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Butler Students Learn Salesforce Skills Through Free Course, Thanks to Local Alumni
By Katie Grieze
With more than 150,000 companies using Salesforce, and recent estimates showing that the platform’s ecosystem will generate millions of new jobs by the year 2024, new graduates entering marketing, sales, IT, and similar fields are likely to encounter the software at some point in their careers.
Most employees need to learn Salesforce skills on the job. But during the past academic year at Butler University, students have had the opportunity to build a foundation of Salesforce experience in the classroom through a free course taught by Butler alumni.
Alli Gunderson ’17, who majored in Economics while at Butler, now serves as a Salesforce Consultant with Wipro. In her day-to-day role, she works with clients to find ways that Salesforce products can meet business needs, then provides guidance on how to implement and use the platform. She draws on that experience, as well as the formalized Salesforce training Wipro provides for new hires, to teach in-demand skills to Butler students.
“I’m excited to be teaching Salesforce, getting people learning it before they come into their jobs,” Gunderson says. “The Salesforce ecosystem is booming, so this course gets students familiar with the software.”
Through a partnership between Butler and Wipro, the non-credit course is offered through Butler’s Office of Career and Professional Success (CaPS). With three hours of live instruction each week, lessons cover the basics of customer relationship management (CRM)—a process that helps companies organize their relationships and interactions with current and potential customers. Gunderson says students are also prepared to take Salesforce’s administrator certification exam, and completing the course even allows them to waive the $200 exam fee.
Sarah Berk ’16, who graduated from Butler with majors in Management Information Systems and Marketing, passed her certification exam a couple months after completing Butler’s Salesforce course (which is also open to alumni) last fall. Currently an Enterprise Support Specialist at email marketing software company Cheetah Digital, she had used Salesforce in the past and was eager for the opportunity to learn more.
“The course was really helpful in giving me the foundations to pass the test,” Berk says. “It provided realistic examples to better my understanding. In addition to learning all about administering Salesforce’s service and sales consoles, I learned about setting permissions and all the various ways Salesforce is and can be used. I'm hoping to apply my knowledge at my current position, being able to advise and assist with our own Salesforce Administration.”
While Gunderson is the primary course instructor, she often invites guest speakers from a variety of departments within Wipro, connecting students with new topics and perspectives.
“This course instilled me with platform basics that I’ll take throughout my career, but the Salesforce community’s kindness impacted me just as greatly,” says junior Strategic Communication major Sofia Yarbrough, who took the course that just wrapped up this spring. “Every guest speaker spent extra time helping students with career qualms and genuinely wanted the best for all of us. One speaker connected me with a market analyst colleague after class, which I so appreciated. I look forward to using Salesforce in the future, and I appreciate Alli for teaching me the basics.”
Yarbrough chose to enroll in the course after discovering an interest for market analytics. She saw this as a chance to gain experience that would help her stand out.
“Every marketing professional I spoke with agreed that Salesforce has changed the CRM game,” she says. “I knew knowledge of this database would help prepare me for any marketing position.”
Qahir Lakha ’19, another Butler graduate who previously worked at Wipro as an Associate Consultant, says this course also helps build a talent pipeline from Butler to Wipro. After Lakha graduated from Butler with majors in Psychology and Philosophy, he joined Wipro and completed the company’s three-month Salesforce consulting “boot camp.” He says the content from that training (along with modules from Trailhead) inspired the development of the Salesforce course for Butler, so future recruits to Wipro and other companies utilizing Salesforce will already have learned these valuable skills—putting them a step ahead.
“We know that Butler is always wanting to be on the cutting edge,” Lakha says. “They want to be an innovative school, so they were the perfect partner for this course. Getting this class established was one of the smoother projects I’ve been involved in, and that’s all thanks to Butler leadership.”
Currently, Wipro’s Salesforce course is offered exclusively at Butler, and Gunderson says there aren’t many other courses like it around the world. But since the course was first announced, Gunderson has received inquiries about how other universities can emulate this program. After teaching CRM skills to 20 Butler students over the course’s first year, the team plans to return for future semesters, continuing to provide students with an outlet to grow.
The Salesforce certification course is open to Butler students of all majors, as well as alumni. Those who are interested in enrolling should contact the CaPS Office at career@butler.edu.
Butler Students Learn Salesforce Skills Through Free Course, Thanks to Local Alumni
Butler alumni from Wipro’s Indy-based Salesforce Practice team are teaching students the basics of customer relationship management
Butler alumni from Wipro’s Indy-based Salesforce Practice team are teaching students the basics of customer relationship management
After 25 Years at Butler, Provost Morris Named President of St. Lawrence University
By Jennifer Gunnels
Twenty-five years after joining the Butler University faculty as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Kathryn Morris will be leaving Butler at the end of May to take on a new role as President of St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, on July 1.
As the University’s head of Academic Affairs, Morris has managed more than 65 undergraduate and 15 graduate programs, overseeing Butler’s 380 faculty and 200 academic staff. She joined the Butler faculty in 1996 and served as Chair of the Department of Psychology from 2007–2011. In 2012, shortly after Butler President Jim Danko’s arrival, Morris was promoted to Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, a role that became permanent in 2013.
Danko says he was confident in naming Morris to the role despite a lack of prior administrative experience as a dean or associate provost because of leadership qualities he observed in her during his initial days at Butler.
“Kate demonstrated a number of positive attributes that immediately resonated with me, including academic experience and insights, that counter-balanced my own,” Danko says. “She struck me as someone who was thoughtful, measured in approach, and respected by her colleagues. Over the years, Kate’s leadership abilities have flourished, and there’s no doubt she’ll be an excellent president.”
Though she was surprised at the time to be offered the Provost position, Morris was eager to take on the new challenge and felt encouraged after talking to her father, who himself had served as a Professor of Psychology and Provost at Denison University. Morris says she has deeply enjoyed her work as Provost for the past nine years, and she feels especially proud that her daughter chose to attend Butler.
“I think the most meaningful thing to me is that one of my children chose Butler for their college experience,” Morris says. “When your own child makes that choice and decides this is the place they want to be their collegiate home after you and your spouse have spent so much of your career there and have cared so deeply about the place and the people at that place, that’s a really nice validation of all the work that has been done on behalf of the University across time.”
Morris says she is also proud of the work she has done alongside President Danko and other University leaders through the Butler 2020 and Butler Beyond strategic plans.
“There are a lot of ways in which Butler is different for the better today in terms of the physical footprint, the number of academic programs, and our increased emphasis on high-impact practices for students,” Morris says. “I’d say there’s an awful lot we’ve accomplished through those strategic plans, and it has been very gratifying to be part of that.”
Though Morris has been involved in leading many of Butler’s broad, campus-wide efforts over the past decade, her contributions have also been felt deeply on a personal level by her colleagues and students.
Morris was an Assistant Professor in Psychology in her first year teaching at Butler in the fall of 1996 when Jessica Lakin ʼ98 enrolled in her social psychology course. The course exposed Lakin to an aspect of psychology that sparked her interest, and Morris soon became a mentor, serving as the faculty advisor for Lakin’s senior honors thesis and overseeing her undergraduate research. Lakin recalls dropping off a draft of her thesis for Morris to review, and having it returned covered in edits, notes, and feedback.
“I know it was that kind of feedback, and the fact that someone cared enough to give me that kind of feedback, that made me a very strong writer,” Lakin says. “This is what Kate does for her students, and I take that away as one very concrete example of the way she invested in my life and in the lives of so many others. I know how much time that takes, and I know I wasn’t the only one she was supporting in this way. The payoff from that kind of time and attention on a generation of students is hard to calculate.”
Lakin went on to follow in Morris’s career footsteps, earning a PhD in social psychology from Ohio State University in 2003 and joining the faculty at Drew University later that year. In July 2020, Lakin was named Provost at Drew. At every step of the way, Morris has been available to offer guidance and support.
“She has mentored me through every transition in my professional life,” Lakin says. “What I try to emulate about Kate is the calmness and thoughtfulness with which she approaches problems or challenging issues. The core of that is a respect for other people. She is able to navigate difficult situations and complexities with integrity and a clear commitment to doing what she believes is right. I have benefited greatly from her support and value our friendship.”
Anne Wilson, Professor of Chemistry, was a new faculty member alongside Morris in the fall of 1996, and the two have navigated their Butler careers as colleagues and friends for 25 years. Wilson agrees it is Morris’s ability to listen to diverse perspectives and calmly assess difficult situations that allowed her to transition successfully from being a member of the faculty to being an administrator.
Just prior to Danko’s arrival and Morris’s promotion to Interim Provost, Butler had undergone structural changes, including adding the College of Communication in 2010. Wilson says those transitions came with growing pains, and Morris’s leadership was central to Butler’s ability to successfully navigate that season of growth and change.
“She has a warmth and kindness that is refreshing,” Wilson says. “She’s a calming force. She brought back the voice of the faculty, and through her role being pluralistic and inclusive, she was able to establish trust with the administration. She worked really hard to bring us all together into a united vision of what Butler is and what Butler can be.”
Danko agrees that Morris’s steady leadership has been central to Butler’s success in recent years.
“The stability she has brought to the Provost’s Office has been remarkably advantageous, and certainly instrumental to Butler’s success,” Danko says. “She has a high degree of integrity, which has earned a great deal of respect across the University and allowed us to collaborate between the academic side and the University administration in a very effective way. For me to have an academic partner and a co-leader in the Provost’s Office for almost 10 years has been extremely beneficial.”
Morris also noted her positive working relationship with Danko as a highlight of her years at Butler.
“I am particularly grateful to Jim Danko because he saw in me something that I didn’t know was there by plucking me out of the faculty and asking me to be his partner in the Provost’s Office,” Morris says. “I have learned a tremendous amount from watching him, working beside him, and having him as a mentor.”
Morris says she is excited about the next chapter in her career, but she will miss working alongside her Butler colleagues, especially those with whom she has served on the President’s Cabinet and the Provost Advisory Council.
“Those are the people I’ve worked with the most closely who have really made working together a fun environment despite the challenges we have faced,” Morris says. “There is so much respect and such a strong sense of community in those groups. I also feel especially grateful to the faculty and staff in the Department of Psychology, which always was and will be my academic home at Butler.”
Morris is wrapping up her final weeks at Butler and transitioning her responsibilities to Brooke Barnett, who previously served as Dean of the College of Communication and was recently named to the role of Interim Provost. As she looks to the future, Morris is excited to join an institution that is thinking creatively about how to address the challenges facing higher education and liberal arts education in particular.
“I was impressed by St. Lawrence as an institution that is future-thinking and action-oriented, and approaching things from an innovative perspective,” Morris says. “I think those things are really important for the longer-term success of higher ed institutions at this juncture in time when it’s pretty challenging.”
Lakin believes Morris has all the right qualities for a university president leading in today’s environment.
“It doesn’t surprise me at all that becoming a university president is her next step, and she is exactly the type of person we need in leadership positions in higher education right now,” Lakin says. “Her thoughtfulness, her dedication, and her approach to this work is exactly what institutions need in their leaders today. I think she’s going to be a fabulous president.”
After 25 Years at Butler, Provost Morris Named President of St. Lawrence University
Since she joined the Butler faculty in 1996, Kathryn Morris's steady leadership has been central to the University's success
Since she joined the Butler faculty in 1996, Kathryn Morris's steady leadership has been central to the University's success
Butler University to Host Seven Commencement Ceremonies to Accommodate More Guests
PUBLISHED ON Apr 29 2021
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Butler University will host seven separate commencement ceremonies May 8-9 to safely accommodate more guests, and allow for proper social distancing between graduates and guests. All ceremonies will be held in Hinkle Fieldhouse on the Butler campus.
Typically, Butler hosts one commencement ceremony for all of its graduates. This year, the university will host separate ceremonies for each of its six colleges, plus an additional ceremony for the Class of 2020. Butler was unable to host a commencement ceremony in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Each graduate will be allowed to invite two guests to attend the ceremony. Guests will be seated in pods, with at least six feet between them and other guests. Graduates will be seated throughout the arena, and will also have at least six feet between them and other graduates, faculty members, and dignitaries who will be in attendance.
“Given what we have experienced over the past year, I have gained an even deeper appreciation for the importance of social gatherings and the value of celebrating life’s milestones together,” Butler President James M. Danko said. “While I prefer Hinkle Fieldhouse at full capacity, I’m grateful that we are able to safely accommodate guests for this very special occasion.”
There are 1,235 students graduating from Butler in the Class of 2021; 978 students are earning undergraduate degrees and 257 students are earning graduate degrees. Of the 1,348 students who graduated in the Class of 2020, 328 are expected to return to campus to participate in their commencement ceremony.
The ceremonies’ dates, times, and speakers are:
Saturday, May 8
Class of 2021
- 8:30 AM—Jordan College of the Arts: Faculty address by Dr. Becky Marsh, Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education; student reflection speaker is Daniel Scofield, Dance-Arts Administration major, Business Administration minor
- 12:30 PM—College of Communication: Faculty address by Dr. Abbey Levenshus, Associate Professor of Strategic Communication; student reflection speaker is Jack Shirley, Strategic Communication major, Digital Media Production minor
- 4:30 PM—Lacy School of Business: Student reflections by undergraduate Taylor Fisher, double major in Finance and Economics, and graduate student Anna Rader, Master of Science in Risk and Insurance
Class of 2020
- 8:30 PM—All Graduates: Faculty address by Dr. Jane Gervasio, Professor of Pharmacy Practice, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Sunday, May 9
Class of 2021
- 10:00 AM—College of Education: Faculty address by Dr. Debra Lecklider, Professor and Director of the Experiential Program for Preparing School Principals (EPPSP) graduate program
- 2:00 PM—College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: Faculty address by Dr. Terri Jett, Professor of Political Science and Peace and Conflict Studies Department, Faculty Director of the Hub for Black Affairs and Community Engagement and Senior Advisor to the President, Affiliate Faculty—Race, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; student reflection speaker is Gwen Valles, double major in International Studies and Spanish, with a minor in Chinese
- 6:00 PM—College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences: Student reflection speakers are Will Grabowski, Doctor of Pharmacy, Class of 2021 President; Megan Becker, Master of Physician Assistant Studies, Class of 2021 President; Eshaan Lothe, Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences, Class of 2021 President
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
About Butler University
Butler University is a nationally recognized comprehensive university encompassing six colleges: Arts, Business, Communication, Education, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Approximately 4,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students are enrolled at Butler, representing 45 states and 30 countries. More than 75 percent of Butler students will participate in some form of internship, and Butler students have had significant success after graduation, as demonstrated by the University’s 98 percent placement rate within six months of graduation. The University was recently listed as the No. 1 regional university in the Midwest, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings, in addition to being included in The Princeton Review’s annual “best colleges” guidebook.
Butler University to Host Seven Commencement Ceremonies to Accommodate More Guests
All ceremonies will be held in Hinkle Fieldhouse on the Butler campus
All ceremonies will be held in Hinkle Fieldhouse on the Butler campus
Lorraine Ortiz to Serve as Vice President, Human Resources at Butler University
PUBLISHED ON Apr 26 2021
Lorraine Ortiz, JD, sHRBP, has been selected to serve as Vice President, Human Resources at Butler University, effective June 1, 2021.
In her new role, Ortiz will lead the transformation of Butler’s Human Resources division into a strategic, trusted campus partner that provides responsive policies, services, and programs for the Butler community. She will lead and implement process and technology improvements to ensure that faculty and staff have access to consistent, high quality HR information, services, and resources; serve as the chief advocate and strategist for issues related to people; and provide inspirational leadership to an evolving team of HR professionals. Additionally, Ortiz will help provide campus-wide leadership in operationalizing Butler’s commitment to the racial and ethnic diversification of the staff and faculty, and further existing efforts to perpetuate equitable and inclusive work environments.
“Lorrie has proven leadership and management skills and a record of success developing and implementing HR programs, plans, policies, and procedures,” Butler University President James M. Danko said. “I expect that she will be highly successful at furthering the good work that has already been done in attracting and retaining some of the nation’s top faculty and staff.”
Ortiz arrives at Butler from Riley Children’s Health, where she served as Vice President of Human Resources since 2016. Prior to joining Riley, Ortiz served for four years as Director of Human Resources - Retail Division at Goodwill Industries of Central and Southern Indiana. She also served for four years as the Director of Human Resources for MCL Restaurant and Bakery. She began her career in California, where she held human resources positions with 99 Cents Only Stores, Inc.; County of Orange, Social Services Agency; and Coaster Company of America.
“I am excited for the opportunity to be a part of the outstanding leadership team at Butler University,” Ortiz said. “The transformation that has occurred under President Danko's leadership over the past 10 years is simply amazing, and I look forward to continuing that transformation over the next decade. I can't wait to get started!”
Ortiz earned a B.A. in English from Whittier College in California. She earned a J.D. from Santa Clara School of Law, also in California. She holds certifications from several organizations, including International Coaching Federation, Gallup Cliftonstrengths, Kornferry, and Prosci Change Management.
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
About Butler University
Butler University is a nationally recognized comprehensive university encompassing six colleges: Arts, Business, Communication, Education, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Approximately 4,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students are enrolled at Butler, representing 45 states and 30 countries. More than 75 percent of Butler students will participate in some form of internship, and Butler students have had significant success after graduation, as demonstrated by the University’s 98 percent placement rate within six months of graduation. The University was recently listed as the No. 1 regional university in the Midwest, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings, in addition to being included in The Princeton Review’s annual “best colleges” guidebook.
Lorraine Ortiz to Serve as Vice President, Human Resources at Butler University
Ortiz will lead the transformation of Butler’s Human Resources division into a strategic, trusted campus partner that provides responsive policies, services, and programs for the Butler community
Ortiz will lead the transformation of Butler’s Human Resources division into a strategic, trusted campus partner that provides responsive policies, services, and programs for the Butler community
For Second Year, Butler Offers Free Online Course About COVID-19 to Incoming Students
PUBLISHED ON Apr 20 2021
This summer, incoming first-year and transfer students at Butler University are invited to enroll in a free online course about how we can move forward as individuals, as a University, and as a community following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Similar to the free summer course offered last year, which covered the immediate impacts of the virus, this one-credit-hour class is designed to help incoming students grow familiar with the Butler community and the college experience before arriving on campus.
“The goals for this year’s course are similar to last year, but with the theme of ‘what have we learned, and how can we be better post-COVID,’” says Anne Wilson, Professor of Chemistry and faculty lead for the online class. “Our prepared lectures are going to be much more collaborative, with multiple faculty members contributing to a single topic. We have many faculty from last summer returning to the effort, as well as several new folks whom we are excited to include!”
Titled ID190: Building a Better World Post-COVID, the course will run from late June through mid-August. Students will be assigned to one of several faculty-led groups, alongside approximately 20 peers. They will discuss topics such as what we have learned from the pandemic, how we can maintain relationships and well-being in similar situations, why supply chain issues affected vaccine rollout, and how the community will celebrate the end of the pandemic.
“The COVID course was a great introduction into a class discussion at the college level, as the discussions were student-led,” says first-year Chemistry major Lauren Browning, who completed the course last summer. “Learning about the pandemic from not only a medical perspective but from so many different aspects really put that well-rounded liberal arts spin on the course. To be able to simultaneously share my opinion while hearing opinions from others created this comfortable environment where I could take more perspectives into consideration than I had ever realized. Apart from the course material itself, I enjoyed the great discussions and made some friends from my class, some of whom I still talk to now. It was a great first course for entering Butler, and I would highly recommend it.”
After paying the $500 enrollment deposit, students who are interested in joining the free course can sign up during their academic advising appointments at Virtual Registration.
Media Contact:
Katie Grieze
Senior Content Manager
kgrieze@butler.edu
260-307-3403
For Second Year, Butler Offers Free Online Course About COVID-19 to Incoming Students
The one-credit-hour class is designed to help incoming students grow familiar with the Butler community and the college experience before arriving on campus
The one-credit-hour class is designed to help incoming students grow familiar with the Butler community and the college experience before arriving on campus
Immunizing Indy: Pharmacy Students, Faculty, Alumni Provide Vaccines at Local Clinics
PUBLISHED ON Apr 15 2021
On December 17, 2020, Indianapolis watched as television stations around the city broadcast a small group of healthcare professionals receiving their COVID-19 vaccines. Ascension St. Vincent had selected six staff members—including one nurse who treated the hospital’s first COVID-19 patient nine months prior—to receive some of Indiana’s first doses.
And on the other side of the syringe was Dr. Kacey Carroll ’12, who graduated from Butler University’s PharmD program and now serves as an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice for the College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences (COPHS).
“That was probably the most excited and most nervous simultaneously that I have ever been to give a vaccine,” Carroll says about that day, when she also had the chance to vaccinate fellow PharmD graduate Vishal Ooka ’13. “We were seeing surges in case numbers at the time, and there wasn’t a lot of positive news coming out about COVID. So it was very exciting to say, ‘Here’s something we can actively and proactively do to help our patients, and to help protect us while we serve our patients.’”
Since those first few doses, COPHS faculty, students, and alumni have continued stepping up to administer vaccines at a variety of hospitals, pharmacies, and other vaccination sites across the city—applying their skills to help the community protect itself from COVID-19.
Some Pharmacy Practice faculty members (including Carroll) were already based at St. Vincent part-time, participating in the vaccine clinics as part of their regular positions. Several other vaccine-certified COPHS faculty have also donated time to giving doses.
Carroll was involved in St. Vincent’s clinics from the start, helping organize a practice session for certified immunizers prior to the vaccine rollout. In January 2021, she also helped teach an immunization course (hosted by COPHS and the Indiana Pharmacists Alliance) for pharmacists across the state who were not yet certified to give vaccines.
Dr. Deborah Zeitlin ’94, an Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice also based at St. Vincent, regularly teaches immunization courses for students at Butler and has been administering COVID-19 vaccines since January.
“When patients come in,” she says, “they are so grateful that they can get the vaccine. It has been very rewarding. It’s a great experience professionally to be doing something that people actually appreciate.”
Whenever Zeitlin works at the clinics, Butler students are usually there with her.
“I think students are realizing the importance of the training they are receiving in their curriculum, and how to actually apply what they are learning,” she says. “It’s not only about administering the vaccinations, but also about the types of screening questions they need to ask and what information they need to provide, then what to watch for in terms of side effects or adverse reactions. They are also gaining experience answering questions patients have about the vaccine, and just being there to provide comfort.”
Many students in Butler’s Pharmacy program take a course to become certified immunizers, so they were already prepared by the time COVID-19 vaccine rollout began in Indiana. Some P4 students on rotation at St. Vincent have been spending half a day each week in the vaccine clinics, administering shots to about 100 people per shift (or working behind the scenes to draw up doses). Many other students have volunteered their time over winter break or on weekends.
While the students already know how to give immunizations before ever touching a syringe of the COVID-19 vaccine, the clinics have provided them with valuable learning opportunities.
“I think this experience helps students understand how to manage a situation like this in the future,” Carroll says. “It’s also a very gratifying experience to provide a vaccine to a patient who is excited to receive it. Giving students the opportunity to be helpful and to make an impact is so important.”
Kimberly Wray, a Butler student in her final year of the PharmD program, says working in the St. Vincent vaccine clinics when they first opened in December gave her the most hope she had felt since the pandemic hit Indiana in March.
“It filled me with so much joy to know I was partaking in what truly is a community effort,” she says. “Doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, pharmacists, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners that had all been living the nightmare that is supporting and treating patients with COVID-19 came in primarily on that first day I vaccinated, and most of them expressed feelings of gratitude, hope, and relief as I worked through the vaccination process. These clinics are a culmination of so many different persons in healthcare coming together for the service of their neighbors, and it is an incredible experience to be utilizing my skills learned in school to serve the community.”
Wray says this experience has shown her how essential pharmacists are to the vaccination effort.
“From being knowledgeable about storage, preparation, and administration to being a point of contact at vaccine clinics, pharmacists contribute to a wide variety of roles,” she says.
When Butler made doses of the Pfizer vaccine available on campus for students and employees earlier this month, COPHS students led the way in immunizing fellow Bulldogs. More than 240 students (and 45 COPHS alumni) volunteered to help run the first round of Butler vaccine clinics, held April 7–9 in the Efroymson Family Gymnasium.
“Providing such a valuable service to our campus community was certainly the driving principle behind the clinic, which brought so many areas of our campus together for this common goal, and in record time!” says Dr. Angela Ockerman, Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Assistant Dean for Student Affairs. “It was amazing. But what I enjoyed most was seeing everyone work together during the clinics. Faculty and alumni alongside our students from the various programs within COPHS—Pharmacy, PA, and Health Sciences each had their own role to play—all together in service of this institution we love. It was truly heartwarming.”
Mandy McDaniel ’22, a Pharmacy student who helped at the on-campus clinics, says she felt a great sense of relief and hope when she received her vaccine back in January. She loved having the chance to give that hope to other students, faculty, and staff members.
“The vaccine clinic was a great opportunity for Pharmacy students to use our certifications to give immunizations,” she says. “Since I am a P3 student about to go on rotations next month, these clinics also helped myself and others to gain experience and confidence with overall patient care. Some of my favorite moments were when students would tell me that they were feeling a little nervous or were afraid of needles, and I was able to talk them through the vaccination process and calm their nerves. I also enjoyed getting to answer general questions about the vaccine and educate my fellow students. I am so excited for the next round of clinics and for the opportunity to help again!”
Pharmacy student Anis Tai ’22 says he volunteered for the Butler clinics out of a sense of responsibility as a future healthcare provider to serve the community, especially during a pandemic. He volunteered a total of 10 hours, providing vaccines for about 50 people, and he says the students he worked with were grateful for the convenience of receiving shots right on campus. Tai has also volunteered at St. Vincent’s COVID-19 vaccine clinic.
“The biggest lesson I took away from this experience is the importance of community,” he says. “It takes all of us to help overcome this adversity and keep others safe.”
Media Contact:
Katie Grieze
Senior Content Manager
kgrieze@butler.edu
260-307-3403
Immunizing Indy: Pharmacy Students, Faculty, Alumni Provide Vaccines at Local Clinics
Members of Butler's College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences are volunteering their skills to help protect the community against COVID-19
Members of Butler's College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences are volunteering their skills to help protect the community against COVID-19
Local Agency Packed with Butler Alumni Prioritizes Well-being in the Workplace
By Hailey Radakovitz ’21
In the midst of the current pandemic, 71 percent of employed adults who are able to do so have found themselves working from home. As a result, many professionals have had a difficult time achieving high productivity levels while also maintaining a stable work-life balance, and the mental health of many employees has suffered. But some organizations are taking notice of this issue and making efforts to combat employee burnout.
The Basement is an Indianapolis-based advertising agency already ahead of the game. They have been working actively for years to prevent employee burnout while encouraging physical and mental well-being. With a roster of nearly 50 employees (18 of which are Butler University grads), The Basement has built a healthy team culture that prioritizes people and promotes growth both in and out of the workplace.
Its positive workplace culture has earned The Basement a strong reputation as one of the best employers in the Indianapolis area—one factor that leads many Butler alumni to pursue positions at this agency. The Basement’s Vice President of Client Services, Todd Bolster ’05, says the strong community of Bulldogs at the company and across Indianapolis has helped shape his career.
Now, Bolster is giving back to the Butler community by partnering with the Lacy School of Business, the College of Communication, and BU|BeWell to host a virtual discussion about well-being in the workplace. On April 13 at 6:00 PM, Bolster will be joined by The Basement CEO Conrad Edwards for a conversation about how leaders can help maintain the health and wellness of their employees and their organizations while also seeing to their own well-being. The Zoom event is open to Butler students, faculty, staff, and alumni. You can register here.
As an involved member of Greek Life throughout his time at Butler and Student Government Association President during his senior year, Bolster had a variety of experiences that helped him build a strong network around campus. These relationships helped enhance his Butler experience even after he graduated with a degree in Communication Studies. A Butler referral ultimately helped him land his first job at MediaSauce, where he initially met the two founders of The Basement. Later in his career, he reconnected with The Basement team and began working at the agency in Sales and Account Management. From there, he moved up to his current position as VP.
Founded in 2007, The Basement is an integrated agency specializing in marketing and advertising. Bolster joined the team early on, when its primary focus was creative work, but the agency has since shifted to also provide media and account management services.
With the agency’s growth has come an influx of Butler-alum employees. Located only a short drive from campus, The Basement has been a natural fit for many grads looking to stay in Indy. However, it’s more than the close proximity to campus that has kept 18 Butler alumni working at The Basement as “Dwellers.” As described by Campaign Coordinator Sarah Crull ’19, “The environment that The Basement has created in a lot of ways is a reflection of The Butler Way. My coworkers consistently put the whole of the company before themselves, while always looking for ways to grow and improve. I think this similarity between the two places is evident for those who have experienced both, and a huge reason so many Bulldogs have become Dwellers.”
This parallel was immediately clear to current Basement intern and Butler senior Emi Smith, who says, “I think so many Butler students and alumni specifically are drawn to The Basement because of its strong sense of community. One of the main reasons prospective students choose Butler is because of our community—accessibility to peers and professors, opportunities for leadership and involvement, and a genuine culture of care. This same type of community is apparent at The Basement.”
Bolster says the agency keeps its employees at the heart of everything it does.
“I genuinely believe we have a responsibility, in positions of leadership, to create companies where people want to work—where they’re valued, where they’re respected, where they’re taken care of,” he says.
This dedication to employee well-being is executed at the agency in many ways. Put into practice, prioritizing employee well-being at The Basement means frequent one-on-ones with supervisors to ensure progress and goals are being met.
“You shouldn't have to wait until your annual review to find out how you’re doing or get some great feedback,” Bolster says.
Another tool in fostering a healthy work environment is encouraging employees to speak with leadership. With a mantra of “great ideas come from everywhere,” Bolster says employees are encouraged to speak up and share their thoughts. “Regardless of your title, a great idea is a great idea.”
The agency also encourages its team members to live fulfilling lives outside of the office, creating an environment where employees feel respected by peers and leadership, as well as motivated to do their best work.
“The Basement recognizes its employees as people, ahead of the work that they accomplish,” Crull says. “Everyone is eager to ask questions and pour into one another. We are focused on helping each other be the best, both from a personal and professional perspective.”
During the April 13 Well-being at Work panel, The Basement’s Todd Bolster ’05 and Conrad Edwards will discuss the agency’s focus on organizational growth and what it means to prioritize employee health. Learn more here.
Local Agency Packed with Butler Alumni Prioritizes Well-being in the Workplace
At The Basement, where Bulldogs make up a third of the staff, company culture reflects The Butler Way
Local Agency Packed with Butler Alumni Prioritizes Well-being in the Workplace
At The Basement, where Bulldogs make up a third of the staff, company culture reflects The Butler Way
Butler University and Elements Financial Partner to Provide New Student Financial Literacy Program
PUBLISHED ON Apr 08 2021
Butler University and its credit union partner, Elements Financial, are teaming up to promote student financial literacy through a new online training program called FinancialEdu. The program, which launched in January, is designed to provide students with foundational knowledge on topics such as student loans, credit cards, budgeting, and saving. The program is just one piece of an overall suite of financial wellness offerings provided by Elements to the Butler community as part of a robust corporate partnership, which began in 2016.
The student financial literacy training is the latest addition to the Career & Life Skills module of BU|BeWell, Butler’s holistic student experience framework built around eight dimensions of overall well-being. The new program was born out of conversations among a group of leaders in the Butler community determined to address the root causes of financial stress among students. After brainstorming discussions and a joint financial investment, Elements and Butler joined forces to offer the FinancialEdu training library to all Butler students, faculty, and staff. Beginning this academic year, the basic training module is now required for all first-year students.
“BU|BeWell is a proactive approach to well-being, not a reactive approach, so having this tool allows us to get out in front of this issue of financial stress for students,” says Josh Downing, Butler’s Director of Recreation and Wellness. “If we can get this training to first-year students and make it a requirement, we can provide them with foundational tools that will help them along their journey at Butler and through the rest of their lives. We’re grateful to be able to lean on the expertise provided by Elements Financial to bring this program to the Butler community.”
Kara Fischer, Elements’ Relationship Manager at Butler, already offers in-person financial wellness workshops, guest lectures in classes, and one-on-one consultations for Butler students and employees on a variety of financial topics including financial life after college, understanding credit, investment fundamentals, and more. Downing says BU|BeWell stakeholders across campus are becoming familiar with the additional training modules available within the FinancialEdu program, and he foresees the online training modules building upon the in-person offerings to better prepare students for life after Butler.
The financial literacy training works hand-in-hand with other efforts across campus to address student financial stress, including the Office of Financial Aid’s commitment to educating students about over-borrowing to finance their education, the Butler Emergency Assistance Fund, a recent freeze on tuition, and a new scholarship established by Randy and Libby Brown to provide support to current Butler students who are financing their education primarily through student loans. Together, Butler and Elements aim to prepare students for a lifetime of financial wellness.
“We’re proud to partner with Butler University in multiple ways,” says Ron Senci, Executive Vice President at Elements Financial. “Most important to us is working with faculty, staff, and students in the area of financial wellness education. This connection allows us to empower the Butler community to achieve personal financial success, which is our core purpose at Elements Financial. It’s been exciting to see our relationship grow year over year, since it formally began in 2016, and we look forward to creating new initiatives with Butler.”
The partnership exemplifies the purpose and potential of the University’s efforts to forge new collaborative relationships in the community through its Butler Beyond comprehensive campaign and strategic direction. Along with the new financial literacy training and the existing financial wellness workshops, Elements has invested extensively in Butler’s educational mission through sponsorships and philanthropic donations that have touched nearly every part of campus life.
In total, Elements is investing more than $400,000 in the Butler community through a range of initiatives including an endowed scholarship for students studying in the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and capital support for the new facility housing the Andre B. Lacy School of Business. Elements Financial also serves as sponsor of the Butler Magazine, the annual faculty staff picnic, and Bulldog Boulevard during Homecoming, and is the exclusive provider of the Butler-branded VISA® debit card and the Butler University Rewards VISA® Credit Card.
“Butler University is fortunate to have such an engaged and committed partner in Elements Financial,” says Butler Vice President for Advancement Jonathan Purvis. “Since our partnership began in 2016, Elements has become increasingly invested in the Butler community, not only financially, but also through their support of a broad range of initiatives across campus. It has been gratifying to see this relationship grow to the point of co-developing this financial literacy training for students. We are extremely grateful for the holistic nature of our partnership with Elements Financial.”
About Elements Financial
Elements Financial is a diversified federal credit union with assets of more than $2.0 billion and 100,000+ members in all 50 states and 50 foreign countries. As a financial wellness provider, Elements serves individuals through our original sponsor, Eli Lilly and Company, and more than 150 companies across Indiana and nationally. Beyond our Elements branches in Central Indiana, we provide access to more than 5,000 shared branch locations nationally and 78,000 surcharge-free ATMs globally. Elements Wealth Management is a full-service investment management and financial planning firm with $900 million in assets under management. Elements is known for higher deposit rates, lower loan rates, and fewer fees. Join us at elements.org to learn more. Federally Insured by the NCUA
About Butler Beyond
Butler Beyond: The Campaign for Butler University is the University’s largest-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign, with a goal of $250 million to support student access and success, innovations in teaching and learning, and community partnerships.
Butler University and Elements Financial Partner to Provide New Student Financial Literacy Program
FinancialEdu is designed to provide students with foundational knowledge on topics such as student loans, credit cards, budgeting, and saving
FinancialEdu is designed to provide students with foundational knowledge on topics such as student loans, credit cards, budgeting, and saving
2010/2011 Final Four Teams Inspire $2 Million Planned Gift to Butler Men’s Basketball Program
By Jennifer Gunnels
Ten years ago, the Butler men’s basketball team was on its way to a historic second consecutive NCAA title game appearance. Tom ʼ70 and Deborah Slaton were following along closely from their home in Lexington, Kentucky, where Tom had recently retired from a 40-year career as a financial advisor, and Deborah had just retired after 26 years as a professor and associate dean in the College of Education at the University of Kentucky (UK).
The couple was so inspired by the back-to-back title game appearances, and by the quality of the student-athletes on those 2010 and 2011 teams, they decided to include a gift to the Butler men’s basketball program in their estate plans. Ten years later, that gift is now valued at approximately $2 million, and the Slatons say they’ve only become more convinced their decision to invest in Butler basketball was the right one.
“We saw how the success of the basketball program in 2010 and 2011 propelled Butler into the limelight,” Tom says. “It allowed people to know about Butler both academically and athletically, and it helped showcase the many things that Butler has to offer. We think that a strong athletics program can support a strong academic program, and success for athletics can unquestionably lead to success for the entire University.”
Tom graduated from Butler with a business degree in January of 1970, just a few months before Tony Hinkle retired as the Bulldogs’ head coach. As the years passed by and he was busy with his financial career in Lexington, Tom lost track of Butler basketball. The games were rarely on television, and he didn’t have many occasions to return to campus.
But Tom and Deborah both remember when they started paying more attention to the team. It was March 16, 2001, and the couple was on vacation in Florida, where they vividly recall watching Butler beat Wake Forest in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
As Butler basketball rose in prominence through the early 2000s, the Slatons began following the team more closely. By the time the Bulldogs were facing Duke in the 2010 championship game in Indianapolis, they were hooked. And, as they began to enjoy retirement and make plans for their estate, those back-to-back Final Four appearances inspired a desire to support the team in a more concrete way. Since formally documenting their estate gift in 2012, the Slatons have started making the drive from Lexington to Indianapolis a few times each year to watch games at Hinkle Fieldhouse and to visit with the Butler friends they have gathered along the way.
“Tom and Deborah Slaton have been incredibly generous and loyal friends to the Butler men’s basketball program for many years,” says Barry Collier, Vice President and Director of Athletics. “Their planned gift will positively influence the lives of future student-athletes and will support the program’s long-term goals of consistently competing successfully in the BIG EAST Conference while representing the best of Butler University on and off the court. On behalf of Butler Athletics, I am grateful Tom and Deborah have chosen to invest so generously in the future of the Butler men’s basketball program.”
Along with Tom's fond memories of his own days as a Bulldog, the Slatons say the thing that makes Butler most special to them is the spirit of The Butler Way.
“When we read the five guiding principles [of The Butler Way], we agree that these are key for education, teamwork, and success,” Tom says.
Deborah says her career at UK made her feel especially confident in the far-reaching impact of a philanthropic investment in higher education. Along with the Slatons’ planned gift to Butler basketball, they also have plans for an equal gift to support doctoral students in special education at UK. The Slatons have no children of their own and say they are pleased to be able to leave legacy gifts at UK and Butler that will have a positive effect on student lives for many years to come.
“We think higher education is life-changing,” Deborah says. “I think about the many people who invested in my education through scholarships at Texas Tech as an undergraduate and the University of Florida, where I earned my PhD, and it makes me want to give back.”
Following its back-to-back Final Four appearances, Butler made a move to the BIG EAST Conference, renovated Hinkle Fieldhouse, and, in 2017, hired Head Coach LaVall Jordan ʼ01. Meanwhile, the University was growing in national prominence and moving up in rankings like the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges annual listing. Each move has reinforced the Slatons’ instinct that an investment in the basketball program will benefit the entire University.
“We have been impressed with President Danko’s leadership,” Deborah says. “We see the rankings and all of this recognition coming to Butler, and we think that President Danko has pulled together a team to accomplish all of this that is forward-thinking and student-oriented, and we like that. We see this close dynamic between athletics and academics, which makes us want to invest in it.”
Tom says the future of Butler basketball looks bright, and not just because of the program’s consistently high rankings or next year’s strong recruiting class. Tom says he sees something more important happening in the lives of the student-athletes.
“Under Coach Jordan’s leadership, we think we’re seeing what the future holds for Butler basketball,” Tom says. “Not only is he an excellent coach, but he also prepares his student-athletes for life after college. We’re impressed by how he communicates with the players and gives them opportunities to engage with the world outside of basketball. I know he’s been talking to them about all the events that have been going on in the world in the past year, and we think that really develops a well-rounded person when you have a student-athlete graduate who has learned about more than just basketball.”
The Slatons say their engagement with Butler has led to deep and meaningful friendships with Butler staff and fellow fans, as well as to friendly conversations with strangers anywhere they go while wearing a Butler shirt or hat. The couple says they are happy they were able to find a way to translate their passions for basketball and special education into meaningful gifts at Butler and UK. They hope their gift will inspire others to be generous, too.
“We think Butler students, faculty, and staff are doing an amazing job,” Tom says. “Anyone who wants to support Butler can find a program that reflects their interests and make a positive impact for now and into the future.”
2010/2011 Final Four Teams Inspire $2 Million Planned Gift to Butler Men’s Basketball Program
Ten years later, Tom ʼ70 and Deborah Slaton say they’ve only become more convinced their decision to invest in Butler basketball was the right one
Ten years later, Tom ʼ70 and Deborah Slaton say they’ve only become more convinced their decision to invest in Butler basketball was the right one
Butler University Welcomes Two New Trustees
PUBLISHED ON Mar 31 2021
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Butler University appointed two new members to its Board of Trustees during its February meeting. Andrew Greenlee ’90 and Chris Miskel ’96 will each serve three-year terms beginning June 3, 2021.
“We are fortunate to have two distinguished alumni from Butler’s Lacy School of Business join our Board of Trustees,” Butler University President James M. Danko said. “They are highly effective leaders who have excelled in their careers, and Butler University will benefit greatly from their presence on our board.”
Chris Miskel ’96
Chris Miskel is president and CEO of Versiti, a midwestern non-profit organization with 2,100+ employees that serves customers nationally in transfusion medicine and esoteric diagnostic testing; conducts internationally renowned blood research; and serves patients in need of blood products, as well as organ and tissue transplant. The organization exceeds $300M in revenue annually.
Prior to joining Versiti, Chris served as Group Vice President and Global Immunology Franchise Head at Shire, helping to bring medicines to patients around the world and shaping the strategy for a $2.5 billion biopharmaceutical franchise. In a previous role at Baxalta, Chris was Vice President of Plasma Strategy and New Product Development.
Chris began his career with Eli Lilly & Company in 1996 as a Business Analyst before going on to hold a succession of positions, culminating in his appointment as General Manager of Lilly Australia and New Zealand.
Chris earned a B.S. in Accounting from Butler’s Lacy School of Business (LSB) in 1996 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 2000. He is a member of the LSB Dean’s Advisory Council, and a former member of the Young Alumni Board, the Central Indiana Community Steering Committee, and the Alumni Board. Chris was a member of the Butler men’s basketball team and he and his wife are current season ticket holders. An engaged alumnus, Chris is a past recipient of the Hilton U. Brown Alumni Achievement Award and a joint recipient with his wife, Nicole, of the Foundation Award.
Andrew Greenlee ’90
Andy Greenlee is the President & CEO of US Farathane, LLC, a global leader in the automotive industry. US Farathane is a high-end plastics company offering wide ranging technologies, processes and expertise. When Andy joined US Farathane in 1996, there were 300 employees with $25 million in revenue and two Michigan locations. US Farathane is now a global leader with approximately $1 billion in revenue and 5,500 employees. They have 16 locations in the United States, China and Mexico. US Farathane has garnered the top awards in the industry by being named Supplier of the Year with General Motors, FCA and Honda. Andy has been the President & CEO since 1999. Prior to that, he was in fast-track positions with Honeywell and Cooper Industries.
In 2015, US Farathane partnered with The Gores Group. The partnership has been highly successful, and US Farathane’s organic growth continues to far outpace the industry, and the culture and spirit have remained intact.
Andy earned his Bachelor Degree in Marketing from Butler University’s Lacy School of Business in 1990 and an MBA in Finance from the University of Detroit in 1994. He was named to Crain’s Detroit Business “40 under 40” list in 2005. He is also a past recipient of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Andy is honored to be a Founders Circle Member, contributing to the construction of the new Lacy School of Business building. Originally from Columbus, Indiana, Andy, his wife and children currently split time between Lake Angelus, Michigan and Vero Beach, Florida.
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
About Butler University
Butler University is a nationally recognized comprehensive university encompassing six colleges: Arts, Business, Communication, Education, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Approximately 4,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students are enrolled at Butler, representing 45 states and 30 countries. More than 75 percent of Butler students will participate in some form of internship, and Butler students have had significant success after graduation, as demonstrated by the University’s 98 percent placement rate within six months of graduation. The University was recently listed as the No. 1 regional university in the Midwest, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings, in addition to being included in The Princeton Review’s annual “best colleges” guidebook.
Butler University Welcomes Two New Trustees
Andrew Greenlee ’90 and Chris Miskel ’96 will each serve three-year terms beginning June 3, 2021
Andrew Greenlee ’90 and Chris Miskel ’96 will each serve three-year terms beginning June 3, 2021
Butler University to Provide COVID-19 Vaccine to Students on Campus
PUBLISHED ON Mar 30 2021
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Butler University will offer free COVID-19 vaccinations to all students, beginning next week. If enough vaccine remains following student vaccinations, Butler will make it available to faculty and staff.
Butler was informed late last week by the Indiana Department of Health that the State would make doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine available to colleges and universities across Indiana, with the goal of vaccinating as many students as possible prior to the end of the semester. Out-of-state residents and international students are also eligible for the program.
Butler students who choose to participate will receive the first dose April 7–9 in the Efroymson Family Gymnasium in Hinkle Fieldhouse; the second dose will be administered May 4–6 in the Health and Recreation Complex on campus, immediately following Finals Week but prior to Commencement Ceremonies and students departing campus. Students in Butler’s renowned College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences will assist in administering the vaccines.
“We appreciate the Indiana Department of Health for partnering with us to make this vaccine available,” said Brent Rockwood, Vice President and Chief of Staff at Butler. “This will have a tremendous impact on our efforts to establish herd immunity on our campus, and will allow us to more safely restore a full campus experience in the fall.”
At this time, Butler is not requiring students to get vaccinated for COVID-19. The University is, however, highly encouraging students to participate in the on-campus vaccination program. Rockwood indicated that vaccinations may be required of students for fall 2021.
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
About Butler University
Butler University is a nationally recognized comprehensive university encompassing six colleges: Arts, Business, Communication, Education, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Approximately 4,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students are enrolled at Butler, representing 45 states and 30 countries. More than 75 percent of Butler students will participate in some form of internship, and Butler students have had significant success after graduation, as demonstrated by the University’s 98 percent placement rate within six months of graduation. The University was recently listed as the No. 1 regional university in the Midwest, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings, in addition to being included in The Princeton Review’s annual “best colleges” guidebook.
Butler University to Provide COVID-19 Vaccine to Students on Campus
First doses will be administered from April 7–9, and second doses from May 4–6
First doses will be administered from April 7–9, and second doses from May 4–6
Sports Media Major Travels to San Antonio as Intern for NCAA Women’s Tournament
By Kamy Mitchell ’21
As men’s games for the 2021 NCAA® tournament have been underway on Butler University’s campus and throughout Indiana, one Bulldog is spending most of March helping with the other half of this month’s basketball action.
Caroline Crosby, a junior Sports Media major, is working for the NCAA® this semester as an extern in the Division I Women’s Basketball Championships and Alliances Division. Part of her role consists of traveling to San Antonio, Texas, for three weeks to help organize the NCAA® Women’s Basketball tournament.
“I’m a huge women’s basketball fan, so this is just like a dream for me,” Crosby says. “It will be so fun actually being there and being in the moment.”
As the only college student on her team, Crosby is honored and excited for the opportunity to visit San Antonio. Before heading to Texas, she started her experience by helping out remotely, working with the tournament’s host schools to organize catering for the game operations and event operations teams. Due to COVID-19 precautions, all food must be pre-packaged, so Crosby has been tasked with selecting meals to have catered in.
“It’s crazy how much goes into planning a whole tournament, especially while working a thousand miles away during a pandemic,” she says.
Crosby arrived in Texas with her team on March 14 to help get everything set up and organized. She is spending the majority of her time working at the Alamodome and Convention Center while there, assisting her team to ensure things run smoothly. One of her main roles includes escorting teams from their busses to their locker rooms or holding rooms at the Alamodome. Every movement from each team requires an escort, and at times there can be up to six teams in the building, making Crosby’s job require strategic planning. But she has loved the opportunity to interact with players and coaches. She has also been tasked with communicating with teams about practice times and COVID-19 testing times on a daily basis.
While COVID-19 has made planning difficult, Crosby has persevered. She originally interviewed for this internship in spring 2020, but a heavy semester of classes prevented her from taking it then. Crosby followed up over the summer in hopes of interning for the fall, but pandemic restrictions made the position unavailable. She was determined and reached out once more, finally landing her current internship for spring 2021.
Originally from Davenport, Iowa, Crosby visited Butler’s campus as a junior in high school and instantly knew it was her top choice. She was drawn to the small school in a big city, filled with sports teams—not to mention the NCAA® headquarters. With a goal of joining the sports industry, she knew Indy was the place for her.
Crosby says her Sports Media and Journalism classes have prepared her well for this internship, specifically in regards to communication and writing skills, which she has applied while conversing with colleagues from the different host schools in preparation for the tournament. Communication is difficult while working remotely, miles apart, so Crosby has utilized Microsoft Teams meetings as one way to stay connected. She has also worked for Butler Athletics, doing camera work for women’s volleyball and basketball games. As a woman who has played on the club basketball team here at Butler, and who has grown up as a fan of women’s basketball, Crosby says her current internship is like a dream come true: “It’s been a great experience—a once in a lifetime thing, for sure!”
Sports Media Major Travels to San Antonio as Intern for NCAA Women’s Tournament
For Butler student Caroline Crosby, the opportunity is a dream come true
Sports Media Major Travels to San Antonio as Intern for NCAA Women’s Tournament
For Butler student Caroline Crosby, the opportunity is a dream come true
Margaretha Geertsema-Sligh Named Interim Dean of the College of Communication
PUBLISHED ON Mar 29 2021
Dr. Margaretha Geertsema-Sligh has been named the Interim Dean of Butler University’s College of Communication (CCOM), effective April 1. Geertsema-Sligh has served as Director of the Eugene S. Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media since June 2016.
Geertsema-Sligh joined Butler in August 2005 as an Assistant Professor and received tenure and promotion to Associate Professor in 2011. She was promoted to Professor in 2017 and holds the Richard M. Fairbanks Chair of Communication. She served as Director of Global and Historical Studies for four years before her appointment as Director of the Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media. Geertsema-Sligh’s teaching and research focus on global media, gender and news, and global women’s issues.
“I am delighted that Margaretha is stepping into this new role as Interim Dean and I know that she will provide excellent leadership for the college during this time of transition,” says Dr. Brooke Barnett, the current CCOM Dean who was recently named Butler’s Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. “She has already made a tremendous impact as Director of the Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media and I look forward to seeing the ways she continues to shape and support the CCOM community.”
During her time as Director of the Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media, Geertsema-Sligh provided leadership for majors in Creative Media and Entertainment, Journalism, Music Industry Studies, Sports Media, and Web Design and Development. She worked closely with faculty in each of these programs to implement curricular changes over the past years. In addition to her work as Director, Geertsema-Sligh served as chair of CCOM’s Professional Standards Committee, International Committee, and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Intercultural Development Committee. She was also a member of President James Danko’s Faculty Advisory Committee.
Geertsema-Sligh earned her bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication from North-West University in South Africa, where she worked for five years in journalism and public relations before coming to the United States to attend graduate school. She received her master’s degree in Communication from Washington State University and her doctorate in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin.
“I am excited to serve CCOM as the Interim Dean until a permanent Provost has been appointed,” Geertsema-Sligh says. “I definitely have some big shoes to fill with Dr. Brooke Barnett’s move to the position of Interim Provost. I look forward to working closely with the talented faculty and staff of our college to ensure the best experiences for students in all the CCOM majors and across the University.”
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
Margaretha Geertsema-Sligh Named Interim Dean of the College of Communication
Geertsema-Sligh had served as Director of the Eugene S. Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media since 2016
Geertsema-Sligh had served as Director of the Eugene S. Pulliam School of Journalism and Creative Media since 2016
Butler Receives Nearly $10 Million Grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc.
PUBLISHED ON Mar 25 2021
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Butler University will receive nearly $10 million from Lilly Endowment, Inc. (the Endowment) as part of the Endowment’s Charting The Future of Indiana’s Colleges and Universities (CTF) education initiative, Butler President James M. Danko announced today. The grant will help fund initiatives in the University’s Butler Beyond strategic direction.
This is the third phase of funding from the Endowment’s CTF initiative, launched with the hope that it will help the leaders of Indiana’s 38 colleges and universities engage in further thoughtful discernment about the future of their institutions and advance the speed of their strategic planning and implementation efforts to address their key challenges and opportunities. The Endowment has made a total of more than $138 million available to schools across Indiana through the initiative. Butler received $2.75 million during the first two phases, bringing the total received from the Endowment to nearly $13 million over the past 12 months.
“Indiana’s colleges and universities face myriad challenges as they work to fulfill their educational missions while adapting to growing financial pressures, rapid demographic and technological changes, and evolving needs and demands of students,” Ted Maple, the Endowment’s vice president for education, said. “We are pleased with the creative and collaborative approaches the colleges and universities are taking to address these challenges and seize opportunities to better serve their students, institutions, communities and the state of Indiana.”
“I am extremely grateful for Lilly Endowment’s generous investment in Butler University’s strategic direction,” Danko said. “Despite the pandemic, Butler is making significant progress in implementing its current strategy, Butler Beyond. When an organization of Lilly Endowment’s stature and prestige recognizes and rewards our vision and progress, it is quite motivating. It affirms that Butler is making a difference in higher education, and that we can have an even greater impact in the future.”
The Butler Beyond Strategic Direction, launched in 2019, was premised on a dual transformation strategy for the University. It is focused on both enhancing the traditional, high-quality residential undergraduate education for which Butler is known, while also expanding its capabilities to create new educational models and ventures aimed at serving a non-traditional student population.
Danko said the grant will enable Butler to:
- expand its educational impact beyond traditional, full-time residential students, primarily to include adult and professional learners;
- invest in the creation of new academic programs and alternative credentials—often in collaboration with corporations and economic development initiatives—that align with the region’s workforce development needs and offer greater opportunity to attract diverse learners;
- support the creation and success of emerging postsecondary and workforce-related organizations poised to transform education, both within the state and across the country; and
- maintain its position as an educational leader, despite the long-term challenges higher education is experiencing, through the generation of new sources of revenue.
“Expanding our efforts to better serve adult and online learners will support our undergraduate efforts by strengthening our ties with the regional business community, bringing a wider audience—both physically and virtually—to Butler, and increasing the educational impact of the University,” said Danko.
Butler will use grant proceeds to create a Division of Professional Studies, which will deliver a variety of new, high-quality non-traditional programs focused on professionally-oriented learners.
Beyond program development, Butler will use funding to spur entrepreneurial activity among the postsecondary and workforce-aligned organizations positioned to transform higher education. This includes the creation of collaborative, statewide effort between universities, venture capitalists, education-focused entrepreneurs, and technologists.
“Institutions of higher education must reinvent themselves if they want to remain relevant and thrive in the 21st century,” Danko said. “Whether through the development of new programs or new, mission-aligned ventures, we will expand our reach and, ultimately, our impact. This grant from Lilly Endowment will help us achieve our goals more quickly.”
Media Contact:
Mark Apple
mapple1@butler.edu
317-519-8592
About Butler University
Butler University is a nationally recognized comprehensive university encompassing six colleges: Arts, Business, Communication, Education, Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Approximately 4,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students are enrolled at Butler, representing 45 states and 30 countries. More than 75 percent of Butler students will participate in some form of internship, and Butler students have had significant success after graduation, as demonstrated by the University’s 98 percent placement rate within six months of graduation. The University was recently listed as the No. 1 regional university in the Midwest, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings, in addition to being included in The Princeton Review’s annual “best colleges” guidebook.
About Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based, private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion. The Endowment funds significant programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion. However, it maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana.
Butler Receives Nearly $10 Million Grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc.
The grant will help fund initiatives in the University’s Butler Beyond strategic direction
The grant will help fund initiatives in the University’s Butler Beyond strategic direction
An Attitude of Gratitude
As the world marked the one-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bulldogs came together to honor friends, colleagues, and loved ones and give back to Butler University during the sixth annual Day of Giving on February 24 and 25. Donors raised a record-breaking $614,710 during the event, and almost 300 of the 1,803 gifts made during the event were in honor or memory of colleagues, friends, and loved ones.
“The fact that so many donors chose to make gifts to Butler during this year’s Day of Giving in honor or memory of others is truly inspiring,” says Vice President for Advancement Jonathan D. Purvis. “This gesture demonstrates the true spirit of The Butler Way as Bulldogs joined together to make a difference in the lives of our students out of their sincere love for one another.”
Whether donors made a gift in honor of the friends and colleagues from whom they’ve been separated for the last year or in memory of departed loved ones, all gifts made during Day of Giving’s 1,855 minutes (in honor of Butler’s founding in 1855) support current and future students.
“One of the best investments you can make in yourself is coming to Butler University. I want to say thank you to all of the alumni out there—I would not be here without your support!” says Paco Beltran Rodriguez ’23.
Donors supported 140 different funds representing a variety of programs, departments, and initiatives across the University. Among the initiatives supported most generously by Day of Giving donors were the Butler Fund for Student Scholarship, the Sciences Expansion and Renovation Project, the Ayers Student Assistance Fund, and a newly created College of Education Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Fund.
Student scholarships are particularly critical to fulfilling Butler’s commitment to embracing and supporting learners of all life stages and backgrounds. Every dollar given to the Butler Fund for Student Scholarships goes directly back out the door to students in the form of scholarships. The average first-year student receives $22,000 in financial assistance.
The total amount raised includes $170,779 in funding from donors whose gifts were offered as challenges to inspire others to join in giving. Among the challenges was a $50,000 gift to the Butler Fund for Student Scholarship from Ken Massaroni ’83 and Lori Ziemba ’82, and Lynne Zydowsky ’81, which was accomplished when 1,500 gifts were received.
“Butler donors have always been incredibly generous, but the outpouring of support and record-breaking contributions during this year’s Day of Giving are particularly noteworthy given the circumstances of the past year,” Purvis says. “These philanthropic gifts represent many lives that have and will be changed for the better by a Butler education.”
The funds raised during Day of Giving support several of Butler’s key strategic priorities under the Butler Beyond strategic direction. Butler is nearing $200 million raised toward its $250 million goal for the Butler Beyond comprehensive fundraising campaign, which concludes on May 31, 2022. As of March 22, Butler has raised $198 million in support of initiatives aimed at advancing the campaign’s three pillars: Student Access and Success, Innovations in Teaching and Learning, and Community Partnerships.
An Attitude of Gratitude
Donors give $614,710 during Butler’s record-breaking Day of Giving
Donors give $614,710 during Butler’s record-breaking Day of Giving
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