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Butler Community College theatre students will present an adaptation of the legend of Robin Hood, Marian or the True Tale of Robin Hood by Adam Szymkowicz on September 25-27. This comedic play showcases Maid Marian secretly in disguise as Robin Hood. The performance is rooted in identity, mistakes and exploring oneself. Audiences can expect adventures, clever disguises and a unique retelling of Robin Hood. Technical and performance students have worked on the performance for weeks, building the stage and fine-tuning their respective crafts. “They are very hardworking,” new faculty April

Butler Community College now offers Art in the Elementary Classroom, an online course starting this fall. With the development of this new course, students can now earn an Elementary Education associate degree fully online as of Fall 2025. Casi Short, art adjunct instructor, designed the course to suit the needs of Butler’s online learning population. Students will make art, interact with art history and create meaningful art lessons for their own students. The course guides students through topics in art education and effective classroom management strategies for their future classrooms. “I

Written by: Caleb Sanderson After changing her major from architecture, Lexi Gruenwald discovered her passion for ceramics by stepping into the art world at Butler. Lexi has molded her life around learning and sharing art as a commissioned artist and teaching community classes at City Arts in Wichita’s Old Town. As a former art scholarship student, Lexi was introduced to art both as a creator and behind the scenes as a student worker. She spent countless hours in the studio working her craft, especially into the late evening and night hours with her 24-hour access. Pieces of her work were

When Abby George started Sweetie Pie Bakery in 2023, she traded the comforts of hobby baking for the hustle and precision of running a small business. Now every Saturday you can find her at west Wichita’s Kansas Grown farmers market selling cakes, scones, cookies and protein bars—and dreaming up her next big steps. George’s love for baking began in childhood, practicing family recipes with her grandmother and mother during holiday marathons in the kitchen. By the time she was 16, she knew she wanted to make a career out of it. That led her to Butler Community College’s Redler Institute of

Written by: Caleb Sanderson Butler Community College now offers Welding Technology classes at Rose Hill High School taught by Butler Welding alumni and industry-professional Jake Duerksen. Classes begin in August at the new state-of-the-art welding lab. Seats are limited and open to all students, including the Early College Academy (ECA). Duerksen has collaborated with both Butler’s Facilities Management team and Rose Hill High School USD 394 to address the industry standards students must meet as working welding professionals. The curriculum at this new location is the same applied learning

Written by: Caleb Sanderson Former Chair of the Art Department Lynn Havel passed away in late May at his home in Colorado, leaving behind a loving family and a legacy at Butler Community College. Havel was a gifted artist, leader and educator who valued art, nature, music, friends and family. To honor his memory, a selection of Havel’s pieces will be displayed in the Erman B. White Art Gallery of Art and will be open to the public Aug. 25 – Sept. 17. The Lynn Havel Art Scholarship has been established to benefit art students at Butler Community College. Donations may be made in Lynn’s honor at

Written by: Caleb Sanderson Before graduating from the Diesel Technology program at Butler Community College, Ponca City native Logan King secured a technician position at Grask Truck Group (GTG) Peterbilt in Wichita. Less than two years later, the company invested in the Butler graduate by sending him to Peterbilt Technician Institute (PTI) in Texas with paid tuition and housing. He now serves as a lead technician at GTG, mentoring and leading other technicians. As a lead tech, Logan is responsible for aiding and guiding other technicians. “I like seeing them pick up things and learn as they

Butler Community College Criminal Justice student Kathryn Geier was one of seven college students from across the state to complete the Kansas Collegiate Law Enforcement Academy, hosted by the Kansas Highway Patrol May 19-23, 2025. This marked the seventeenth consecutive year that at least one Butler student participated in the Academy. Criminal justice students from community colleges and universities across Kansas apply for the prestigious program. Students are then selected based on their academic history, level of participation in their college’s criminal justice program and interest in

Butler Community College has announced the President’s and Dean’s Honor Roll Recipients for the Spring 2025 semester. To be named to the President’s Honor Roll, students must have earned a 4.0 GPA, and students on the Dean’s List earned a 3.50 - 3.99 GPA. For each list, students are organized by in-state versus out-of-state, then alphabetically by hometown and last name. In addition, students from Wichita are broken out by zip code. View the President’s Honor Roll here. View the Dean’s Honor Roll here.

Butler Community College is pleased to announce that longtime head women's basketball coach Mike Helmer has been promoted to be the next Director of Athletics. Helmer, who recently completed his 17th season at Butler as head women's basketball coach, will continue in that role for one more season (2025-26) while also overseeing the athletic department. He becomes the 19th athletic director in Butler Community College history, taking over for Todd Carter who is the longest tenured athletic director in Grizzly history. Carter announced his retirement at the end of May, with Helmer set to take