I am writing this blog to share some of the Tulane Black MBA Association’s events of this past year. The Tulane Black MBA is an organization whose purpose is to create educational and professional opportunities for African-American Graduate and Undergraduate Business students at Tulane University. Our goals for the year were to provide events that promoted not only the academic and professional growth of members but also enhanced the Tulane community as a whole.
In September, our members attended The National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. During the conference, a team of four, Sabine Baptiste, Pierre Dunbar, Jerica Kelley and Dakarai Anderson competed in the Chrysler Fiat 500 BEV case competition. In support for the chapter, the New Orleans chapter president Tonia Moore helped sponsor the group participation for the event. The team was asked to create a marketing plan for the new Fiat Electric Car as well as suggest prices and selling locations for the vehicle. Although, the team did not leave as the winners of the competition, we were congratulated for having one of the best marketing plan ideas and feel as though we represented Tulane very well.
In October and November, we hosted networking events titled “The Young Professional Exchange.” These events were designed to bring together the many members of graduate programs at Tulane as well as other schools in the city. Organizations who attended these events included the Tulane Black Law School Association, The Society of Young Black Health Professionals, National Association of Black Accountants and the Dillard Alumni Association. It was great to network with young professionals from schools such as Xavier, Dillard, Loyola and LSU.
To me personally, my favorite event was held in December. A toy drive with the New Orleans Black MBA chapter was held, but we also sponsored a member of our Freeman Family. The entire MBA program donated to provide a valued staff member and her family with gifts for Christmas. There were so many students who were influential in making this happen and it was so fulfilling to see a program come together and support someone who is vital to our experience at Tulane. The genuine gratitude of the staff member was extremely humbling.
Our biggest event of the year was in January. The National Football League and 2013 New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee aligned with Tulane Black MBA, New Orleans Black MBA and the Tulane Family Business Center to provide targeted business development content focused on discussing ways to navigate the many challenges facing small businesses. We organized breakout sessions that covered the areas such as Effective Marketing Strategies, Tax Planning, and Access to Capital. Two of the three breakout sessions were facilitated by Tulane alumni. One lucky attendee even won a raffle for two Super Bowl tickets!
It is February now and the next thing on our plate is to be active members in the recruitment of minority students to the MBA program here at Tulane. We have had great conversations with members of Graduate School Admissions about how we can showcase the many opportunities Tulane has to offer. Other upcoming events include career management workshops on negotiating salaries and co-programming with organizations such as The Woman’s MBA.
Overall we have had a great year so far and still have 3 months left in it to provide quality programs that will benefit the entire Tulane community. Often times as students, we have very busy academic schedules and tend to limit activities to just our specific degree or campus. I am proud that our organization’s impact has spread past the walls of our campus community and into the city of New Orleans. We are on a campus in a city where diversity of thought is embraced and where a culture of young and talented African-Americans is flourishing. I am excited to be a part of an organization whose leadership has experienced success in areas such as entrepreneurship, interior design, marketing, finance, healthcare and technology. I am also excited at all the great things our members will experience at Tulane and beyond!
For more updates on general information, past events, photos and upcoming programs check out these links!
National Website: http://www.nbmbaa.org/
Like us on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TulaneBlackMBA
Follow us on twitter: https://twitter.com/TulaneBlackMBA
Sincerely,
Christopher Cobb
President, Tulane Black MBA Association
MBA/MHA 2014
ccobb6@tulane.edu
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