Spoon River College Board of Trustee member Linda Butler of Rushville was honored for 30 years of service to the college as a trustee during the regular meeting held Wednesday, August 27, in Rushville. The award was presented by Jim Reed, Executive Director of the Illinois Community College Trustees Association.
Butler first served the college as the director of the SRC Foundation in 1990. Five years later in 1995, she was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Board, and since then has been elected to five regular terms as a board member.
During those 30 years Butler has worked with four presidents and participated in three presidential searches. She served as board secretary for one term, board vice chair for three terms, and board chair for two terms.
With a deep belief in the community college mission and a commitment to student success, Butler’s dedicated leadership has moved the college forward in numerous ways. Major construction projects during her tenure include a new Facilities Maintenance building (2003), Learning Centers in Havana and Rushville (2009), the Multi-Purpose Building and the Snapper Villas Student Housing (2017), baseball and softball fields (2020), and the new Macomb Campus, which was just completed in time for the 2025 fall semester.
When she attended her first trustee training, a trustee from another community college told her she didn’t need to be there as it was his opinion that Spoon River College would “be terminated and absorbed by other colleges.”
Thirty years later, Butler and Spoon River College proved the naysayers wrong. “I don’t listen to the negative talk, I just keep working towards the goals” said Butler following the ribbon cutting and grand opening of the new Macomb Campus held September 3. “That’s how you get things accomplished.”
Butler resides in Rushville and is Vice President & Trust Officer at the Rushville State Bank.
