Hundreds of Kelley students attended, browsed and selected clothing to build their professional wardrobes.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – On May 4, thousands of students will walk at Indiana University Commencement and at school recognition ceremonies, proudly wearing their caps and gowns.
For some students at the Kelley School of Business, their future career success received a boost from how they presented themselves to corporate recruiters, including professional attire they received through a new student-led initiative.
In January, Kelley Student Government hosted the inaugural Professional Dress Closet for business and pre-business students. Through generous donations from faculty, staff, alumni and corporate partners, students were able to “shop” from a wide variety of professional dress clothes, with an emphasis on inclusivity in sizes and styles.
Bridget Stomberg
Students were invited to visit the Conrad Prebys Career Services Center on Jan. 18-19 to choose a complete business professional outfit at no cost to them.
“The event was extraordinarily well attended,” said Bridget Stomberg, faculty chair of the Undergraduate Program, a professor of accounting and the Glaubinger Chair for Undergraduate Leadership at Kelley.
Hundreds of students shopping the event were surprised to find an array of clothing options that were as diverse and wide-ranging as the Kelley student body itself, and the event had overwhelming support from faculty who teach courses that require business professional attire for presentations.
“We are extremely proud of the students who envisioned, championed, and organized this event, which we hope will become an annual tradition,” Stomberg said. “We believe the event will help reduce barriers to success and enhance students’ feelings of belonging at Kelley.”
The project was the brainchild of Ajith Amba, outgoing president of Kelley Student Government and a graduating senior majoring in finance, accounting, and business analytics; and Eknoor Sethi, the outgoing KSG vice president and a senior majoring in management and law, ethics, and decision-making.
Ajith Amba
During their administration, Amba said he and Sethi were looking to address diversity issues in the student body, and “specifically fill in the gaps of where administration or faculty are unable to touch.” That included advocating for and collaborating with the Dean’s Office to offer professional dress wear to all students who need it.
“Thanks to the efforts of the dean’s office, Kelley Student Government, and, of course, the alumni and the career services office, we were able to give clothing away to about 500 people,” Amba said in a video announcing his selection for the university’s P.J. and Hilda W. Hill Award.
“That clothing now is used for internships, to use for club interviews,” he added. “The greatest part is every so often we now get notes from students that were affected, saying, “thank you so much. I got this opportunity, and it’s all because of a starting point of wearing this type of clothing.”
The Hill Award goes to outstanding seniors on the IU Bloomington campus who have done the most to “better race relationships on the IU campus” during their undergraduate career.
Amba said the project wouldn’t have been successful without the support of his fellow Kelley Students Ellory Smith, Logan Tobery and Anay Terala. He also thanked Kelley professional staff Ben Taylor, senior director of the Undergraduate Program; Rebecca Cook, executive director of career services; and and Muge Tuna, director of employer engagement & strategic partnerships.
Students Mia Wayne, left, and Ellory Smith stand at the entrance to Kelley’s Closet
Mia Wayne, an economic consulting, and business analytics student, helped organize clothes and worked to put clothing racks together and set up the event.
“Feeling prepared is extremely important, especially for an interview. The phrase ‘look good, feel good’ is one I most definitely agree with,” Wayne said. “Being well dressed for an occasion can add an element of confidence that is needed within a professional setting.”
She said students had quite an impressive selection of clothes to choose from. “Although I didn’t take anything myself, there were a few articles of clothing that I definitely had my eye on,” she said.
The Professional Dress Closet project complemented another initiative that Sethi pushed for – in collaboration with Out at Kelley — a professional attire guidebook.
“This was one of my favorite moments at Kelley because I got to see the impact it was making and the people it was affecting,” Eknoor said in a 2023 interview. “I got to work a lot on my allyship in that position. I don’t experience what they face, but I can try to put myself in their shoes and give them a voice if they don’t have one.”