By TYLER ELLYSON
UNK Communications
KEARNEY – Juan Carlos Guzman graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 2002, when Hispanic students represented just 2% of the school’s total enrollment.
Now, that number is 12% and rising.
“This is a demographic that continues to grow, especially in our region, while many are declining,” said Guzman. He notes that the state’s Hispanic/Latino population is expected to surpass 500,000 people by 2050, making up almost a quarter of all Nebraskans.
As the director of diversity outreach and partnerships, Guzman is leading UNK’s efforts to recruit and support students from diverse backgrounds. He sees UNK as a “champion for Latino students and their families.”
“If we give Latinos an opportunity to further their education, graduate and go back to their communities and work as young professionals, it’s a benefit for our entire state,” Guzman said. “As a public university, we have a responsibility to help those communities grow, and the only way for those communities to prosper is to educate the people who live there.”
Working with undergraduate admissions and other partners across campus, Guzman is focused on increasing college attendance and preparedness among Hispanic youths through a variety of programming and events.
“As a first-generation college graduate, I can truly relate to many of the challenges and struggles these students experience because I experienced them, too,” he said. “I know how difficult it can be to navigate the university system, especially if English isn’t your first language, and I understand the financial burdens many families face. As a student, these were big obstacles for me.”
He’s dedicated his career to breaking those barriers.
ACHIEVING HIS DREAM
Born in Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico, Guzman came to the United States at age 14 and graduated from Grand Island Senior High School as one of just four English as a second language students in his class. Since he wasn’t a U.S. citizen, he didn’t qualify for federal financial aid, so he worked at a meatpacking plant to earn money for college.
“I went through the entire immigration process while I was going to college,” he said.
After completing an associate degree in general studies at Central Community College, Guzman was hired as a migrant coordinator and paraeducator at Grand Island Public Schools, but he had bigger aspirations. He wanted to be a teacher, which required a four-year degree.
Thanks to a scholarship from the UNK Office of Multicultural Affairs, Guzman was able to finish his bachelor’s degree in Spanish education with an ESL endorsement.
Instead of teaching, he remained at UNK as assistant director for Enhancing Access to Higher Education, a federal grant-funded project that supported Native American and Hispanic students in seven communities across the state. Administered by the UNK College of Education, the program gave these students access to translation technology, summer science camps and other tools and services to enhance their education.
“There were more and more Latino families coming into these communities, and they didn’t have the support they needed,” Guzman said. “It was a really good program, and it gave me a better picture of what these populations and these communities needed.”
At the same time, Guzman was taking steps to make the UNK campus more supportive and welcoming for Hispanic students. He was a founding member of the Hispanic Student Association and Sigma Lambda Beta multicultural fraternity, and he helped start the Nebraska Cultural Unity Conference, which promotes leadership, higher education and professional development through a variety of workshops and activities. More than 400 high school and community college students attended the 20th annual Cultural Unity Conference earlier this month.
“As students, we were eager to make changes, not necessarily for us, but positive changes that would allow other students like ourselves to not have to go through the same challenges we went through,” said Guzman, who earned master’s degrees in school counseling and student affairs in 2005 and Spanish education in 2017.
Following his work with the grant program, he became assistant director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, now known as the Office of Student Diversity and Inclusion. He was named director of that office two years later and served in that role until April 2022, when he transitioned to director of diversity outreach and partnerships.
“UNK provided me with the opportunity to get an education and serve as a role model for my family and my community,” Guzman said. “As a professional working in higher education, I want to help others like me achieve their dreams of earning a college degree. It’s a blessing to know that I’m part of their educational journeys.”
SUPPORTING STUDENTS
With guidance from Guzman and many others, UNK has become a “home away from home” for Hispanic students.
Campus tours and freshman orientation are both offered entirely in Spanish and students can choose from a number of multicultural organizations, including the Hispanic Student Association, Global Student Association, First Gen Lopers, Sigma Lambda Beta fraternity and Lambda Theta Nu and Sigma Lambda Gamma sororities. Numerous scholarships are available for students from diverse backgrounds, as well.
“UNK has been a good place for Latino students, and our success rates with this population prove it,” Guzman said. “Families want their students to get an education, but they don’t want them to go too far from home, so our location has been a plus.
“We also offer the smaller campus and class sizes many students from rural communities are looking for, along with one-on-one support. We’re providing the best practices for these students, and it’s not just the Office of Student Diversity and Inclusion. It’s Thompson Scholars. It’s the TRIO program. It’s Kearney Bound. All of these programs are working together to support the Hispanic population.”
Oftentimes, that assistance starts long before a student enrolls in classes.
In addition to the Nebraska Cultural Unity Conference, UNK hosts several other events that expose diverse students to higher education and professional opportunities.
Nearly 150 high schoolers attended Multicultural Senior Day in October, more than 200 middle schoolers were at the Beta Men Youth Empowerment Conference in November and another 150 middle school students visited campus for Lambda Theta Nu’s annual Latina Youth Leadership Conference in March.
Last fall, Women Investing in Nebraska awarded UNK a $92,550 grant to expand and improve these initiatives. One of the first additions was College 101, a series of interactive workshops that allow Spanish-speaking families to learn more about the university system, career paths, financial aid and college prep. Twenty families attended the inaugural workshop in Lexington last month.
Guzman hopes to create campus events focusing specifically on health care, STEM, teaching and other high-demand areas, and he’s collaborating with community colleges in Nebraska and surrounding states to strengthen their partnerships with UNK and make it easier for students to transfer between the institutions. He’s also working with area businesses to create scholarships for employees and their dependents.
In the years ahead, UNK wants to reach a point when Hispanic students represent at least 25% of the total full-time undergraduate enrollment, allowing the university to receive the federal Hispanic-serving institution designation. UNK is already a member of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, and the federal designation provides access to more funding and resources to expand educational opportunities for Hispanic students and other underrepresented populations.
