How Michigan Ross Students in Out For Business Are Celebrating Pride This Year
The LGBTQIA2S+ community has been historically underrepresented in the business world. Groups like Out for Business are fighting to change that at the Ross School of Business and in the larger business community.
OFB, the official lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender student association at Michigan Ross, aims to build a strong, diverse community of LGBTQIA2S+ and ally students where all feel valued and supported. OFB serves its community in countless ways, from providing professional development and career resource opportunities to members to raising awareness among Ross faculty, staff, and students of the issues, experiences, and intersectional identities among the LGBTQIA2S+ community in the workplace and in society at large.
June is Pride Month, which honors the progress of the LGBTQIA2S+ Rights Movement and celebrates members of the community.
To help celebrate the Michigan Ross LGBTQIA2S+ community this year, we asked four BBA students to share their experiences celebrating Pride, being OFB members, and navigating business school.
Michael Hartt (he/him)
Program/Year: BBA ‘25
Hometown: Detroit, MI
Post-graduation career interest: Tax policy/tax law
How are you celebrating Pride Month this year?
I am celebrating Pride Month by advocating for the expansion of LGBTQIA2S+ rights, while also celebrating my own journey toward liberation. I am attending local pride events, engaging in conversations to expand Out for Business’ efforts to make Ross an inclusive space for LGBTQIA2S+ individuals, and educating myself about LGBTQIA2S+ history by reading Crip Theory and The Gay Revolution: The Story of the Struggle. I am most excited to attend the New York City Pride Parade for the first time, where I will be spending the day with many of my OFB friends.
How has being a member of OFB impacted your experience in the BBA program?
My involvement in OFB has transformed both my college experience, and more holistically, my life. Before attending my first OFB meeting, I had no access to queer mentors, and had never known enough queer people to form an in-group community. Throughout my first year, I slowly became more comfortable with my identity, as I finally had a community to celebrate it with me. The professional and academic development opportunities I have ascertained from OFB have also had a tremendous impact on my college experience, informing me of opportunities both in and out of Ross that I would not have otherwise known were available to me.
Do you have any advice for prospective LGBTQIA2S+ business school students?
Lean into the LGBTQIA2S+ business community — we exist and we are here for you.
Throughout high school, I constantly evaluated my career path through the context of where I thought I would be most accepted. This led me to hesitate to pursue business, and almost led me to choose another field to specialize in. While the business community has significantly increased its progressive stances on LGBTQ+ liberation in just the past few years, even then, my premonition was misguided. You should always prioritize passion and potential for positive impact above anything else. If these impulses lead you to pursue business, know that there are queer resources and connections in every recruiting space.
How can the Michigan Ross community support the LGBTQIA2S+ community?
Use empathy effectively. The hardship that LGBTQIA2S+ individuals encounter is not often explicitly recognizable. It can manifest from complicated family dynamics, unaffirming friends, microaggressions, institutionalized discrimination, religious guilt, internalized hate, bullying — anything and everything. Understand that you may not know the journey that someone has taken to express their identity. This realization should inform how you use words and actions to affirm the queer people in your life.
Mark G Plunkett II (he/him)
Program/Year: BBA ‘24
Hometown: Libertyville, IL
Post-graduation career interest: Management consulting
How are you celebrating Pride Month this year?
Pride is every day! By being unapologetically authentic, especially in regards to my gender identity and sexual orientation, I achieve the goals of the confused version of my former self. While Pride Month serves as a period of celebrating the change that the world has made in terms of acceptance for the LGBTQIA2S+ community, there is so much work to be done. Further, the occurrence of performative activism within Pride Month invalidates the LGBTQIA2S+ community.
In this regard, I plan to learn more about my allyship and identity through attending Pride events in Chicago and helping plan my firm’s presence in the Chicago 2023 Pride parade. Through educating ourselves and others about the LGBTQIA2S+ community we are able to continue the strides that activists like Marsha P. Johnson, RuPaul Charles, Billie Jean King, and many others have made.
What has been your favorite part of being an OFB member?
While navigating the business world is tough in itself, finding space for diverse identities in a new environment lends its own set of challenges. This semester, I was so pleased to team up with my GLAM buddy, Dan Soper, to host a Consulting 101 and McKinsey & Company GLAM x OFB event to help members learn about the world of consulting and the firm. Through this, we were able to help students overcome barriers that would have prevented a younger version of myself from learning about my potential. All it takes is one step, one yes, or one event, to completely change one’s mindset.
How has being a member of OFB impacted your experience in the BBA program?
Having a queer community on campus has not only brought me closer to the coolest people ever, but also educated me about the nuances of intersectionality in the queer community. I think that it is my duty to learn more about other underrepresented identities. By curating my BBA program experience to include these diverse individuals, I am able to hold diversity, equity, and inclusion to a high regard. Lastly, arguably most importantly, these individuals contribute heavily to the many laughs, smiles, and happy memories that I have enjoyed at Michigan Ross.
Do you have any advice for prospective LGBTQIA2S+ business school students?
“You must always have faith in others, but most importantly, you must always have faith in yourself.” - Elle Woods, Legally Blonde
Maddie Wilson (she/her)
Program/Year: BBA ‘25
Hometown: Lafayette, CA
Post-graduation career interest: Marketing/advertising and film
How are you celebrating Pride Month this year?
This year I’m celebrating Pride by spending time with the lovely people I’ve surrounded myself with. From members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community to beloved allies, I feel grateful to have such a strong community in my corner.
What has been your favorite part of being an OFB member?
I love every part of being an OFB member. The professional opportunities, networking, and career help are unmatched. Yet at the end of the day, the thing I am most grateful for is simply the community that it provides. There is no better feeling than being surrounded by intelligent, driven, fellow queer folks who I get to call my friends.
How can the Michigan Ross community support the LGBTQIA2S+ community?
I believe the first step to supporting the LGBTQIA2S+ community is also the first step to supporting anyone: a conversation. A conversation can build the foundation of understanding, and that understanding is all we really need. I believe if we all take a few extra moments out of our day to listen and learn someone's story, those differences will start to fade and we will be surprised with the beautiful similarities that lie beneath.
Do you have any advice for prospective LGBTQIA2S+ business school students?
For any LGBTQIA2S+ students out there looking for a business school, know that it’s okay to prioritize your identity. Choose a place that you will feel uplifted and supported. Beyond that, know that within any space you WILL be able to find your pocket of a community, and I cannot stress how essential that is! Surround yourself with other queer folks who have different backgrounds and stories and you will feel overjoyed at how diverse and wonderful this community really is.
Anonymous
Program/Year: BBA ‘26
Hometown: Princeton, New Jersey
Post-graduation career interest: Marketing in fashion
What has been your favorite part of being an OFB member?
My favorite part of OFB is the culture that this club develops. There has never been any judgment or assumption made by any of the members. We constantly repeat that this club is open to everyone and there has never been any pressure to present a certain way or identify with something. Because of this environment, I have been able to interact with diverse individuals and expand my own cultural knowledge. I believe all of this is a conscious effort, especially by the officers, which shows the values of the club and its members.
How can the Michigan Ross community support the LGBTQIA2S+ community?
For Ross to become a more inclusive space, it is the little things that count. Within the clubs, it becomes more important to highlight diversity. The general courtesy of asking people’s names and pronouns should become a norm. I believe these things can be achieved through involvement in DEI clubs like the DEI committee and OFB because these spaces don’t just serve to educate, but also create connections with diverse individuals which later fosters greater support for not just the LGBTQIA2S+ community but also other diverse groups of people that can benefit from a more inclusive space.
Do you have any advice for prospective LGBTQIA2S+ business school students?
For starters, join OFB! But on a more serious note, do not be afraid to express yourself. I found that college was a good start to expressing myself more freely so this is definitely an opportunity. Additionally, there will be times when your identity might cause discomfort to other people— please know that such a situation is never your fault. If anything, you should be commended for advocating for yourself and educating others. Lastly, business can seem like a very not queer-friendly space, but in my experience, I have found there to be a ton of diversity within Ross and U-M. Don’t be afraid to explore more of these diverse spaces.
Matthew Trevor, Senior PR Specialist
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