BAC Helped Me See Myself Here

Before I got involved, ASU felt enormous to me in a way that was more overwhelming than inspiring. Everyone talks about the size of the university like it automatically means opportunity, and in some ways it does. But when you are still trying to figure out where you fit, size can also make you feel anonymous. I had classes, deadlines, and places to be, but I did not yet have a real sense of where I belonged beyond my schedule. I heard about BAC early on, but at first I thought it was one of those things I would maybe check out later when life got less busy. The truth is that life at ASU does not really get less busy. If anything, it gets easier to drift without ever building strong connections. I finally went to an event because a friend invited me, and what struck me right away was how intentional the space felt. People were not just showing up to socialize. They were creating community with purpose. What I appreciated most was that BAC did not make support feel abstract. I met students who could tell me where they found mentorship, which organizations helped them grow as leaders, and what events made campus feel smaller in a good way. I learned that community was not limited to one personality type or one version of Black student life. There were students interested in policy, health care, business, art, graduate school, faith, social life, and service. It gave me a fuller picture of what Black student presence at ASU actually looks like. That mattered because I had started to internalize the idea that I was supposed to figure everything out individually. Once I got connected, I realized how much strength there is in shared knowledge. People told me where to study, where to ask questions, which events were worth going to, and how to move through campus without feeling like I had to invent belonging from scratch. Even simple things, like knowing where Black students gather or which organizations aligned with my interests, made the campus feel more navigable. Community also changed my confidence. I spoke differently in class once I stopped feeling like I was carrying every conversation alone. I advocated for myself more clearly when I knew I had people behind me. I started thinking not just about surviving ASU but about shaping my experience here in a way that felt meaningful and affirming. When people ask why spaces like BAC matter, I think they often expect an answer about social events alone. The real answer is bigger than that. BAC helped me see that support, visibility, leadership, and belonging are connected. It gave me a way to imagine myself not as someone passing through ASU quietly, but as someone who was allowed to take up space here fully.