From Setback to Service: Joe Guzman Pursues Graduate Degree at UA Little Rock

Just two weeks after moving to Little Rock for a new job with the city’s parks and recreation department, Joe Guzman found himself in a hospital bed facing a life-altering decision.

Seven weeks and six surgeries later, Guzman lost his right foot. That experience pushed him to pursue a master’s degree in sport management at UA Little Rock while continuing his work with Little Rock Parks and Recreation.

Before moving to Little Rock in 2025, Guzman had spent nearly a decade working in Corpus Christi, Texas, including five years in municipal parks and recreation. Originally from Lockhart, Texas — a town he jokes is “legally required” to call itself the barbecue capital of the world — Guzman had been searching for a challenging opportunity that would help him grow professionally.

Little Rock Parks and Recreation offered that chance.

“I felt like I could come in here and use my skill set to develop and improve some of the things they were doing,” Guzman said. “But also learn from them in areas where I wasn’t as strong.”

Not long after arriving in Arkansas, Guzman developed a severe infection in his foot and was hospitalized at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Over the next seven weeks, he underwent multiple surgeries before doctors ultimately amputated his right foot to stop the infection.

Despite the circumstances, Guzman said the support he received from coworkers and the Little Rock community left a lasting impression.

Even though he had only worked for the city for two weeks, he kept his paycheck and insurance coverage. His coworkers even donated crisis leave hours and checked in on him while he recovered.

“The people in the city really supported me — without even knowing me,” Guzman said. “People were donating hours they had accumulated just to help me get through that situation.”

During those weeks in the hospital, Guzman began thinking about how to use the time productively.

His path through higher education had already been unconventional. Guzman returned to college at age 38 and earned his bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi in 2017.

While recovering in Little Rock, he began thinking about graduate school.

“I’d never considered getting my master’s degree,” Guzman said. “It was never something on my radar. But since I had the time, I thought, ‘Why not?’”

He enrolled in the Sport Management graduate program at UA Little Rock in fall 2025. Now in his second semester, Guzman is taking nine credit hours each term online while continuing to work full time for the city.

Guzman utilized the Get Your Feet Wet scholarship, which helped make his decision easier. The program allows prospective graduate students to take their first course at a reduced cost, giving them a chance to see if graduate school fits their schedule and goals.

“That scholarship tells people, ‘Hey, give it a shot,’” Guzman said. “If it works with your schedule and you like it, you keep going. If not, you’re not out a lot of money.”

Guzman said the scholarship helped remove some of the financial uncertainty of returning to school later in life.

“Going back to school can be a scary thought,” he said. “But programs like that give people the opportunity to try it and see if it works.”

He said faculty members such as Dr. Katie Helms, associate professor in the School of Counseling, Human Performance, and Rehabilitation, have been supportive as he balances work and school.

“My professors have been outstanding,” he said. “They understand that we’re adults with careers and responsibilities that affect the community.”

Helms said Guzman brings valuable real-world experience to the classroom.

“Recreational sports opportunities for communities illustrate the human development side of sports, where sports are used to enhance our health, happiness, and human potential,” Helms said. “Joe pursues this higher purpose of sports in his daily work at Little Rock Parks and Recreation, and I’m glad that he chose UA Little Rock to further his professional development and commitment to it.”

In class, Helms said Guzman often shares insights from his work at Southwest Community Center and youth sports programs across the city.

“He has also been a valuable resource for student involvement in sports facilities and programs through tours, experiential opportunities, and internships,” she said. “I’m honored to call Joe a professional colleague and hope to collaborate with him on many projects to come.”

Dr. Jonathan Farrar, adjunct professor in the sport management program, said Guzman’s leadership and commitment stand out in the classroom.

“Joe Guzman has been an amazing student and a joy to have in class,” Farrar said. “Joe communicates exceptionally well and consistently looks for ways to support those around him. You can clearly see in his work how passionate he is about what he commits himself to.”

Farrar said Guzman frequently connects classroom discussions with real-world examples from his work with Little Rock Parks and Recreation.

While working toward his degree, Guzman continues to manage several responsibilities with Little Rock Parks and Recreation. During the major winter storm that blanketed Little Rock in snow for more than a week in January, he and his team helped turn Dunbar Community Center into an overnight shelter for residents who needed a warm place to stay.

“Dunbar Community Center was an overnight shelter for about 12 nights,” Guzman said. “My role was to make sure we had staff there 24 hours a day.”

As Recreation Programs Coordinator, Guzman oversees several community centers across Little Rock, including Dunbar, Stephens, West Central, and Southwest Community Centers. His goal is to expand how those spaces serve their neighborhoods.

“My biggest focus right now is making our community centers less of a recreation center and more of a community resource,” Guzman said.

Programs vary depending on neighborhood needs, from tutoring and holiday events to health fairs and outreach initiatives. At Southwest Community Center, staff partnered with Exalt Academy of Southwest Little Rock to host a coat drive that provided winter coats to dozens of students. The center has also hosted Spanish Bingo nights designed for the area’s Hispanic community.

“It’s offering the community a place to go where they may not otherwise have access to things they need,” Guzman said.

Guzman is also helping rethink how youth sports programs operate within the city. As a Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) through the National Recreation and Park Association, he works to align Little Rock’s programs with national standards while introducing new approaches to participation.

“We’re trying to break the gatekeeping of sports,” Guzman said. “There needs to be something for everybody.”

For Guzman, the lesson from the past year is simple.

“Just because you get an obstacle in your way doesn’t mean your life’s over,” he said. “You’ve got to adapt to it.”

And when he eventually walks across the stage with his master’s degree, Guzman hopes his story sends a message.

“If I can do it, y’all can do it,” he said.