In his three years as Butler University’s starting quarterback, Will Marty ’18 learned lessons that transcended the football field. He discovered that the ability to communicate with all different kinds of people is vital. You can’t sweep issues under the rug. You’ve got to be upfront with people. And you have to be able to achieve in high-pressure situations.

“It’s the same thing in the business world,” says Marty, who graduated in December with a degree in finance and marketing. “You’ve got to make quick decisions. You’ve got to be able to communicate with people directly. And you can’t be afraid to go forward.”

Marty is seeing the parallels between football and business play out in his post-graduation role as an Orr Fellow. As part of the two-year fellowship, he’s working as a growth analyst for Greenlight Guru, a downtown Indianapolis company that makes quality-management software for medical devices.

The Orr Fellowship program guarantees participants a two-year position at an Indianapolis host company as well as executive mentorship and training in areas like growing a strong network, entrepreneurial law, and personal finance.

With a 5 percent acceptance rate, the Orr Fellowship program is extremely selective. This year, 1,259 graduates from 48 states applied. The program accepted 68 from 19 universities. Of those 68, 11 were Butler graduates—more than any other school. (The full list of Butler students accepted is below.)These students will not only receive guaranteed job placement for their first two years out of undergrad, they will also receive executive mentorship, and participate in a unique curriculum intended to develop business and professional acumen in the real world. These combined factors fast-track students from college to career success as young professionals.

Marty, who threw for 5,550 yards and 30 touchdowns in three years, thinks teamwork is why Butler has been so successful in placing Orr Fellows.

“What Butler teaches you is how important your role is within teams,” he says. “I’m doing such a small part of the bigger picture here at Greenlight, but I also see how valuable my little part is. I think Butler stresses collaborative work, communication, and overall group dynamics to bring out the best in the entire organization. The Lacy School of Business did a great job of that as well.”

Jen Agnew, Director of Programming and Engagement for the Orr Fellowship, says Butler graduates have been successful in applying to the program in part because they make a commitment to the arduous two-month recruiting process. Orr Fellow alumni from Butler also do a great job of recruiting qualified candidates, she says.

In the end, “there’s a real understanding and buy-in from the Butler students about what we’re doing and what we’re achieving in the Indianapolis community,” Agnew says. “I think Butler students are interested in serving their community beyond their four years at Butler and finding unique opportunities that are going to help the Indianapolis community grow. I think that Orr does that.”

Orr Fellowships are open to students from across all majors—not just business. Carly McCarthy ’18 majored in Science, Technology, and Society at Butler and started her fellowship in January with Greenlight Guru. The Galesburg, Illinois, native is now working in product marketing.

McCarthy heard about the program from several friends who were business majors and wondered if there was a place for her. Everyone she talked to at Butler encouraged her to apply.

“They showed me that Orr was made for a diverse group of people with diverse educational background,” she says.

Meanwhile, she says she felt ready and confident, thanks to Butler, which helped her develop the interpersonal skills and receive the interdisciplinary education needed to relate to people in different ways.

At Greenlight, McCarthy says, she gets to work with experienced professionals in healthcare, which is the field in which she ultimately wants to work.

“So working here has enabled me to learn other skills that will be applicable in my other education and career endeavors,” she says. “And in my role here as a product developer and product marketer, I get to learn about a company and how a company works, rather than taking one position.”

That’s the kind of experience Kendall Povilaitis ’19 is hoping for. Povilaitis, a Creative Writing major and Digital Media Production minor, will be working for Covideo, a video email communications company based in Broad Ripple.

Povilaitis heard about the Orr Fellowship through friends she had worked with in Ambassadors of Change, the Butler program that welcomes new students to campus. They were in the Orr program and encouraged her to apply.

“Our community looks out for one another,” she says. “And I think when you have students who were part of Butler, they know what Butler students offer. We are reaching out to our own.”

At Covideo, she’ll be working in several departments over the two years—sales, marketing, video—to see the business from all sides.

She says all the things she learned at Butler helped her land the fellowship.

“I think the experiential learning really showed through,” she says. “I’ve had the internships and the real experiences—at The Children’s Museum, in Butler’s Marketing and Communications Department, and other places. I think that gave me more confidence going in: I’ve done this before, and I know I can take on a real job and be different than somebody else.”

 

Class of 2019 Butler Orr Fellows:

• Addyson Aiman, The Heritage Group
• Alex Adams, Torchlite
• Carly McCarthy, Greenlight Guru*
• Kendall Povilaitis, Covideo
• Lyndsey Isenhower, Apex Benefits
• Olivia Schwan, Lessonly
• Rachel Schafer, Sigstr
• Sarah Burkhart, OneCause
• Sarah Forhan, IU Health
• Tanner Cline, enVista
• Will Marty, Greenlight Guru*

*December graduate