Biography
Crystal (Zhagashkaandawe) is Awaazisii Clan, a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and a first generation descendent of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe). She joined the Center in April of 2022 as a Senior Research Associate at the Great Lakes Hub in Duluth, MN. Crystal is involved in standardizing the Center’s operations and ensuring community engagement is central in the Center’s governance structure.
Prior to joining the Center, Crystal worked largely in the tribal health sector of the Indian Health Service for over 10+ years. During this period, she co-managed medical clinic operations and developed a Quality Assurance Department designed for rural tribal health organizations, including a robust tribal research review process emphasizing tribal data sovereignty. It was in this capacity that Crystal advanced her passion into practice to support Indigenous community health and promote Indigenous health leadership.
Crystal has a BS degree in Business Administration with a double major in Management and Marketing from Lake Superior State University and an MSA degree with a Health Services concentration from Central Michigan University. Outside of work, Crystal enjoys spending time with family and friends, harvesting manoomin (wild rice) and maple syrup, reading, walking in the woods, gardening, baking, and riding ATVs and tractors.