For Jenni Armstrong, it still feels unreal.
The 21-year-old Moran native packed her bags earlier this month for Finland, expecting a week of hard work, late nights, and plenty of learning. She returned with something she never dreamed of — an international business trophy, the first ever won by a Washburn University student at the prestigious X-Culture Global Symposium.
“It was such a shock,” Armstrong said with a laugh. “When they announced our team as the winner, I thought someone was pulling my leg. I couldn’t believe it until they repeated it in English.”
THE SYMPOSIUM, held Aug. 3-9 in Vaasa, Finland, brought together 150 business students from more than 30 countries. Armstrong, a senior at Washburn studying finance and business management with a minor in economics, earned her spot by excelling in an international business course last spring.
Students were placed on global teams and given real-world challenges by multinational companies. Armstrong’s team — made up of students from Germany, Florida, and El Salvador — was assigned Crimppi, a Finnish manufacturer of wire harnesses and fiber-optic cables. Their task: design a five-year growth plan to double sales and expand the company’s customer base while keeping current clients happy.
After weeks of virtual collaboration, the team met in Finland, where they refined their plan and presented it directly to Crimppi’s CEO and executives. Judges praised their deep knowledge of the subject, strong teamwork, and polished presentation.
When the winners were announced at a gala, Armstrong and her teammates found themselves on stage, clutching a heavy glass globe trophy. “It was way heavier than it looked,” Armstrong joked. “I just remember thinking, ‘Please don’t let me drop this.’”
“It’s cool to think that a girl from Moran, Kansas, could go halfway across the world and come back with something like this,” she said.
The daughter of Jim and Brenda Armstrong, Jenni graduated from Marmaton Valley High School in 2022 and Allen Community College in 2024 before transferring to Washburn.
This summer, when she wasn’t preparing for Finland, she worked in Topeka with Kansas Kids @ GEAR UP, a program that helps foster youth prepare for college. She credits her family, professors, and community for helping her reach new opportunities.
NOW BACK in Topeka, Armstrong is focusing on her final year at Washburn. She’ll graduate in May and is weighing her options: launching straight into a career or continuing into a master’s program. Either way, she’s confident the lessons learned in Finland will stick with her.
“I met students from Australia, France, Ghana, England, everywhere,” she said. “Working with them showed me how small the world can feel, and how much you can accomplish when you bring different perspectives together.”
For Armstrong, it’s a memory she’ll carry long after her trophy finds a place of honor at home.
“It still doesn’t feel real,” she said. “But I think it shows that no matter where you come from, even a little town like Moran, big things are possible.”
