Current Executive Board
Catrina Thompson
President
Catrina M. Thompson came to the Indianapolis Chapter by way of Fort Wayne, Indiana. She has been an active member of the Indianapolis Chapter for over 16 years. Catrina has served on the Indianapolis Chapter’s Board for approximately 12 years serving as Treasurer, Director of Activities and now as VP of Operations. She looks forward to serving on the Board in other positions in the future.
Catrina has over 20 years of experience in the accounting field and 16 years as an independent tax preparer for individuals and small and large companies. She is currently employed by DFAS as a Senior Accountant in Financial Reporting. Catrina strives to be the best that she can be in her professional career. She is pursuing her license as an Enrolled Agent so that she can represent anyone regarding tax issues before the IRS.
Catrina holds a Master of Business degree with concentrations in Accounting and Human Resources and a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.
She is married to Michael and they have one son, Justin who is a high school senior.
(Email: INDYPRES@YAHOO.COM)
Ronnita Baker
VP of Administration
Ronnita Baker earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Indiana Wesleyan and a master’s in technology from Purdue University with a concentration in Organizational Leadership and a Human Resource Development Certification along with a Certification in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Currently, Ronnita is Co-Director of Marketing, where she will work diligently on increasing the visibility of the Indianapolis chapter of the National Black MBA Association. Ronnita has volunteered as a Precious Miss facilitator for CLD, currently serves as President of the Windsor Village Park Advisory Council, a board member of Mercy Unleashed and Womanish Projects. She has started her own non-profit, Serve & Lead, which focuses on leadership development training and consultation. As a servant leader, her goal is to create a thriving leadership culture based on humility, integrity, flexibility, resilience, stewardship and empathy. As a servant leader, she believes in creating a culture that is engaged and productive. She has coached and develop her leadership team to greatness, knowing, “when they win, we win”.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
India Brown
VP of Operations
India M. Brown, MBA, CPC, is a small business owner and entrepreneur. She is the CEO/President of Brown Design & Workflow Creations, LLC, DBA PMPHASE. Her work in healthcare expands over 25 years with a focus on IT project management. Her portfolio includes projects in both healthcare and the legal industry. Working as a project manager she primarily focusses on opportunities and optimization for healthcare revenue cycle management, electronic medical record conversions and implementation. She has a passion for training, education, and development. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degree in Business Administration with a focus in Leadership Development. She is also a certified professional coder (CPC) and an active member of the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC).
India joined the Indianapolis chapter of the National Black MBA Association in September of 2021 and she is ready to proudly direct and support the entrepreneurship pillar. India has multiple affiliations with mentoring and entrepreneur leadership groups. She takes pride in helping innovators find their space to be expressive and confident as they work toward their goals.
India is an avid traveler both domestically and abroad. She and her family enjoy the benefits of learning and engaging in the different cultures around the world. She believes in the power of words and positive energy and how they can be used to uplift and motivate others. Her children, husband and close friends are her source of motivation and spiritual uplifting.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Shanta Thomas
VP of Finance
As the newly elected VP of Finance (early 2020), Shanta Thomas joined the Indianapolis Chapter of the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) in 2019. She’s an innovative and driven accounting professional with over 20 years’ experience. Her knowledge in corporate finance is key to the chapter by taking on the responsibility in collecting funds and maintaining financial records. Alongside the Chapter President, Shanta will also assist in establishing a sustainable financial reporting framework and coordinate the development of the Indianapolis chapter budget. Shanta strives in taking on challenges, recently promoted to the Giftcard Financial Fraud Analyst with Simon Property Group, whom she’s been employed with for 17 years, in this capacity she combines her expertise to mitigate internal and external fraud associated with the giftcard program. She is vital in assisting the program reconcile over a billion dollar in sales as the Giftcard Senior Bookkeeper a role she maintains in unison with her promotion. Shanta, an Indiana native, was raised in Noblesville during her early childhood, her family’s legacy Roberts Settlement.org remains one of the oldest historically black rural communities in Hamilton County, north of Indianapolis, where she currently resides. Shanta has a BA from The University of Indianapolis and is currently attending Florida Atlantic University pursuing her MBA in Forensic Accounting. A member of Eastern Star Church for 23 years, Shanta has volunteered her time with the Rock Fresh Market. Shanta is the proud mother of two sons Antonio who attends Prairie View A&M and Franklin attends Eastern Kentucky. In her downtime, Shanta enjoys to fellowship, cook, and travel with family and friends.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Madelynn Dowdy Moody
VP of Records
Madelynn Dowdy Moody, MBA is an active member of the National Black MBA Association – Indianapolis Chapter. Madelynn has been a member with the chapter since 2012. She is seeking to serve the chapter in the role of VP of Records (Secretary).
Madelynn has 15+ years of experience in Engineering, Business, and Project/ Program Management. Those years were served working in roles in Pharmaceutical, Construction, Manufacturing, Automotive, Government Contracts, and SW Controls. Madelynn has also devoted 8 years of military service in the US Navy.
Madelynn obtained a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue School of Engineering and a Master’s degree (MBA) in Applied Business Management from Indiana Wesleyan University. Madelynn has several years volunteering her time as Pre-College Initiative Chair for NSBE-Indianapolis Alumni Professionals, as an Executive Board member of Minority Engineering Program of Indianapolis, MEPI, and as Secretary of Cummins Power Speakers Toastmasters Club.
Madelynn has 4 children, Jasmine, Raven, James and Aaron.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Starla Trigg
Immediate Past President
Starla is a lifetime member of the organization. She has been an active member of the Chapter since joining as a student member. Starla is a past local scholarship recipient. She's held various Chapter leadership positions including: VP of Administration, VP of Operations, 2012 National Conference Planning Team - Education Chair, Director of Membership and Board Member-at-Large. Starla works hard to ensure Chapter goals are achieved & new strategies are implemented to benefit members and partners. She is a business leader, with a diverse background in education, Human Resources, retail and consumer products. Starla is passionate about diversity & inclusion, training and helping others reach their full potential. Starla holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Hampton University and a Masters of Business Administration degree from Indiana Wesleyan University. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. - Alpha Mu Omega Chapter. Other affiliations include: Diversity Roundtable of Central Indiana and IndySHRM. Starla loves listening to music, playing tennis and golf, traveling, reading and professional development. Becoming a voiceover actor is on her bucket list. Feel free to contact Starla at: (Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org).
Sandra Day
VP of Education
Establishing my services on a foundation of integrity, I am a highly dedicated Business Consultant who possesses the skill and passion necessary to help aspiring professionals/startups reach new levels of sustainable success. To date, I hold an extensive background involving the intricacies of leadership development, organizational growth, credit/marketing accentuation, and inspiring healthy mindset transformations, and continuously leverage that dynamicity to guide my clients on cultivating the high-performing business future they deserve.
Born and raised in a single-family home with my sister and brother, I learned early on the core value of resilience and a strong work ethic. Part of that stems from my natural-born progressive nature and the other from understanding that in order to get ahead in life, you must put in the work to make it happen. This, along with my rooted appreciation for all things growth and development, became the catalyst for me to attend college to begin my career in Business Administration while my siblings pursued serving in the Army. Upon earning my associate's degree in Business and a bachelor's in Education, I spent the next 15 years working across various organizations, proactively gaining a solid track record of exceeding pipeline goals while maintaining internal scaling profitability.
In addition to boosting department-wide performance and fostering mutually beneficial results, I have also gained a strong reputation throughout for my specializations revolving around executing full-scale operational improvements and advancing workplace cultures. Now taking that with me to the business consulting space, I have since intertwined my near two decades of startup expeditions and history working as a Childcare Director/ teacher, life coach, and mentor to help others raise the bar for their businesses, their teams, and ensure a profitable path forward.
As a consultant fueled by helping others succeed, I have a genuine passion for translating startup objectives into tangible realities and doing so while ensuring everyone across the organizational pipeline has positive constructive experiences along the way. From creating unique business plans to leadership optimization, I ultimately demonstrate my efforts by delivering actionable, strategic, innovative, and tailored support that unlocks bottom-up potential and solidifies scaling futures. Because in the end, every startup business and ambitious entrepreneur has what it takes to excel within their market with the right mindset and brand executions - and sometimes all it takes is attaining qualified perspectives from a consultant you can trust to both recognize and capitalize on that.
Overall, my career is my passion and I am always staying updated with the current market and business trends to ensure my clients receive the opulent service and results they merit. I am diligent, efficient, and an endorsed business consultant who takes pride in positioning my clients up for success as they navigate across the competitive market. However, when I am not working, you can often find me swimming, skating, playing kickball and softball, hiking, traveling, and above all, spending time with my husband, our three children, and my bonus children.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Current Committee Directors
Michael Florence
Director, Corporate Partners
As Corporate Partnership Development Director, Michael (and his committee) is charged with retaining current corporate partners, developing new corporate partners and attempt to re-capture partners who have fallen by the wayside.
He has held a number of positions within the chapter during his 20 year membership, such as: board member at-large, fundraising committee chair, activities committee chair, secretary, newsletter and website editor, chapter president and immediate past president. He has chaired the “Leaders of Tomorrow” Golf Outing for the chapter in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2014 – 2016; and most recently in 2017, the “Diversity Golf Classic.” Michael has also chaired the “Corporate Reception” committee and has also led the committee charged with executing a chapter signature event called “A View from the Top.”
Michael is a Lease Accounting Specialist for Simon Property Group, where he has worked for eighteen years. In this position, he monitors and maintains the scanning of Real Estate Tax, Insurance and Common Area Maintenance (CAM) files; as well as processing and scanning of documents and acts as a liaison between the Financial Operations departments within Simon Property Group.
Previously, for over ten years, Michael was the Central Files/Copy Center Manager where he was charged with overseeing the day-to-day operations of both areas and any affected areas within Simon Property Group.
He also served two terms as president of the Simon Employee Association. An internal organization within Simon, that puts on events and programs for the employees.
Michael received his Associate’s degree in accounting from Ivy Tech in 1983; his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan University in 1993 and Masters Degree in Business Administration degree in 1997 from Indiana Wesleyan University.
A native of Indianapolis, Indiana; Michael attends St. Joan of Arc Church, is an avid photographer, who shoots weddings, portraits and other special events. He is also the proud father of a son Richard 30, a daughter Danielle 27 and “youthful” grandfather to 10 year old, Nyla Renee Florence, 8 year old Victoria Amari Florence and 2 month old Olivia Danielle Florence.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Michael Washington
Director, Technology
Michael’s professional career has been extensively within the information technology arena. He has provided technological solutions for higher/secondary education, health care, law firms and the United States government. He has held positions as a district manager, senior systems analyst and database administrator. His skills are extremely vast, differentiated and encompass various levels in the technology realm.
He joined the Indianapolis chapter of the National Black MBA Association in 2012 as a means to connect with other professionals outside of the technology field. In that time, he has provided website maintenance and updates since 2011, and he has accepted the responsibilities of the membership (until Sept 2022), and the technology director positions for the local chapter.
Educationally, he has a bachelor’s degree in computer science and an MBA with concentrations in management and health care management.
He is a lifetime learner and his passion is financial education and literacy, particularly for communities that are underserved by mainstream financial institutions. Hence, he has attained a life insurance license and is a life insurance producer. His goal is to inform minority populations of the importance of obtaining term life insurance outside of their employer’s life insurance policy.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Dawn Evans-Casey
Co-Director, Entrepreneurship
Dawn Evans-Casey is excited to fill the role of Director of Entrepreneurship. In this capacity, she shares her enthusiasm for turning dreams to reality. She actively leads the planning and direction of entrepreneurial education and economic progress initiatives while also developing and maintaining close working relationships with statewide entrepreneurship and professional organizations.
Dawn is the Owner/Certified Agent of SPA Travel and Wellness, a full service travel agency. She is also the President of Collaborating Connections, a local professional development and networking group for small businesses. She is a full-time Senior Auditor with a local insurance company, and the Founder of Claiming Your Roots, a genealogy and family history educational outreach nonprofit.
She is a HBCU graduate of Talladega College and holds a Master’s of Science in Management from Indiana Wesleyan University. Dawn is a long time member of the Indianapolis chapter of NBMBAA and has held several leadership positions including Director of Activities and VP of Finance.
Dawn’s philosophies are “Enjoy What You Do” and “Make a Positive Difference”. She is an active member of various professional and community organizations. She is married with 3 grown children and 2 grandchildren. Dawn grew up in Detroit Michigan but has called Indiana home for many years.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
LaTanya McCann
Director, LOT Program
Since its inception in 1991, the NBMBAA® Leaders of Tomorrow® Program has mentored more than 8,000 talented youth aspiring to leadership roles in professional fields. The LOT® Program is a comprehensive programmatic approach for providing leadership development to high school students. The program is driven by mentoring across five developmental areas: Leadership, Financial Literacy, College Preparation, Career Preparation and Life Skills. The program offers participants resources, knowledge and opportunities in the way of mentoring relationships, scholarships, and internships. (Email: indylot@yahoo.com)
India Brown
Co-Director, Entrepreneurship
India M. Brown, MBA, CPC, is a small business owner and entrepreneur. She is the CEO/President of Brown Design & Workflow Creations, LLC, DBA PMPHASE. Her work in healthcare expands over 25 years with a focus on IT project management. Her portfolio includes projects in both healthcare and the legal industry. Working as a project manager she primarily focusses on opportunities and optimization for healthcare revenue cycle management, electronic medical record conversions and implementation. She has a passion for training, education, and development. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degree in Business Administration with a focus in Leadership Development. She is also a certified professional coder (CPC) and an active member of the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC).
India joined the Indianapolis chapter of the National Black MBA Association in September of 2021 and she is ready to proudly direct and support the entrepreneurship pillar. India has multiple affiliations with mentoring and entrepreneur leadership groups. She takes pride in helping innovators find their space to be expressive and confident as they work toward their goals.
India is an avid traveler both domestically and abroad. She and her family enjoy the benefits of learning and engaging in the different cultures around the world. She believes in the power of words and positive energy and how they can be used to uplift and motivate others. Her children, husband and close friends are her source of motivation and spiritual uplifting.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Aaron Chandler
Director of Marketing
Aaron Chandler is a video producer, director, and video marketing strategist with over ten years of experience in media production. His love for cinematography and photography fueled the launch of PreciseTake, where he works with a wide array of clientele from SMBs, nonprofit organizations and large corporations. Aaron believes video is vital to the success of every brand. At PreciseTake, Aaron's committed to helping companies tell their story and drive results with engaging and high-quality videos. Connect with Aaron today and find out how you can be seen, build trust and compel your target audience to take action.
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Travis Caughman
Director, Membership
Travis Caughman, born in Columbia, SC, is a Human Resources professional with 15+ years of experience. He received his BA in History from South Carolina State University and his MBA w/HR concentration from Southern New Hampshire University. Travis also honorably served our country as a US Army officer. He currently works as an Account Manager/Executive Recruiter in the staffing industry. As a Human Resources professional, he is dedicated to the professional and personal growth of others as well as himself.
(Email: IndyMember@MyYahoo.com)
Gregory Meriweather
DIRECTOR, COMMUNITY RELATIONS
Gregory Meriweather is a native and life-long resident of Indianapolis. As a community ambassador, entrepreneur, business and community consultant, Meriweather is a balanced business professional and civic engagement volunteer who has advocated for and mobilized the Indianapolis community for over two decades. He believes service and leadership are best demonstrated by walking alongside members of the community, engaging in transparent conversations, thinking collaboratively to resolve conflict, and implementing effective programs and systems that support the needs of the Indianapolis citizens.
Meriweather champions education, safety, equity, access, opportunity, justice, and community development. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Marian University in Indianapolis, and has experience and training in business management, crime prevention strategy, public safety, media communication, and community leadership.
Indianapolis Community Engagement & Relationships
As an active listener to the concerns of the Indianapolis community, Meriweather has utilized his experience and training in relationship building and collaborative leadership to promote change. As the Strategic Initiatives Liaison for the City of Indianapolis, Meriweather worked directly with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) to strengthen its community relation efforts and assist the community in engagement strategies with IMPD.
The voice of the Indianapolis community has been elevated through Meriweather’s current and previous work with the following entities:
• Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department – Consultant to Police Chief
• Indiana Black Expo – Host of “The Expo Show”
• Indianapolis Recorder – Opinion Writer
• “The Greg Meriweather Show” – Host
• National Black MBA Association, Inc. Leadership Team – Director, Community Relations
• Children’s Policy and Law Initiatives of Indiana – Former Board Member
• Community Health Charities – Former Board Member
• Atkins Boys & Girls Clubs – Former Board Member
Entrepreneur & Corporate Experience
Meriweather is the founder of Meriweather Consultants, a firm offering advisory and consulting services in business strategy, marketing, communication, and messaging. He has providing consulting services for community leaders, public service departments, and faith-based organizations. Meriweather also serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Black on Black Network, an internet radio and online platform for informative dialogue.
Meriweather has over 25 years of budget and team management experience with multiple Fortune 500 companies.
Supporter of Grassroots Initiatives in Indianapolis
Meriweather connects with the young and adult citizens of Indianapolis by attending, supporting, or innovating community development programs.
• 2016 “Link for Life” Movement – Innovator
• “I Am Your Brother, I am Your Sister” IBE Campaign – Innovator
• Center for Leadership Development – Speaker
• EVOLVE Youth Conference – Speaker
• Young Men’s Inc. Youth Conference – Speaker
• Bloom Project King’s Feast – Speaker
• Marian University Byrum School of Business – Mentor and Speaker
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Chuck Franks
Director of Programming
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Open
Director, Scholarship
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)
Open
Director, Collegiate Relations
(Email: information@nbmbaa-indy.org)