By: McKenna Green, Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior
Jaycee Salling completed NAFOA’s Career Basics course and applied for the Leadership Summit in 2022, and was a recent MBA graduate at the time. Salling learned of the program through her tribe’s higher education department listserv and wanted to get serious about defining her career. Now, the current Program Specialist at NAFOA, Jaycee Salling (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), remembers just how influential her experience was.
The 2022 Summit agenda included a great lineup of presenters including then Deputy Mayor of Seattle and Casey Sixkiller (Cherokee Nation). Salling was familiar with tribal economics prior to NAFOA’s Leadership Summit, but realized the depth of what tribes actually experienced “behind closed doors,” and understood the need for tribal supporting agencies, like NAFOA.
The diversity of career options in Indian Country is vast. “Not knowing where to start [in your career]”, says Salling, is a normal part of the process, but she wants to stress that there are opportunities out there that can help, like the Leadership Summit. Salling wasn’t alone when she got to the Summit, meeting like-minded individuals who were in the same place in their careers was a bonding experience. The 2022 Summit class still keeps each other updated on accomplishments and job opportunities.
The NAFOA conferences are an intense two days of learning, but the topics are current and informative and also incorporate a “laid back,” and fun environment. New attendees join seamlessly with veteran members creating an intimate “everyone-knows-everyone” feel, says Salling. NAFOA offers an environment where networking blossoms, ensuring attendees, especially young professionals, equal access to resources, networking, and career advancement opportunities.
After the Summit, Salling was contracted with NAFOA after expressing interest in being more involved. Less than a year after being a Summit participant, she was brought on full-time as the Program Specialist, working with conference planning and NAFOA Institute’s programs. Salling was able to define her career thanks to NAFOA’s Leadership Summit and now gets to work with tribes all over the nation daily for an organization she believes in, stating, “I love what I do.”
If you are a Native professional between the ages of 22-27, Salling recommends applying to the Leadership Summit because the experiences you’ll gain at NAFOA will help your career and foster relationships you’ll have long after. And when you attend, remember it can be intimidating being surrounded by accomplished tribal leaders, but Salling encourages young professionals to network and ask questions anyway, as she notes, “we are the next generation of tribal leaders.”
