HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS

In selecting honorary degree recipients, Butler University strives to celebrate individuals whose life and work reflect the University’s core values and who have made tremendous accomplishments in the areas of scholarship, creativity, and public service, therefore significantly benefiting or enriching a particular group or enhancing our larger society.

Kathryn G. Betley

A passionate philanthropist and servant leader, Kathryn “Katie” Betley has served the Butler University Board of Trustees for more than 40 years. During her tenure on the Board, Katie has led numerous committees, work groups, and special projects—even serving as Chair of the Board. Although Katie did not attend Butler—she graduated from DePauw University—she has been vital to Butler’s growth and success. In addition to her long-standing service to Butler, Katie has been an integral community leader across the city of Indianapolis. Her resume of civic engagement is second to none and currently includes board positions at organizations such as Community Hospitals, Inc., the United Way of Central Indiana, the Indiana State Museum Foundation, Indiana Sports Corp, and the Indianapolis Zoological Society, just to name a few. Katie’s commitment to bettering her community has not gone unnoticed, and she has received countless honors and awards including the Hoosier Heritage Lifetime Achievement Award, membership in the Indiana Academy, and B’nai B’rith Woman of the Year. Katie and her late husband Lenord “Len” Betley were instrumental in forging the important relationship between Butler University and the Fairbanks Foundation, which has truly transformed the Butler University campus through their generosity and support.

Leonard J. Betley

Although Leonard J. “Len” Betley passed away earlier this year at 89, his incredible legacy continues to live on through his generous and extensive philanthropic and civic engagement. A lawyer by trade, Len became a managing partner at the firm that is now known as Ice Miller following his graduation from the University of Michigan Law School and Yale University. He served as President and CEO of private foundations that truly transformed the City of Indianapolis and the lives of Hoosiers, including the Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation, the Regenstrief Institute and Foundation, and the Walther Cancer Foundation. Len’s work also culminated in the creation of the Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park at Newfields and the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI. He was a loving father and husband, a loyal friend, and a true champion for Butler University.

Everett Greene

Born in 1934 in Washington, DC, Everett Francis Greene, Sr., started singing in school quartets as a young child. He continued to perform throughout his adolescence and young adulthood, even during his tenure in the Marine Corps. After serving abroad in Korea, Greene’s voice echoed through Indianapolis’ historic Indiana Avenue corridor in the 1950s, when he spent time visiting the area’s jazz clubs with his mother. Everett eventually married and began a family in Indianapolis while working in industrial manufacturing. Greene extended the traditional bass-baritone range to sing at a higher range and made a name for himself because of his unique voice. When he retired in 1982, he began pursuing his professional music career. He has recorded multiple albums, performed with a variety of jazz orchestras, and has co-starred in several national theatre productions–even receiving an Emmy award for his role in the television special Precious Memories: Strolling 47th Street. Greene has served as a lecturer and guest artist in the Jordan College of the Arts and continues to be an inspiration to Butler students, faculty, and staff.

Rev. Marvin Chandler

A native of Bloomington, Indiana, Reverend Marvin Chandler was born in 1929 as one of nine siblings. Chandler has loved music since he first started playing the piano at age four. He found success in music very early in his life, performing at events like the Indiana State Fair as a young child and appearing on TV and radio programs with his sisters as the Chandler Trio. Chandler became active in his church community, which ultimately led to significant social justice work and his involvement in the Civil Rights Movement. After earning his degree from Indiana University and serving as pastor at Second Baptist Church in Bloomington, chandler and his wife Portia and their daughters eventually moved to Rochester, NY, where he entered divinity school. He eventually was selected to serve as the Associate Director of the Rochester Council of Churches. That same year, Chandler walked alongside Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in the March on Washington. Chandler was integral in reconciliation discussions following riots in Rochester in 1964. Later in 1971, the Rochester Council of Churches called upon Chandler to serve as a negotiator during the Attica Prison Uprising. Chandler and his family later moved to San Francisco so he could serve as a pastor. A few years later, they returned to Indiana, and Chandler began spending more time playing jazz music and recording albums, marrying his love of music with his passion for ministry. Chandler joined the Gilfoy Trio and the Naptown Jazz Quartet and often performed with Everett Greene, greatly influencing the rich heritage of Indianapolis’ jazz scene. Chandler was inducted into the Indianapolis Jazz Foundation Hall of Fame in 2003 and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Franklin College in 2008.

BUTLER UNIVERSITY CLASS of 2022 and 2023

May 5–6, 2023

At matriculation, students leave their families to join the Butler community. During the commencement ceremony, Butler faculty and staff present family members with their diplomas. This long-standing tradition represents the Butler community’s fond farewell, and the return of graduates to their families and to the larger communities in which they are now more prepared to work and live.

PROGRAM — JORDAN COLLEGE of the ARTS

PRELUDE MUSIC

Butler University Wind Ensemble

Dr. Trae Blanco, Conductor Director of University Bands Jordan College of the Arts

PROCESSIONAL

Butler University Wind Ensemble

The audience will remain seated during the Processional.

WELCOME William Soards ’96 Board of Trustees

STUDENT REFLECTION

Bronwyn Smith ’23

FACULTY ADDRESS David Ingram Professor of Dance

PRESENTATION

Dr. Lisa Brooks of the COLLEGE Dean, Jordan College of the Arts

ANNOUNCEMENT Professor Scott Bridge ’82, MS ’91 of the CANDIDATES Instructor of Journalism College of Communication

ALMA MATER Butler University Chorale CLOSING

RECESSIONAL

Derek Reid Professor of Dance

Butler University Wind Ensemble

Family members and guests shall remain seated until the Platform Party and faculty have recessed from the main arena.

American Sign Language interpretation provided by Logan Thompson and Mackenzie Rhyno