My connection to the
Ho-Chunk
Nation comes from my mom,
super proud to be Ho-Chunk
and one of the things
she always told me
at a young age was
that's the greatest gift
she could ever give
me was my heritage.
Being Ho-Chunk, where
we're unique people,
we have special skills
and as a family,
we always help each other
out.
Growing up,
I wasn't always with my mom,
I wasn't with my
Ho-Chunk family,
so it took me a while
to realize
what they're all about
and how they're willing
to help
and all the resources
that are available
to our people.
So when I decided
to go back to college,
the main fear was the cost.
And thankfully,
the Higher
Education Department
for the Ho-Chunk
Nation
has a great scholarship
and actually helped me
graduate
in four years
with zero debt.
So I knew I owed something
back to them just for that.
Higher education became
really important for me
when I saw my wife
just doing an amazing job
at the University
of Wisconsin La Crosse.
After graduating,
she instantly got a job
and that really inspired me.
As far as being a leader,
I knew that education
was going to get
me to that point
where I could
help other people.
When I applied for
admission at University
Wisconsin La Crosse,
I was denied.
It was.
It was really tough.
But thankfully
the people here were very
willing to help me
and they showed me a path
and that path included
Western Technical College.
Western technical
is really important for me
because I hadn't been
in school for ten years
and they really helped me
along the way, getting back
acclimated with school,
understanding what it took
to be a college student
and I loved it so much.
I stayed there for
the full two years
of my transfer program.
I think setting goals
is important.
And if you say
something out loud,
you need to
do it, to my opinion.
So I actually said out
loud to myself in the mirror
that I was going to graduate
from the University
of Wisconsin La Crosse
with a degree in
business management
and also do that
with honors.
And thankfully, I held
myself to that word.
The degree is
a piece of paper
that that
gives you a status,
but in reality,
I think the connections
that you have
means a lot more than
than necessarily
the degrees.
For me personally, I think
being a part of the
government is a blessing,
and this government
is what allows our people
to be successful.
The program that I'm
working on right now
is the demonstration grant,
and I'm the administrator
for that.
It's a brand new program
for the Ho-Chunk Nation.
We're really excited.
This is going to be offered
for K
through twelve students
and we'll have participation
from the parents
and guardians.
It's going to go through
a bunch
of different life skills
for those students
and families,
including social, emotional
and financial skills.
And then we're going to also
incorporate the Ho-Chunk
history, language
and culture.
We're taught at a young age
that every Ho-Chunk
person has a purpose.
This program is going to
allow each student
to realize
every single purpose
that's out there,
whether that's going
into the trades,
being in the military,
joining the workforce
right away
or even going to college.
Having soft skills
is extremely important,
especially in the world
that we live in today.
A lot of
communication is done
via social media.
Our tech devices
and having those raw talents
to be able to look
someone in their eyes,
talk with them, engage,
build relationships,
network.
Those are all skills that
unfortunately are
not being taught.
Another skill I think is
very important
is financial understanding
now and the Ho-Chunk people.
We've had a long history
of financial struggles.
So what we want to do
is help them understand
how to manage money budgets.
And so when they
are on their own,
it's not a struggle.
It's
not something that they need
to lean back
on their family.
They can take
care of themselves
and they understand what
what money is and
they respect it.
I see my youth reflecting a
lot with the students
that we're working with
just because I came
from a similar area.
I struggled in my
high school years.
I didn't believe
it was an option for me
to go to college.
And ten years
after high school,
when I finally made
that decision
that I was going
to give it a try,
I knocked it out
and I was really
proud of that fact.
But
I think that was something
that was always in me,
and it's something that's in
every one of our students.
I think it's important
for every Ho-Chunk member
to utilize the resources
that are available to them.
Every office
and every department
is there to help our people.
Reach out.
Give us calls and
let's help our youth.