Club Spotlight: The Evening & Weekend BMA

Dedicated to supporting and advancing Black leaders, the Evening & Weekend Black Management Association (BMA) at Kellogg is a community where students can build meaningful relationships that challenge, support and reshape how they see themselves as leaders. 

Here, part-time MBA students Arianna Maria Giddings and Tiffani Alexandria Moore reflect on how serving as this year’s co-presidents has shifted their definition of success from focusing on achievement to an ongoing process of becoming.  

Two club members also share how the community has helped them stay grounded and focused while navigating the demands of business school. 

Thanks for taking the time to chat with us today! Thinking back to when you started at Kellogg, what’s a belief you had about business school, or about yourself, that BMA challenged or reshaped? 

When we first started, I think we both thought success at Kellogg meant reaching specific outcomes. Over time, and honestly through BMA, that shifted. A word we kept coming back to was “becoming.” We came in thinking this experience was about getting to a destination, achieving a career goal and hitting pre-set milestones, but it really became about who we were evolving into along the way.  

During our fall retreat, we had alumni join us and speak honestly about their journeys. The conversations were real and raw — setting the tone for the rest of the retreat. That was one of the first moments where it clicked that the B-school experience is about becoming more self-aware, more honest and more willing to share where you actually are with peers, faculty and in our workplaces too. We realized that vulnerability is not something that takes away from your leadership; it actually creates connection and drives deeper impact. 

That grounded us in the idea that growth comes from consistent self-respect, not one big moment. It’s about who you choose to be every day. 

With everything competing for your time, what makes BMA worth showing up for consistently, and what would you genuinely miss if you didn’t engage? 

For us, it’s the consistency of developing real connections across different moments. 

Through our lighter touch points from BMA social gatherings to chatting at Kellogg Table before class, we’ve built relationships that have carried into everything else because it is not just one event. It is how everything connects, making it easier to be honest, ask questions and actually grow. If we were not engaged, we would miss that depth and continuity that really pushes you to keep evolving. 

For example, some students immerse themselves in events like the Black Women’s Exposé, and those same people are having more intentional conversations about career paths, challenges and decisions. 

What’s one event BMA has hosted that you felt especially resonated with working professionals? What made it work? 

Our career game plan event with Rasháanda Cook, a career strategist, really stands out. Instead of approaching it like a typical career workshop, we asked people to reflect on their goals and on what is driving their decisions rather than where they might just be going through the motions. 

That shift from just executing to being more intentional resonated a lot, especially for working professionals who are used to moving quickly and getting things done. People left with tangible resources, clarity and a different way of thinking about their career journeys. 

How does BMA create space for identity and community while also pushing members to meet high academic and professional standards? 

We create balance through how our events are designed. At the Black Women Exposé, we created space for identity, storytelling and shared experience. Students were able to show up authentically and have conversations that might not happen in other settings.  

During the Week of Understanding Career Dinner, a night of breaking bread and creating meaningful connections, that same sense of community carried into more focused conversations around career, growth and decision making. Because students felt comfortable being themselves, they were also more willing to be honest about where they needed to grow.  

We support each other, but also expect each other to show up, follow through and keep pushing. 

Can you share a specific BMA experience that changed how you think, lead or operate professionally? What specifically made it impactful? 

The fall retreat was really impactful, especially the goal-setting exercise. Students wrote down their most ambitious goals and a few of them shared them out loud. We all offered support or connections to ensure that we can all reach success together. It was simple, but it made things real. It created accountability and showed how much you can unlock when you are willing to share openly. 

That experience also reflected a shift we were going through ourselves — stepping more into modeling personal leadership. We used our voice, shared our stories and created a space for others to do the same. For us, it has been about creating environments that help people move forward. 

If an incoming student asked, “How will BMA impact my Kellogg experience and career?” — how would you answer? 

BMA will show up for you in different ways across your time at Kellogg and beyond. It can start with an experience like attending a retreat where you begin to reflect and connect, or it can compound through quick conversations in the halls of Wieboldt. From coffee chats and dinners to events, these are opportunities club members have to get greater clarity and more direction — both professionally and personally. Along the way, you’ll realize you are building lifelong relationships. 

Over time, BMA and Kellogg shift how you think and show up. You start out focused on personal outcomes, and you leave thinking more about how you want to impact others. You will leave with a network, but more importantly, with people who have seen you grow. People who have supported and challenged you to step into the kind of leader you want to be. 

Inside BMA: Reflections on community and ritual

“One mindset that has helped me juggle career, classes and life is treating each 10-week class cycle like a priority reset. I focus on a few things that matter most instead of trying to do everything, which helps me decide what to pursue and what to let go of.  

“I also ask for support when I need it, seeking help from classmates and alumni who have shared experiences with me. Kellogg and BMA make this easy because people genuinely support each other, which helps me stay grounded and flexible.

“When you’re pivoting from investment banking into leading strategy for one of the largest financial services merger and acquisition deals — all while pursuing an MBA — your mind and body have to stay in sync. My morning devotional and journaling practice keeps me grounded, and Pilates, Lagree and running have become non-negotiables. 

“BMA has been equally essential — it’s a space where I can be seen, supported and poured into by people who have a shared experience. This community reminds me of why I’m here and who I’m doing it for.” 


Read next: ‘You belong here’: How one MBA student found growth and purpose 


 

The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Kellogg School of Management or Northwestern University. 

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