Community Report
Innovation and Opportunity Always Have a Home at Butler
A Look at What’s Up Ahead at Butler Community College
Every season is one of renewed excitement at Butler Community College, with new partnerships and curriculum improvements always being announced and new college initiatives implemented.
This past semester saw several important announcements that show how Butler is working to stay ahead of the curriculum curve and bring new educational opportunities to Butler County residents.
Included in the string of news was a cutting-edge advancement in our software development curriculum, with a new track emphasizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) starting this fall. Research by the state of Kansas is projecting graduates can anticipate lucrative career prospects in the AI field, which led the Information Systems/Software Development Department’s Industry Advisory Committee, a group of area professionals who recognize the growing need for AI technologies, to push for this new program option.
The past semester saw the College’s redesignation as a National Center of Academic Excellence by the National Security Agency. This continued acknowledgement by a significant national institution is a further testament to Butler faculty’s unwavering dedication to providing top-tier education and training in the rapidly evolving field of cyber security. The redesignation, an extension of a previous recognition scheduled to expire soon, was awarded through the 2029 academic year.
A new initiative called Educate the State was also brought to life this spring. The new public-private agreement brings together 5 Kansas colleges—Butler Community College, Cowley College, Friends University, Newman University and Southwestern College—with a goal of positively impacting the current teacher shortage in the state. Together, the institutions have made a seamless transfer option for Secondary Education majors more affordable through a guaranteed lower tuition rate at the private university level.
Even Butler summers are full of exciting opportunities for career growth, with the annual Fiber Optics bootcamp hosted by our Career and Workforce Education division taking place in August. The five-day intensive gives students a chance to learn a new, in-demand trade with high salary prospects with a remarkably quick turnaround. It’s not often you can change the trajectory of your entire career in less than a week, but this is one of those opportunities.
The upcoming school year will see a new Food Truck Entrepreneurship certificate parked at the Redler Institute of Culinary Arts. The new credential, one of several notable new beginnings at the Redler Institute, will hopefully bring more savory and sweet treats to the streets of Andover and beyond.
Fall 2024 will also see the start of a new Instructional Design Certificate meant to equip individuals with the knowledge and online design capabilities they need to excel in the ever-evolving world of instructional design. The fully-online curriculum, geared toward education, graphic design and digital media majors includes an optional 3 credit hour internship, ensuring that students receive a fresh opportunity to shape the future of learning with an enhanced toolkit.
Beyond these exciting opportunities, there is even more to look forward to, including an existing e-sports gaming club looking to start competing on a collegiate level, a trap shooting team beginning official competition in the fall of 2025, and a number of academic projects and industry partnerships aimed to improve the lives and careers of Butler students and the Butler County community.
Great things are always on the horizon at Butler Community College.