IU sophomore Calvin Woods attended his first IU involvement fair last year and, like many students, wanted to explore student organizations he might want to join. But he was unable to find a club he was interested in. Instead, he walked away with something more personal, a slip of paper in his own handwriting and a plan.
“Look into a Black men’s mental health organization,” it read.
Just a month later, his idea took shape. Woods and a small group of his peers created Black Men Evolve by hosting its first event called The Evolution Summit. The event featured free haircuts, games, free clothes, headshots, resume building and interview workshops.
Woods said they had about 250 people attend their first-ever event in 2023. He got in his car that day and cried because of how good the turnout was.
Since then, BME has created its own campus presence by promoting mental wellbeing, leadership, professional development, personal growth and unity among Black men at IU.
Almost two years after its founding, BME was named the 2024-25 Student Organization of the Year at the IU Student Leadership and Involvement Student Organization Awards on April 17.
“When we give a full description of what we do and the impact we’ve made, there’s not very many organizations that you could put on the same pedestal as us,” Woods said. “It very hard to get men in general involved and so when I see a room full of Black men engaged and actually paying attention it is very rewarding and affirming.”
From the beginning, Woods said, he had a strategic plan for how he wanted BME to run. Instead of general body meetings, the organization tries to offer a variety of events throughout the year.
Events like Barbershop Talk and Affirmation Thursday provide spaces for members to relax and have healthy discussion. Other activities have included guest speakers and tours, including one at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the 30th anniversary of the Brickyard 400 race.
“We had a connection in Indy with guy that helps turns children into authors and he came down to teach us,” Woods said. “I became like a published children’s book author and everything, so we create a lot of opportunities.”
Next year, Woods will be stepping down as president of BME and passing it to junior Christopher Buck, now the external vice president for BME. However, Woods still plans to be heavily involved in the organization as he assumes his new role as student adviser.
“I’m going to step down as the president so that he can flourish in a different light and allow somebody else’s vision to grow,” Woods said. “Next year, I want to see it just grow beyond IU campus.”
During Buck’s freshman year, he joined an organization at IU that was also tailored to Black men. However, by his sophomore year he felt the organization didn’t have a presence anymore. Woods then came to him and pitched BME.
“Just being Black men on campus, we don’t really know our niche or know or space,” Buck said. “I think it’s important to create a space to show that incoming Black men and Black men that are already here that we have this space to be here for one another.”
According to IU’s institutional analytics, 4.7% of undergraduate degree seeking students at IU Bloomington in 2024 are Black. Being involved in BME has helped Buck connect with more of that percentage.
“I would say being a part of BME has helped me learn how to lead a team of people who look like me but also have different opinions and ideologies,” Buck said. “Also, just kind of learning how to be there for one another and grow and evolve with each other.”
As Buck transitions from external vice president to president, he hopes to build off of the many existing events and initiatives created by BME this year. He also hopes to increase engagement among incoming students and find new ways to provide a positive impact on as many people as possible.
“I saw a statistic that said about only 27% percent of Black men receive a college degree, so I think winning organization of the year just kind of combated that,” Buck said. “It shows that Black men are here on campus and are trying to make an impact outside of just being regular college students.”
