The Glen Cove Middle School auditorium was transformed into a live media production environment last week during a districtwide Cultural Arts Experience that brought award-winning actor Luis Guzmán to the campus through a collaboration among FAME GC, the Finley Middle School PTA and district leadership.
The immersive event blended professional media training with large-scale student assemblies, giving participants direct access to both industry-style production work and personal storytelling from a veteran performer.
Guzmán, known for his roles in the television series “Wednesday” and “Narcos” and the film “Boogie Nights,” among many others, began the day on Jan. 29 with students from the journalism, TV production, podcasting and photography programs in an Interdisciplinary Cultural Arts Lab modeled after a Hollywood press junket. The students conducted interviews, operated multi-camera setups, hosted red-carpet-style podcast segments and captured professional portraits, effectively turning the school into a functioning media hub.
“This is exactly the kind of opportunity FAME GC was created to make possible,” said Maria Laino DeLuca, a vice president of FAME GC and co-president of the middle school PTA. “We are not only bringing an extraordinary artist to our students — we are demonstrating what’s possible when a community and its schools invest together in creativity, culture and real-world learning.”
DeLuca said that Guzmán’s visit grew out of longstanding industry relationships, noting her background in entertainment marketing and connections through the organization’s leadership. “Last year we had Daryl McDaniels, from Run DMC, come and talk to the kids about bullying and inspiring them,” DeLuca said. “We saw that Luis would be such a great fit given who he is, the role he has, how humble he is — and the fact that he is just an icon. We’re really looking to be innovative in our approach to teaching,” she added. “We realize that some things you can’t just learn in a classroom.”
After working with the media students, Guzmán shifted into large-scale Q&A assemblies, first addressing middle school students and later meeting with high school students. In each session he spoke candidly about perseverance, identity and staying connected to humanity.
Guzmán told the Herald that the personal interaction was central to why he participates in school visits. “It kind of humanizes me, to show young people that I’m approachable,” he said. “I think it’s also an inspiration to young people to see that, oh, wow, this guy really took the time to come down and not only let us interview him, but took pictures with us and spoke to us and answered our questions.”
Reflecting on the early years of his acting career when addressing the high school students, Guzmán encouraged students to reframe rejection. “I never looked at it as rejection,” he said. “I just looked at it as an opportunity to do something else.” If he missed out on a role, he explained, his mindset was that “there’s something better coming up,” adding that staying positive made it easier to bounce back.
Guzmán also said that before he became an actor he was a social worker in New York City — a job he described as the most meaningful of his life. “It was the best job I ever had because I was helping young people to help themselves,” he said, explaining that many of the youth he served came from families who had lived at the poverty level for generations. Expectations were low, he recalled, with 22 successful job placements in a year considered a strong outcome, but his first year produced far more. “Out of 75 young people, 67 were positive and happy,” he said. “So, yeah, I took a lot of pride in that.”
Much of his message centered on compassion, humility and connection — values he said were shaped by his upbringing. Guzmán recalled how his mother would send him to share leftover food with people experiencing homelessness, which taught him that “helping the less fortunate was a good thing.”
He tied those lessons directly to why he makes time for students today. “That is my connection right here to my humanity,” he said. “I always took the time, like I’m taking the time, wanting to be here with you guys.”
He also spoke of his cultural pride in being Puerto Rican, telling students that he views himself as representing the broader Latino community. “Being a Latino in my business, it’s like we gotta try like three, four times harder just to get to where we are,” he said. “But the most important thing was that I never gave up.”
Asked what he would focus on learning if he were in high school today, Guzmán emphasized empathy and critical thinking. “I would focus on learning how to try to make humanity better for people,” he said, expressing concern that constant reliance on technology can limit problem-solving and basic skills. He urged students to support one another, reject bullying and remember that “everybody has a story.”
For many students, including eighth-grader Sieina Iovino, Guzmán’s visit made a powerful impression. “What really stuck out to me was confidence,” she said. “I found it comforting and I found it nice that he gave inspirational ideas, to trust in yourself, and it’s going to all work out.”
Another eighth-grader, Zoe Vann, said the experience made inspiration feel real. “I just feel like it’s very inspirational to know that somebody who is in the acting industry came to our school to inspire us,” Zoe said. “It really helped.”
