I first came to the Wisconsin School of Business in 10th grade to spend the remaining of my high school summers learning all there is to know about what makes a Business Emerging Leader (BEL). My time in Madison for my BEL summers, BBA Program, and now the Master of Arts-Business: Arts and Creative Enterprise Leadership Program has me sentimental about calling myself not only a BEL Scholar and a Business Badger, but a Bolzie!
Becoming a Bolzie has been a goal of mine for years because my entire life has been rooted in principles of charity and community development in my role as a foster sister to over fifty kids through the Safe Families program. I chose to attend the Bolz Center because the MA-ACE Leadership Program offers the curriculum to support my personally held values, and I finally get to explore the arts world within the scope of my business degree. The curriculum includes classes in consulting and leadership – applicable to EVERY organization in any field, and Non-Profit Board Leadership where we are placed directly on a board as a non-voting member. The program has connected me with board experience with Art + Literature Laboratory where they’ve welcomed me as a Bolz Fellow, Bayview Foundation where I act as a consultant alongside other Bolzies in their redevelopment project, and with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra where I work as a Development Relations Associate in my Applied Learning Placement. All these experiences and classes are culminating to prepare me for leadership in the creative field, something I did not expect to feel remotely prepared for just months after graduation from the BBA Program.
In the MA-ACE Leadership program, I feel seen in every aspect of my education and professional development. My passion for diverse inclusivity that developed while working as an Outreach and Engagement Intern in the Business Multicultural Center is further strengthened with the centralized Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility (IDEA) and Social JEDI frameworks in the program. My passion and interest for the intersection of tech and art are encouraged in the electives I am able to take. My entrepreneurial aspirations of one day owning a bee product business have been supported through a scholarship in memory of former Director Sherry Wagner-Henry.
The MA-ACE Leadership Program is providing me with endless opportunities to deepen my current understanding of what it means to be a business leader and connect me with inspiring individuals in the Bolz alumni network and my current cohort. I am beyond grateful to call myself a BEL Scholar, Business Badger, and a Bolzie!
Categories: