Butler Earns 2025-2026 Military Friendly® School Designation

Butler Community College is pleased to announce it has been awarded the 2025-2026 Silver Military Friendly® School designation. The announcement comes as Butler and McConnell Air Force Base prepare to celebrate their 50-year partnership with a special event later this month.

Institutions earning the Military Friendly® School designation were evaluated using both public data sources and responses from a proprietary survey. More than 1,800 schools participated in the 2025-2026 survey with 830 earning special awards for going above the standard.

“This recognition is immensely valuable to Butler Community College, as it underscores our dedication and efforts in serving the military community,” said Erika Gestring, Director of Butler’s McConnell Campus and Service Center. “We deeply appreciate the service members' commitment to our country and express our gratitude by understanding and accommodating their unique needs, while supporting them in achieving their educational aspirations,” Gestring said.

Methodology, criteria, and weightings were determined by Viqtory with input from the Military Friendly® Advisory Council of independent leaders in the higher education and military recruitment community. Final ratings were determined by combining the institution’s survey scores with the assessment of the institution’s ability to meet thresholds for Student Retention, Graduation, Job Placement, Loan Repayment, Persistence (Degree Advancement or Transfer) and Loan Default rates for all students and, specifically, for student veterans.

The 2025-2026 Military Friendly® Schools list will be published in the May and October issue of G.I. Jobs magazine and found at www.militaryfriendly.com.

“Military Friendly® is committed to transparency and providing consistent data-driven standards in our designation process,” said Kayla Lopez, National Director of Military Partnerships for Military Friendly®. “Our standards provide a benchmark that promotes positive outcomes and support services that better the educational landscape and provide opportunity for the Military Community. Schools who achieve awards designation show true commitment in their efforts, going above that standard,” Lopez said.

The special celebration event will take place on April 24 at 10:00 a.m. in the Dole Center at McConnell Air Force Base, which is located at 53476 Wichita Street in Derby, Kansas.