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First Peoples Worldwide, Leeds School of Business Announce 2021-22 Rebecca Adamson Indigenous Rights and Business Scholarship

Desmond Bruguier

Indigenous Inclusivity is Path to Most Sustainable Future, says Scholarship Recipient Desmond Bruguier 

First Peoples Worldwide and the Leeds School of Business are pleased to announce Desmond Bruguier as the 2021-22 recipient of the Rebecca Adamson Indigenous Rights and Business ScholarshipThe scholarship supports full-time MBA students at the University of Colorado at Boulder, who belong to a federally recognized American Indian Tribe or who demonstrate a commitment to rights of Indigenous Peoples. 

Desmond is an enrolled member of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of Fort Peck and is a first-year business student at Leeds, where he hopes to build upon his foundation of economic and finance education. Desmond is a veteran of the U.S. Navy and served four years as an Aviation Electrician. He received a Bachelors in Business Administration in Finance at CUNY Baruch’s Zicklin School of Business. Currently, he works as a government contractor assisting Tribes and Tribal Governments with economic development of their natural resources. 

Professional and educational experiences have given Desmond insight into the intersecting issues for Native American Tribes in the U.S., and he is interested in one day pursing a Juris Doctorate. “My journey is still unfolding,” he says. “I do believe that inclusivity is the way we will make the strongest and most sustainable impacts for the future.” 

Looking ahead, Desmond hopes to start his own consulting and business group to work with Native entrepreneurs and build capacity for sustainable economic growth. He says he hopes to use his education to do this. “I want to continue to find ways to leverage my experiences and education to assist Native Americans with achieving their specific goals. There are a large number of Native American Tribes and tribal members, all of their goals unique,” he says.  

Learn more about scholarships at the 91ƬAV and opportunities at First Peoples Worldwide.