Specialist Casaundra Wallace

Growing up as a child, Casaundra remembers watching news reports of Operation Desert Storm on TV. She had a great admiration for the men and women who sacrificed to serve the country and she knew military service was in her future. She joined the Army at age 17 under the delayed enlistment program and started basic training one year later. She served 4.5 years in the Army and deployed once to Kuwait in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

When her enlistment was complete in 2004, Casaundra wanted to learn about people and society to help people who cannot advocate for themselves. She chose to return home to Arizona to study history at Arizona State University. She plans to earn a Juris Doctor, focusing on Indian law.

With Arizona serving as home to 21 federally recognized Native American tribes, legal battles surrounding resource allotment have put many of the tribes in the national spotlight. Upon graduation, Casaundra plans to work for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in order to help the Native Americans in her home state. She also in considering a career in public affairs and perhaps a lobbyist position working to impact public policy changes in the state.