Notable Alumni of Butler University
Notable alumni of Butler University include Jim Jones (Founder of the Peoples Temple cult), David Starr Jordan (Ichthyologist and founding president of Stanford University) and Freddie Hubbard (Jazz trumpeter).
Alumni list
Politics and law
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Karen Pence 1957–
Second Lady of the United States from 2017 to 2021
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George Ryan 1934–2025
39th Governor of Illinois
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Harry Stewart New 1858–1937
US senator from Indiana and Postmaster General
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Grace Julian Clarke 1865–1938
Indiana suffragist, journalist and author
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William E. English 1850–1926
US Representative from Indiana and attorney
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David W. Evans 1946–
Former US Representative from Indiana
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Edward H. Kruse 1918–2000
U.S. representative from Indiana and lawyer
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Raymond Smiley Springer 1882–1947
U.S. representative from Indiana
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Joe Hogsett 1956–
49th mayor of Indianapolis
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Alfred Ahner 1921–2010
Indiana National Guard major general and Adjutant General
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Leroy Edgar Burney 1906–1998
8th Surgeon General of the United States
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Valentina Centeno 1997–
Ecuadorian lawyer and National Assembly member
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Richard L. Roudebush 1918–1995
U.S. representative from Indiana
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Justin Moed
Member of the Indiana House of Representatives
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John Morton-Finney 1889–1998
Civil rights activist, lawyer and educator
Science and academia
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David Starr Jordan 1851–1931
Ichthyologist and founding president of Stanford University
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Arthur C. Cope 1909–1966
Organic chemist behind the Cope elimination
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William Ayres Ward 1928–1996
Egyptologist
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Robert W. Funk 1926–2005
Biblical scholar, founder of the Jesus Seminar
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Stewart Springer 1906–1991
Ichthyologist and shark expert
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J. Gordon Edwards 1919–2004
Entomologist and advocate of DDT safety
Arts and media
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Freddie Hubbard 1938–2008
Jazz trumpeter
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Peter Lupus 1932–
Bodybuilder and actor
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Mark Kurlansky 1948–
Journalist and author of Cod
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Maurine Dallas Watkins 1896–1969
Playwright and screenwriter, former journalist
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Todd Duncan 1903–1998
Baritone who originated Porgy in Porgy and Bess
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David Clarke 1908–2004
Broadway and motion picture actor
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Jay Stewart 1918–1989
Game show announcer on Let's Make a Deal
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Blaine Hogan 1980–
Television and stage actor
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Marguerite Vivian Young 1908–1994
Novelist and academic
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Maurice Kenny 1929–2016
Poet of Mohawk descent
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Johann Sebastian Paetsch 1964–
Cellist and musician
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Luke Flynn 1988–
Composer of film, television and concert music
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Christian Vincent 1980–
Dancer, choreographer and actor
Sports
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Gordon Hayward 1990–
Former NBA player for Jazz and Celtics
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Shelvin Mack 1990–
Former pro basketball player and CBS Sports analyst
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Sarah Fisher 1980–
Retired race car driver, Indy Racing League
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Ed Carpenter 1981–
IndyCar driver and team owner
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Garo Yepremian 1944–2015
NFL placekicker for the Miami Dolphins
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Pat Neshek 1980–
Former MLB pitcher
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Matt Howard 1989–
Former pro basketball player, Butler Bulldogs alumnus
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Kelan Martin 1995–
Basketball player for the Illawarra Hawks
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Victoria Mitchell 1982–
Australian steeplechase runner
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Scott Overall 1983–
British marathon runner
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Andrew Smith 1990–2016
Butler basketball player, two-time Final Four
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Becky Lyne 1982–
British middle-distance runner, 2006 European 800m bronze medallist
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Sean McDermott 1996–
Basketball player for Pallacanestro Trieste
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Kellen Dunham 1993–
Basketball player who played for Butler
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Dan Johnson 1979–
Former MLB first baseman
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Bob Evans 1925–1997
Professional basketball player
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Scott Armstrong 1913–1997
Professional basketball player
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Billy Shepherd 1949–
Former ABA basketball player
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Wilmer Cabrera Jr. 2000–
Colombian football player
Other fields
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Jim Jones 1931–1978
Founder of the Peoples Temple cult
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Peter Edward Kassig 1988–2014
Aid worker killed by the Islamic State
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Gerald Andrew Gettelfinger 1935–
Former Catholic bishop of Evansville, Indiana
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Donald McGavran 1897–1990
Missiologist and founding dean at Fuller's School of World Mission
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Madge Oberholtzer 1896–1925
Victim whose murder contributed to the Klan's decline
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Diane Meyer Simon 1946–
Environmentalist, founder of Global Green USA
No alumni match.
From Wikidata “educated at” records (including people who attended without graduating), ordered by the number of Wikipedia language editions. Degrees and years follow Wikidata and are left out where it has none.
Alumni network
Colleges that share the most alumni with Butler University (people who attended both).