Butler University will welcome 1,065 first-year students on move-in day, Saturday, August 19. Classes begin on Wednesday, August 23.

This year, 14,638 prospective students applied to Butler, a 13 percent increase compared with 2016. In the last two years, the University has seen more than 40 percent growth in first-year applications for admission.
Butler’s Class of 2021 continues the University’s track record of attracting high-quality, academically prepared students. Here’s a look at some numbers.

-36 Valedictorians and 11 Salutatorians

-6 National Merit Finalists

-16 Lilly Scholars

-234 (22 percent) in the top 10 percent of their high school graduating class

-GPA (average): 3.8

The Class of 2021 comes from 35 states and five countries. 43 percent are from Indiana, and 57 percent are from out of state. Fifteen percent of the class is from the Chicagoland area. This year’s class shows significant growth in new students from the Mid-Atlantic region (42), double the number from last year’s class.

Sixteen percent of the class are U.S. students of color or international citizens. Fourteen percent of the class is multicultural and 2 percent are international.

The most popular majors this year are Pre-Pharmacy (107), Exploratory Studies (107), and Biology (73).

Individual student achievements include:

Entrepreneurs:

Austin Valleskey (Hoffman Estates, Illinois) – Developed Impossible Rush, a game intended to improve cognitive skills, which has over 1 million downloads on iTunes to date and was featured on NBC, WGN, Forbes, Business Insider, and the Huffington Post.

Isabella Ruscheinski (Peoria, Illinois) – At 15, started her own cupcake/catering business, which she still runs.

Philanthropists:

Tamalynn OGrady (Dexter, Michigan) – Disheartened by the rising costs associated with the arts, she founded a community service organization aimed at providing free music education to those who may otherwise not have the means. She gave free cello lessons seven days a week during the summer of 2016.

Ethan King (West Olive, Michigan) – When he was 10, he founded Charity Ball, which has raised money to hand-deliver thousands of soccer balls and clean drinking water to kids in impoverished areas all over the world.

Lifesaver:

Haylie Hansen (Pewaukee, Wisconsin) – Saved her cousin’s life with CPR her freshman year of high school.

Legacies:

Will Butler Haughey III (Concord, California) – The great, great, great, great grandson of Ovid Butler. He is also the great, great, great grandson of William Wallace, whose brother wrote Ben-Hur.

Henry Johnston (Arlington Heights, Illinois) – His great, great, great, great grandfather was married to Mabel Butler, sister of Ovid Butler.

The University will also welcome 80 new transfer students to campus this fall, including one Lilly Scholar.

 

Media contact:
Marc Allan
mallan@butler.edu
317-940-9822