Chamber employee in Crawford County lauds BVU Strategic Partnership
In becoming a Strategic Partner with BVU, employees (and their families) of the Chamber and Development Council of Crawford County receive grant funding to lower education costs while enrolled at BVU.
Rachel Desy is currently enrolled in her second course in the organizational leadership master’s degree program at Buena Vista University.
She’s been able to utilize a tuition discount, thanks to Desy’s status as office manager with the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County, which has entered a Strategic Partnership with Buena Vista University.
In becoming a Strategic Partner with BVU, employees (as well as their spouse/domestic partner and children) of the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County may receive grant funding to lower the overall cost of education while enrolled in classes at BVU’s Strom Lake campus. Partner grant funding also lowers the cost per credit hour for students enrolled in BVU’s convenient online/hybrid undergraduate programs, or, as in Desy’s case, those in the organizational leadership graduate program.
Desy earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration at BVU in 2009. She knew then there would come a time when she’d enroll in graduate school.
“Ever since I graduated from BVU, I’ve had a goal to further my education,” says Desy, a Denison native. “The Strategic Partnership is wonderful. It represents a huge benefit for me, personally, and for other employees, their spouses and family members.”
“The concepts we cover in classes become ideas I share and help shape for a variety of efforts that can benefit the businesses and residents of Crawford County, a place I love to serve,” Desy says.
Desy’s graduate school instruction occurs online, allowing her to meet her full-time work demands as well as those at home as she and her husband, Nate Desy, raise their two young daughters.
“Last summer, I did much of my studying at the campground during our family’s camping excursions,” she says. “Having the flexibility to work on assignments from anywhere with an internet connection has been extremely beneficial.”
In addition to offering grants for tuition to employees and families of those employed by the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County, BVU professors and staff are also available for training programs, workshops, and more should officials with the organization in Denison seek those services.
Desy notes that professors in the graduate program match the memories of what she experienced during her time as a BVU undergraduate.
“The professors in the graduate program have all been very accessible, responsive in a nice and timely manner,” she says. “I’ve also had a lot of fun getting to know my classmates in the program, learning more as I draw upon their experiences.”
“We’re excited to build upon our relationship with the Chamber & Development Council of Crawford County through the Strategic Partnership,” says BVU Director of Strategic Partnerships Katie Smith. “Rachel Desy is a great example of a professional advancing her career through education, while bringing ideas back to her organization.”
BVU has enjoyed a long working relationship in and around Denison through Western Iowa Tech Community College, where BVU offers programming through a hybrid delivery, which means students may attend one or two evening sessions per week via Zoom, complemented through online coursework throughout an eight-week period.
“The concepts we cover in classes become ideas I share and help shape for a variety of efforts that can benefit the businesses and residents of Crawford County, a place I love to serve,” Desy says.
For more information about BVU’s Strategic Partnerships and partner opportunities, please visit the BVU website at bvu.edu/strategic-partnerships or contact Katie Smith at SmithK@bvu.edu.