Students congregated in the Welcome Center Thursday, April 20, 2017. They were served a lunch prior to the Diversity Panel.
Butler welcomed six alumna to the 90-year anniversary of Butler Community College. The alumna include Jennifer Winsett, Junetta Everett, Joyce Robinson, Katherine Washington, Carlene Valentine and Venessa Warnock.
Photos by Dom Brown
Connor Detlefsen
Lantern Staff
On Thursday, April 20, Butler held a Diversity Panel to celebrate the experiences of six successful African-American alumnae; Jennifer Winsett, Junetta Everett, Joyce Robinson, Katherine Washington, Carlene Valentine and Venessa Warnock. During their time on the panel, they spoke of their life changing choice to attend Butler Community College in the 1970s.
All of the women spoke of fond memories during their time on the El Dorado Campus. Some of the women knew each other before Butler, but their friendship became stronger while attending Butler together. While they recalled their time at Butler, they mentioned how positive and welcoming the environment was especially for African-American students.
A common theme throughout the panel was to embrace other people’s differences as the women’s friendships were built on differences. The women offered advice to Butler students: Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do something, take advantage of all the opportunities Butler offers and above all, never give up hope on your goals.
During the panel there was an incredible sense of warmth amongst the women and one could tell that they were all close friends. At the end of the panel President Krull said, “We believe in the work that we do here at the college, and we also believe in the students that go here.”
