Two hospital visits and the financial impact of those events pulled David Gomez into the Graduate School of Business at Sam M. Walton College of Business to pursue the Healthcare Executive Master of Business Administration program.
Gomez chose Walton College because of its connections.
EMBA, May 2021
“I love how well connected the school is. In addition, it was exciting to see how the school operated the program when I came to do a school visit. The visit was a great motivator for me, and it sold me on the idea of how valuable an education from the Walton College would be for me,” Gomez said.
“Thankfully, a lot of things have changed for the better under the new administration and a healthcare career isn’t what I am pursing now,” Gomez said. “However, getting my MBA has opened different doors for me.”
Several of those doors have been opened through the Walton College network.
Walton College Network
Walton’s Aditi Kar, assistant MBA director, and Rogelio Garcia-Contreras, director
of social innovation for the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, introduced
Gomez to Carol Silva Moralez, a partner at Serve2Perform, a nearby learning and development organization for professionals. Moralez then introduced
him to Adam Arroyos, the chief executive officer of Serve2Perform.
Arroyos wanted to highlight 31 Latino leaders to share on social media and Gomez agreed to undertake the project. The initiative was another networking opportunity for Gomez.
He interviewed notables, created podcasts and wrote articles. In addition to posting on social media through Serve2Perform, Latino Leader business magazine published all of the articles.
“Each of the speakers that I have spoken with have shared their stories and life experiences and I have learned from what they have shared with me. I have made invaluable connections and I feel like if I have gotten a new set of skills because of this project,” Gomez said. “In addition, my networking has propelled like if it was fueled by metallic hydrogen. I have had the opportunity to speak to former U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin, four-star general Al Zapanta and many CEOs and other influential Latinos.”
“I have come to truly understand the value of network through the recent work that I have done for the Latino Business Speaker Bureau and Serve2Perform. It opened my mind to see how much these executives relied on relationships to move upwards in their careers.”
“This kind of opportunity doesn’t happen often, and I have enjoyed the outcome of doing this work.”
Gomez, who earned a bachelor’s degree with a focus on marketing and a graduate applied statistics certification, has worked in financial planning and operations for a variety of industries. He speaks three languages – English, Portuguese and Spanish – and is a prolific artist. His business knowledge often finds a home in his art in the shape of graph-like squares, geometric shapes or industrial corporate buildings.
Networking has expanded his both his artistic and business skills.
“I have recently found a mentor artist and I have grown more in my art skills and understanding the business of professional selling of artwork in the last six months than I have in the 20 plus years that I have worked selling my artwork independently.”
Invitation and Investment
Gomez encourages others to enjoy art and expand their education.
“I would simply invite people in Northwest Arkansas to visit our art gallery at Art On The Square in downtown Bentonville and to visit my website www.davidgomezpeaceofheart.com,” Gomez said. “And second, to invest in their personal growth via networking or getting a higher education. It will change where they are in life and it will change who they are as well.”
