
The Speak Easy, A Butler Partner, To Add Second Location
PUBLISHED ON Sep 11 2017
The Speak Easy, a member based non-profit organization that brings established businesses and entrepreneurs together in the spirit of growth and acceleration, will open a second, downtown location this summer with founding partners Butler University, Bruce A. Bodner Company, Inc., and Nextech.
The Speak Easy Downtown will be located within the Mile Square in the historical Morrison Opera House building at 47 S. Meridian St. Its doors are scheduled to open July 2016.
Founded in 2011, The Speak Easy has graduated over 170 new companies from its Broad Ripple location. The approximately 300 active members of The Speak Easy range in size from small to medium sized locally owned businesses, to high-growth startups and established enterprise companies.
“When you look at research surrounding innovation hubs throughout the country, you find the most successful ones involve partnerships across multiple organizations with differing backgrounds,” said The Speak Easy Executive Director Danielle McDowell. “We want to accelerate the growth of these companies by convening the right players in our community – like Butler, Bodner, and Nextech – to set The Speak Easy apart as an institution for collaboration, not just business incubation.”
Like its Broad Ripple location, the Speak Easy Downtown will provide an inspirational and collaborative environment for entrepreneurs; however, it’s strategic focus will extend beyond early-stage companies and offer resources and programs to fuel the success of companies in the growing and scaling stages. In addition, with founding partners Nextech and Butler, the focus will expand beyond the current community of entrepreneurs to also include Indy’s next generation of innovators and business leaders.
“Thanks to our partners, the Speak Easy Downtown will be a hub of mentorship and critical business resources such as education, funding, and talent,” added Andy Clark, Board Chairman and co-founder of The Speak Easy. “This project is about serving our community of entrepreneurs by giving them the space and the resources to grow.”
The new location will offer co-working concepts, reservable desks, and small-office micro leasing. In collaboration with founding partners, the space will include programming, education opportunities, and exposure to collaboration resources needed to accelerate business.
“Butler University is passionate about innovation and community,” said Butler President James M. Danko. “This new partnership with the Speak Easy Downtown will allow us to further our support of Central Indiana businesses and entrepreneurs, while also providing exceptional opportunities for our students, faculty, and alumni to connect and collaborate.”
The Speak Easy was founded in 2011 with a mission to cultivate the healthiest entrepreneurial ecosystem, anywhere. Since openings its doors to the Indianapolis community five years ago, it has brought together active and engaged entrepreneurs at every stage of business.
For more information on the Speak Easy, visit https://www.speakeasyindy.com/.
The Speak Easy, A Butler Partner, To Add Second Location
The Speak Easy, a member based non-profit organization that brings established businesses and entrepreneurs together in the spirit of growth and acceleration, will open a second, downtown location this summer with founding partners Butler University, Bruce A. Bodner Company, Inc., and Nextech.
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Howard Caldwell, Alumnus and Former Trustee, Dies
BY
PUBLISHED ON Sep 11 2017
Beloved alumnus had lifelong ties to Butler.
Howard Caldwell ’50, MA ’68, whose distinguished career at WRTV (Channel 6) in Indianapolis earned him induction into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame and Indiana Broadcasters Hall of Fame, died Monday. He was 92.
Caldwell earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism and his master’s degree in political science from Butler. He served as a trustee from 1980-1983 and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 1984. In 1992, he received an honorary doctorate from Indiana University.
He had lifelong ties to Butler. His parents, Howard ’15 and Elsie ’17, and his sister Virginia Caldwell ’40 all were Butler alumni, as is his daughter Tracy Reidy ’80, MS ’84. His wife of 62 years, Lynn, has served on the Clowes Women’s Committee.
Caldwell served in the Navy during World War II and the Korean War. After graduating from Butler, he was a News Manager with WTHI radio in Terre Haute, Indiana. He joined WRTV (then called WFBM) in 1959 as a reporter and spent 35 years at the station, retiring as Senior Anchor. He was named the 1978 Newsman of the Year by the Indianapolis Press Club, a first for a television reporter. He was the first American reporter to interview the newly elected Indian Premier Indira Gandhi, and his documentary on hunger in India earned him several honors.
He was inducted into the Indianapolis Public Schools Hall of Fame in 2008. That same year, he received an Indiana Lifetime Achievement Award, one of the state’s highest awards given to any individual who demonstrates outstanding devotion to Indiana. He received the Hilton U. Brown Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Irvington Historical Society in 2006.
In addition, he is the author of Tony Hinkle: Coach for All Seasons (1991) and The Golden Age of Indianapolis Theaters (2010).
Visitation is Thursday, September 14, from 2:00 to 8:00 PM at Castleton United Methodist Church, 7101 Shadeland Avenue, Indianapolis, with funeral services Friday, September 15, at 11:00 AM at the church.
Media contact:
Marc Allan
mallan@butler.edu
317-940-9822

Howard Caldwell, Alumnus and Former Trustee, Dies
Howard Caldwell ’50, MA ’68, whose distinguished career at WRTV (Channel 6) in Indianapolis earned him induction into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame and Indiana Broadcasters Hall of Fame, died Monday. He was 92.
Howard Caldwell ’50, MA ’68, whose distinguished career at WRTV (Channel 6) in Indianapolis earned him induction into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame and Indiana Broadcasters Hall of Fame, died Monday. He was 92.

How Neuroscience Helps Kids Heal From Trauma
BY Katie Grieze
PUBLISHED ON Jan 17 2020
On a mid-December morning at Butler University Laboratory School 55, a fifth-grade classroom falls silent. The shouting and chatter fades, little by little, replaced by the chime of calming music.
Around the room, students lie flat on the floor, blinking up through the cucumber slices pressed to their eyes. Some sprawl out, arms spread wide, as others fold their hands together or reach up to feel the fruit’s coolness.
Cucumbers do more than signal a spa day in the movies, the students are learning. Rather, the slices can act as an anti-inflammatory for a stressed-out brain in the same way that ice treats injuries. They can calm the mind and prepare it for learning—a perfect addition to the collection of relaxation strategies Lori Desautels has brought to classrooms in Indianapolis and across the nation.
Throughout fall 2019, the College of Education Assistant Professor visited those fifth-graders every week to teach them about the brain, how it works, why we experience stress, and how to regulate emotions. Students learned that the prefrontal cortex is the brain’s center of learning, decision making, and problem solving. They learned that the amygdala, formed by a small set of deep-brain neurons, causes powerful emotions such as anger and fear that can make it difficult to concentrate. And they learned that, through a range of activities that incorporate breathing, movement, or sound, they can control those emotions and relax their minds.
It’s all part of Desautels’ work in a field known as educational neuroscience, which focuses on finding the most effective strategies for working with students who have experienced adversity or trauma. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 60 percent of American children will experience at least one adverse childhood experience—or a potentially traumatic event—by the time they turn 18. About one in every six children will have four or more of these experiences, which can include circumstances such as violence, abuse, neglect, poverty, mental illness, food insecurity, or drug use, to name a few.
Beyond causing long-term consequences for overall health, trauma can affect a child’s ability to succeed in school as stress inhibits the brain from making decisions and building relationships. Some students respond to pain with aggression, while others exhibit high rates of absenteeism or keep their heads down during class.
“As the research points,” Desautels says, “anxiety has kind of become our nation’s new learning disability.”
Desautels tackles this problem from multiple fronts. Based on her research, she develops new strategies to help kids heal from trauma. She visits schools across Indiana, talking about the importance of caring for mental and emotional health in the classroom. Desautels works directly with children to help them succeed, and through leading workshops and teaching classes, she shows current and future educators how they can better support their students.
How to stay sensitive to trauma in the classroom
Desautels teaches a variety of strategies for responding to trauma in schools, but she says rethinking the discipline is the first step. When educators react with punishments based on frustration and arbitrary consequences, this usually reactivates a student’s stress response, leading to new trauma instead of new healing.
Change starts with teachers modeling the behavior they want to see from their students.
When a child’s actions require discipline, Desautels says the adult should always take some time to cool off. After reflecting on how the incident made them feel, they should explain to the student how they plan to calm down before addressing the situation.
I’m really frustrated, so we aren’t going to talk about this right now. I’ll count to four, and then I’ll take my two deep breaths, and then I’ll wait. And if my amygdala is still feeling angry, I’ll count to four again, until my cortex feels calm.
Teachers should also consider the power of non-verbal communication. Desautels says tone of voice is critical in calming a child’s nervous system, along with facial expressions, posture, and gestures.
“Emotions are contagious,” she says. “When a teacher is able to model a calm presence, students are less likely to react defensively.”
Once everyone feels relaxed, the teacher and student can discuss what happened, why it happened, and how they can repair the damage together. Consequences should follow naturally from the action in a meaningful way, Desautels says. For example, if the student was mean to a classmate, they could create something that shows kindness.
Desautels also stresses the need for listening to and validating the student throughout the process. If a child says, ‘This isn’t fair’ or ‘You are always picking on me,’ a validating comment might be, ‘That must feel so frustrating.’
“In the moment of rising tension,” she says, “when you feel someone hears you, that’s calming.”
But these strategies aren’t only for when there’s a problem. Building strong connections with students can help with easing their anxiety and preventing negative behavior from arising in the first place.
At Butler, Desautels has created a graduate certificate in Applied Educational Neuroscience to teach these strategies to educators, medical professionals, and others who work closely with children who have experienced trauma. The nine-credit-hour program launched in 2016 and has grown from just six students in the first cohort to more than 70 today. The classes explore the most recent research in neuroscience and attachment, then shift to how that research can be used to help students.
“And these strategies aren’t just useful for working with children,” Desautels says. “We are all dealing with more and more adversity and stress. Everyone taking this certificate is trying to improve on their professional practices, but I often hear feedback about how helpful it has been personally.”
A new way of teaching
Until a couple years ago, Emily Wilkerson didn’t know anything about neuroscience. She didn’t think she needed to.
Then, as an Elementary Education major at Butler, she met Lori Desautels.
“It wasn’t until my junior year of college that I realized teaching isn’t just about math, reading, writing, science, and social studies,” Wilkerson says. “Kids need so much more than academic content.”
So shortly after graduating in 2018 and taking a position with the then-new Butler Lab School 55, Wilkerson enrolled in Butler’s Applied Educational Neuroscience certificate. Right away, she started practicing the techniques in her fifth-grade classroom—the same classroom Desautels worked with last semester.
Together, Desautels and Wilkerson taught the students about three key regions of the brain and what it looks like to “be” in each one. In the prefrontal cortex, located near the forehead, the mind feels calm and creative. In the limbic system, closer to the center of the brain, you might start to be distracted by emotions such as fear, irritation, or embarrassment.
On the back of the neck, near the hairline, is the brain stem. Once here, you’re basically frozen. You might feel hopeless or disconnected. You might lash out, or you might run away.
“When a student has experienced trauma, we know that their brain is most likely not in the prefrontal cortex throughout the day,” Wilkerson says. “There could be triggers in the classroom, or they could just think about something traumatic that happened to them, and that could completely spiral their day. If they are locked into that anxiety or fear, they are inclined to stay in that brain state—unless they know that they can regulate their brain.”
So, the students learned how to do just that.
Every time Desautels visited Wilkerson’s class, she brought a new focused attention practice. These activities quiet the mind by having kids focus on a specific stimulus, whether that is a sound, a sight, a taste, or a breath—similar to meditation. This helps soothe the nervous system in a way that makes it easier to cope with challenges.
For example, the class could spend a few minutes with a breathing exercise that matches movement to the rhythm of the breath, lifting their arms high on the inhale and dropping them on the exhale. They could place their non-dominant hands flat on pieces of paper, tracing the outlines repeatedly until their minds feel calm. Or, the students could put ice cubes in their mouths, imagining their stress fading as they feel the ice slowly melt away.
Desautels also uses “brain breaks.” These exercises introduce new challenges or novel sensations to help break up the routine of a school day, training the mind to see things through new perspectives.
Desautels always carries a bag of assorted household objects—markers, paper, shoelaces, and so on. After picking an item, students imagine two ways it could be used for something other than its intended purpose. Another brain break involves asking the kids to peel a tangerine with their eyes closed, then to eat the fruit while focusing on its smell and taste. The more senses these activities draw on, the more effective they will be for regulating the brain.
The students learned to be more aware of how they feel throughout the day. Desautels introduced brain reflection sheets, which help both students and teachers evaluate their current brain states and figure out what they might need to feel better in that moment.
“If I’m feeling frustrated,” Wilkerson says, “I’m going to go sit in the reset corner and take 10 deep breaths, or roll playdough in my hands, because that might be something that feels good to me. But you can regulate a brain in a thousand different ways.”
Most of the fifth-grade students now use the language of neuroscience throughout the school day. And since Desautels first visited, Wilkerson has noticed an overall shift in classroom culture.
“We as elementary school teachers have the opportunity, if we are using the language of neuroscience in our classrooms, to really set students up for a greater level of success throughout their whole lives,” Wilkerson says. “I can’t imagine, if I could go back in time and learn about all this neuroscience during fifth grade, how that would have impacted me in middle school, high school, college, and adulthood.”
Beyond her work at Butler and in Indianapolis classrooms, Desautels visits schools across the state to speak about the trauma-responsive strategies she has developed. She’s also published three books about the human side of education, with a fourth expected to release in 2021.
Nationally, Desautels’ work has inspired hundreds of schools to build what she calls amygdala first aid stations. Typically set up at a designated table or corner of the classroom, these spaces give students a place to go to calm down or recharge. They might offer stationary bikes, yoga mats, art materials, or headphones. Others have bean bag chairs where students can relax with weighted blankets while smelling lavender-scented cotton balls.
Since she first started co-teaching six years ago, Desautels has worked with 13 classes ranging from preschool to 12th grade. It has become more common for schools to address mental and emotional wellbeing, but Desautels says her work is unique for its focus on actually teaching kids the science behind how their brains work.
“Teaching students about their amygdala and their fear response is so empowering,” she says. “When we understand that this biology is thousands of years in the making, hardwired to protect us, our minds begin to relax through knowing that our reactions to negative experiences are natural and common. Many of our children report a sense of relief to know there’s nothing wrong with them.”
Media Contact:
Katie Grieze
News Content Manager
kgrieze@butler.edu
260-307-3403 (cell)
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How Neuroscience Helps Kids Heal From Trauma
Lori Desautels, an Assistant Professor in Butler's COE, visits classrooms to teach students about their brains.
Lori Desautels, an Assistant Professor in Butler's COE, visits classrooms to teach students about their brains.

Chemistry Profs Connect With Alumni Through Food-Based Science Lessons
BY Katie Grieze
PUBLISHED ON Sep 16 2020
On a Saturday evening in July, Amy E. Hyduk-Cardillo ’04 and her husband heated up the ribs they’d smoked a few days earlier, booted up Zoom, and sat down to learn more about their meal.
The Science of BBQ virtual event was just the latest in an ongoing series of similar food-centric alumni gatherings. Butler University Chemistry Professors Mike Samide and Anne Wilson, in partnership with the Office of Alumni Relations and Engagement, have been teaching small groups of alumni about the science behind their favorite foods—think beer, cheese, wine, and chocolate—since 2018.
“These events allow alumni to feel like they are back in class engaging with faculty, learning something new, and talking with one another,” Wilson says.
Each lesson covers the basic history, science, and production process of the featured food item. Hyduk-Cardillo, who attended several of the Science of… events held in-person at local businesses before the start of COVID-19, says virtual events have provided some relief during the pandemic.
“What’s been the silver lining around COVID-19 is the ability to see how organizations and businesses create new events, environments for hosting events, and ways of doing business that have been unique and fun to participate in,” she says. “The virtual Science of BBQ alumni event was a perfect way to spend our otherwise very rainy Saturday evening making new Butler connections.”
Prior to the BBQ event, participants received a video covering basic methods for choosing, prepping, and cooking different kinds of meat. The event itself focused on themes like the difference between grilling and smoking, whether you should use sauce or rub, and tips for achieving the best results. Jeffrey Stroebel ’79 says he plans to use the trick of applying a dry rub beneath the skin when cooking poultry, which directly seasons the meat while taking advantage of flavorful fats that escape the skin as it cooks. Stroebel didn’t have time to buy or prepare a BBQ meal to enjoy during the event, but he’s glad he took part.
“We are more than 2,000 miles away in Bellevue, Washington,” he says, “so it’s nice to be able to stay connected.”
About 100 Butler community members from across the country attended The Science of BBQ. It was the first virtual event of the series, allowing for a bigger audience that extended beyond alumni and also included parents, faculty, staff, and trustees.
Now, Samide and Wilson are getting ready to kick off the AT HOMEcoming 2020 event schedule with a virtual Science of Beer presentation—complete with an at-home tasting experience.
“Food provides an easy way for anyone to connect with science,” Wilson says. “For some reason, food is non-threatening—probably because we handle it every day. And that offers a good entryway into being able to talk about science.”
Space is limited for the 7:00 PM EDT event on September 22, so make sure to register here if you want the inside scoop on at-home brewing.
How it all began
When the Butler Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry first introduced short-term study abroad courses in 2015, alumni got jealous. Why weren’t those trips offered back in their college years?
So, Wilson and Samide decided to make it happen. They planned an inaugural Alumni Travel Tour that was scheduled to take place in summer 2020, incorporating topics with mass appeal: beer, wine, cheese, and chocolate. With a variety of European destinations on the itinerary, the curriculum aimed to combine interdisciplinary science with societal and historical perspectives.
To help spread the word about the trip—but also just to engage with alumni in a new way—Wilson and Samide launched the Indianapolis-based Science of… event series. Each of the in-person gatherings involved local businesses: Science of Chocolate with alumnus-owned DeBrand Fine Chocolates, Science of Beer with Metazoa Brewing Co., Science of Cheese with Tulip Tree Creamery, and Science of Wine with Sugar Creek Winery.
Modeled after the Butler classroom experience, the sold-out events all started with about 30 minutes of teaching, followed by discussion and an experiential component (AKA, a food or beverage tasting). Samide says the educational portion is taught in layperson terms, skipping some of the complexities that would be part of a regular science class and focusing more on things like how various chemical compounds make up different flavor profiles, or how growing conditions and aging times affect the taste of wine.
The chemistry professors enjoy providing these opportunities for alumni to connect with faculty and one another, having meaningful conversations while learning something new. While COVID-19 forced the Alumni Travel Tour to be postponed until 2021, virtual versions of the Science of… events have opened doors (or web browser windows) for broader participation.
“Events like these show that the University is not just a degree mill,” Wilson says. “It really is a place where we value learning and conversation. We are living the ideals of a liberal education—that there’s always something you can learn.”
Media Contact:
Katie Grieze
News Content Manager
kgrieze@butler.edu
260-307-3403

Chemistry Profs Connect With Alumni Through Food-Based Science Lessons
‘The Science of Beer’ on September 22 will be the second virtual offering in a class-like event series focused on meaningful alumni engagement
‘The Science of Beer’ on September 22 will be the second virtual offering in a class-like event series focused on meaningful alumni engagement