January 15, 2015 – Download Full Issue
Crystal Deschinny is a Forest County Potawatomi Community (FCPC) tribal member who sets her goals high and then works hard to achieve them. She just received her second master’s degree, an M.B.A. (Masters of Business Administration), an advanced degree sought by individuals who are interested in management and leadership roles in business. The M.B.A. provides an individual with the skills and knowledge necessary to be part of managing, leading, and changing businesses and organizations for the better. The M.B.A. also offers the tools and resources to explore entrepreneurship.
Deschinny is happily married to her husband, Daniel, and together they have a son, Jaiden, who in many ways has his parents’ ambition and determination. Having had to fund both her undergraduate, a Bachelor’s of Science in Finance, and first graduate degree, a Master’s in American Indian Studies, Deschinny knows what it was like to go without the comforts of material things. At a young age she set her goals extremely high in order to achieve a better life. She did not want to be stuck in a life that had no purpose or meaning and made the effort to educate herself and to learn from her life experiences. This recent accomplishment is the result of years of work to achieve the education she desired. A 2013 Academic Excellence and Community Leadership Award as well as being inducted into the graduate honors society by the University of Arizona, speaks to the degree of hard work invested in her educational endeavors.
After resigning from her position of seven years at FCPC, Deschinny embarked upon an educational journey which included returning to the university. She earned her M.B.A. from the University of Arizona’s – Eller College of Management. This program was a year and a half long and was quite intense. It was not an online course of study but, rather, involved spending every other weekend attending classes in person. She explained that class would start on Friday morning and last all day. At times there were reviews with professors Friday evening and then classes would begin again the next morning and last until Saturday evening. This intense course included all of the same requirements as a fulltime M.B.A. And though it seemed like a shorter time period, it actually was not. This particular program required students to have five years of professional working experience. The class included a wide variety of people from different careers such as engineers, doctors, and entrepreneurs. Deschinny said one of the biggest obstacles for her personally with this course of study was the time she had to spend driving to and from home to class – a round trip of about 600 miles. She would make the drive, stay overnight in a hotel for the weekend, and return home after classes. This obviously resulted in her having to be away from her husband and child— something that is always tough for a mother and wife to do. She told PTT that her family’s support was absolutely critical in taking this step in her life. Without their encouragement, things may not have gone as well as they did so that she could finish. Her son, Jaiden, was a huge factor in her finishing this degree. Deschinny made it very clear that she wants to be a good example for her son to follow. She wants to show him that if you start something and that something is good for you and gives you a purpose, you must complete that journey and finish strong.
This program is geared towards a wide range of different business techniques, tools and skills and included courses in business law, finance, global concepts, accounting, human capital and contract negotiations.
Getting accepted into this program was also quite complicated; it involved a number of steps resulting in an application process that took almost an entire year.
Deschinny was in a program that was male-dominated, which served as an incentive to prove that a female student could complete this intense course of study and graduate. She was also the only tribally-affiliated student; that, too, was a strong incentive for her to accomplish her goal of graduating.
On discussing the program with her, it is interesting that the focus was not only on how things are run within the United States, but it also involved an international component. Deschinny had the opportunity to visit 10 global businesses in Brazil. Within this class the statement, “global, local, global” means in order to run a more successful global business you must understand local business – and apply those lessons globally. This was strictly formatted around learning how other countries run businesses and learning to appreciate why they are so successful in running businesses in this country. Two of the 10 companies visited were Buscapé, the Brazilian competitor to Google, and Agência Tudo, a hip and trendy marketing ad firm. Deschinny enjoyed each and every step she took while involved in the program including learning new ideas, enjoying her classmates, and everything involved in reaching this goal. As she says, “Education is a way to move forward,” and in the context of tribes, is “…a way to get one step closer in pursing tribal sovereignty.” This accomplishment is proof of that.
Deschinny has accomplished many different things and achieved many different objectives in her life. She is a seven-time marathon runner, wife, mother, and fundraiser. She is an inspiration for many to look up to, and on her journey she has fought with many demons including a successful battle with cancer. Never once considering cancer was a reason or excuse to quit, Deschinny viewed cancer as the means to live, try harder, and look forward to tomorrow. She has overcome many obstacles and has achieved many personal and family goals. She is the type of woman who will always keep pursuing new and exciting experiences in her lifetime and does not seem to ever want to give up. She says, “You should always have something to look forward to as otherwise you lose your sense of life, being, and yourself.”
One saying that she lives by sums up who she is and what she strives for: “There is no finish line.” Before she crosses one finish line, she is always looking for another.
Deschinny is the daughter of Walter Johnson, FCPC tribal member, and Eleanor Johnson, Ho-Chunk Nation.