President James Danko addresses attendees at the launch celebration of Boldly Butler. Photo by Mason Buysse.
ELLA HALL | STAFF REPORTER | erhall@butler.edu
Butler University announced the launch of Boldly Butler — a $325 million initiative aimed at delivering transformative education with local impact and global reach — in a celebratory event at Shelton Auditorium on Sept. 26.
Boldly Butler is the largest campaign in Butler history, structured around three pillars: transformative learning experiences, a dynamic campus and community and a thriving university with global reach. The university aims to achieve this vision by 2030 through strategic investments and broad community engagement.
President James Danko spoke at the launch event, addressing the need for initiatives like these in times when higher education is losing interest. He acknowledged the criticism of four-year institutions often being inaccessible, noting that Butler has and will continue to combat these challenges.
“Pride cannot make us complacent,” Danko said. “We face challenges ahead, and we must meet them with bold action. We must be louder in telling our story. The world needs to know that Butler is not only protecting the value of higher education, we are redefining it.”
As part of the Boldly Butler initiative, the university plans to make significant investments in key areas that will enhance the student experience and community engagement.
Butler plans to introduce a mentorship program that pairs each student with a career mentor, broadening support beyond the business school and into all disciplines. This initiative aims to equip students with the guidance and networks necessary to succeed professionally.
Steps are also being taken to ensure that Butler offers a globally-reaching education through the new Butler Overseas degree.
Jonathan Purvis, the Vice President for advancement and marketing, explained how the team behind Boldly Butler decides what initiatives to fundraise for in campaigns like these, and how it all comes back to focus on the student experience.
“[The most viable fundraising opportunity is] what’s going to best support our students,” Purvis said. “The key element of fundraising is having a clear sense of what the highest university needs [are, and] where [they] intersect with donor passions.”
In addition to academic support, Butler is committing financial resources to upgrading campus life and strengthening ties with the larger Indianapolis community. This includes investments in the Midtown Arts District initiative, largely defined by a newly renovated Clowes Memorial Hall, which will serve as a cultural hub for both the university and the surrounding community. Athletic programs will also see new investments, reinforcing the university’s tradition of excellence in sports.
The Boldly Butler launch event allowed the attendees to get a deeper glimpse of the ways each of the three pillars can impact the Butler community through different speakers relaying personal experiences. One section of the event showcased how Butler is expanding accessibility through the Founder’s College, designed to provide more pathways for students from diverse backgrounds to access a Butler education.
Mia Armendariz Contreras, a first-year youth and community advocacy major in the Founder’s College, emphasized the impact that increasing accessibility to education has on students.
“We’re setting the tone for all the students who will come after us,” Contreras said. “I know it won’t always be easy, but I also know we won’t be alone. We have a community behind us that wants us to grow, to succeed and to dream bigger than we ever thought possible, and that’s what makes this moment so powerful.”
Butler alumnus Michael Hole was another speaker who shared how investments from people who believed in him helped shape his path to success, and how he believes Butler can do the same, claiming that this is “Butler’s moment”.
“People are counting on you and counting on me to make what we launched today count for them,” Hole said. “Will we rest, or will we rise? The Butler University that I know — inspired to boldly innovate and broadly educate — always rises. Butler rises with purpose. We rise with momentum. We rise with the big school opportunities without the big school. We rise with that righteous wind at our backs that we call the Butler Way.”
President Danko ended the ceremony with a reminder that Butler will continue to build momentum to achieve their vision, committing to their belief in education. He encouraged all attendees to join him in making this dream come to fruition.
“We have the chance to carry that spirit forward by each of us adding our own voice, our own word, to what boldly Butler means,” Danko said. “As your President, I accept the responsibility to lead with vision and conviction. I commit myself fully to this cause, to working alongside you and to standing shoulder to shoulder with you as we bring Boldly Butler to life.”
