Battalion and 32nd Field Artillery. “We had just attended a memorial service for two soldiers who were in my brigade, and I was in the third vehicle in a four-vehicle convoy.”

In just a matter of seconds, he saw a flash, and the energy from the explosion ejected him from the armored Humvee. He laid there still as his vehicle sputtered off, he says, thinking about how he didn’t have a weapon and “God, I don’t want to die in this country.”

Fading in and out of consciousness, he awakened to one of the sergeants resuscitating him.

“I remember (some of the soldiers) trying to get me into the vehicle for medical attention. I remember going to troop medical clinic, where the first doctors were able to assess my situation,” he says. “I remember seeing the faces of some friends, fellow battalion commanders and sergeants major that I knew; and by their faces, it didn’t look good.”

Gadson received 70 pints of blood that night.

“I just remember telling (my boss) make sure my family and my wife knew that I loved them,” says the father of two. “I didn’t give up on life, but I knew that I was in bad shape.”

Gadson made it through the night in Iraq, and a few days later arrived in the Washington, D.C. area at Walter Reed with his legs intact. But, after a week, the irreparable damage to his blood vessels caused him to lose his left leg above the knee. His right leg would be gone a week later.

Accepting what happened to him was the toughest part of his ordeal. “But once you accept it, you just move on. There’s no going back,” he says.

The Road to Recovery

Acceptance, in addition to learning how to use a wheel chair and then to walk with his prosthetic legs, served as an integral part of his rehabilitation. And in many ways, his attendance at Georgetown serves as a part of his progress.

“A broader and really more important part of recovery is getting integrated back into life -- figuring out what direction you want to go in and where and how you contribute to society,” Gadson says. “I still don’t know at this point what I will do. I thought grad school might help me figure that out.”

Gadson wound up enrolling at Georgetown nearly a year to the date of his life-altering incident in Iraq.

In some ways, the Georgetown environment is a first for him. “I went to West Point, but I don’t consider that a college campus,” he explains. “It’s kind of nice to experience college in a different kind of way.”

Inspiration and Victory

It was at West Point that Gadson made a name for himself out on the field -- starting as linebacker for the school’s Army team, and it also is where he met New York Giants wide receivers coach Mike Sullivan. Gadson and Sullivan played together as teammates during the late 1980s. 

Once Sullivan heard about Gadson’s injuries last year, it prompted an invitation for Gadson to speak to the NFL team that was experiencing a 0-2 season.

“I just shared my story with them,” Gadson says modestly.

The Giants went on that September night to win 24-17 against the Washington Redskins, and many have credited Gadson’s emotional speech as being the catalyst for the team’s 10-game winning streak that eventually led them to this year’s Super Bowl victory against the New England Patriots.

Gadson became the team’s honorary co-captain; sat on the sidelines to cheer on his team, even in the Green Bay’s 3-below-zero frozen tundra; and received a Super Bowl XLII ring. 

During the 2008 Espy Awards this summer, Michael Strahan accepted the award for “Biggest Upset” for the Giants’ Super Bowl win against the undefeated Patriots. Gadson sat amongst the Los Angeles audience as the now-retired defensive end thanked him for his influence on the team.  

That was a rewarding time for Gadson. But he’s equally excited about his academic career.

Gadson views his participation in the executive policy management program as a therapeutic experience, but Ferrara says his participation has been a definite asset for the program.

“Part of the program is that we challenge you with new people, new material and new ideas,” says Ferrara, who taught Gadson’s public management course. “He has the right stuff already. His experience at Georgetown will only refine his experience so that he can go out and make positive changes for the Army and his country.”
 
As a proud officer of the U.S. Army, Gadson offers a distinct perspective that comes from a mix of “mature patriotism” and first-hand accounts of military challenges, adds Ferrara, who also serves as the director of GPPI’s executive master’s program.

About 20 military officers among the 110 students currently enrolled in the program, Ferrara says.

“I really enjoy the interaction with fellow students in an intellectual environment,” he says. “It’s really impressive to listen to people’s views without the constraints and prejudices that normally exist in the real world or workplace.”

Just as Gadson is impressed with GPPI’s academic environment, others have become impressed with him.

“People have tremendous respect for him and admiration,” says Virginia Amundson, associate director of GPPI’s executive master’s program. “He is a hero in so many ways, and there’s this modesty about him.”

Any Given Day

Ask Gadson what it feels like to be a hero, and there’s a pause.

For a man who has spent his life being a leader on the football field and out in the field during military battle, he says he’s not in a class by himself.

“I fall into a class of nearly 14,000 who have been very seriously injured from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” he says. “You can find inspiration from many of them.”
   
These days, Gadson says his goals are simple. He lives to improve any given day. Whether it’s going through his rigorous rehabilitation sessions or going for a 13-mile trek along the Mount Vernon Trail using his hand cycle, he’s always working toward something. He says he’s able to do this because of the support of Kim, his wife of 19 years and his children -- daughter Gabriella, 16 and son Jaelen, 14.

“Part of me really believes that life is not about what happens to you as much as it’s about what you do about it,” he says. “We all have our challenges in life, but we don’t get to pick those challenges all the time.”

Source: Office of Communications