Butler’s Diversity Panel to Celebrate Experiences of Black Alumnae

Butler Community College is hosting a Diversity Panel from 11:30-12:30 p.m. on April 20 in the Hubbard Welcome Center. This event highlights the historical experiences of six Black women who studied at Butler’s El Dorado Campus in the 1970s. The Diversity Panel event is a part of Butler’s 90th Anniversary Celebration and is sponsored by the Butler Black Student Association.

The six women who will speak at the Diversity Panel are Carlene Valentine, Joyce Anderson Robinson, Katheryn Washington, Vanessa Ford Warnock, Jannifer Wimbley Winsett and Junetta French Everett.

Each woman will talk about their time at Butler during the 1970s. Though they were involved in different activities, their stories share a common theme: success. Robinson is a retired school teacher of 23 years and lives in San Antonio, Texas. Washington got her start in the banking industry where she remained for 28 years. Winsett is a human resources coordinator in Austin, Texas. Everett majored in science and later became the first Black woman to graduate from Wichita State University’s dental hygiene program. She is currently Vice President of Professional Relations at Delta Dental of Kansas. Valentine, a 1972 Butler homecoming candidate, is a retired social worker. Warnock obtained her master’s degree in counseling and works at a high school in Dallas, Texas.

“I tell my students today, that Butler County was the best thing that happened to me,” Warnock said. “It helped me focus and get a jump on the college life in a protected and nurturing environment.”