Founder's Week: A Black Women’s History of Butler University Lunch & Learn

This event will present an overview of Butler’s history from 1855 to 1949, featuring significant African-American women, including Getrude Mahorney, the founders of Sigma Gamma Rho, Sorority, Inc., and Dr. Ida P. Hagan. Come learn about women who made an impact on Butler's campus and in the broader Indianapolis community. Lunch is provided. RSVP is required.

This event is sponsored in collaboration between the SISTAS faculty/staff affinity group, Butler University Libraries, and Butler University Founders Week 

Learn more about our featured presenters: 

Tabitha Barbour ’17

Alpha Chapter Alumnae, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated 

Annie Benefiel

Head of Special Collections, Butler University Libraries 

Annie Benefiel is the Head of Special Collections in Irwin Library. She holds a Masters of Science in Library and Information Science (MS LIS) with a concentration in Archives Management from Simmons University and a Bachelor of Arts (BA) from Ball State University. Before coming to Butler, she was the University Archivist and Digital Collections Librarian at Grand Valley State University, and previously held both professional and paraprofessional positions in archives and special collections at the University of Florida, Yale University and Ball State University. She has served on the Governance Board of ArchivesSpace, a community-supported archival collection management application, and was appointed to the Michigan State Historical Records Advisory Board from 2022 to 2025.  Her scholarly interests include archival project management and supporting communities through digital collections.