Jeremy Butler says earning his Business Management associate degree at Gateway represents completing unfinished business he’s had for many years.

Butler, who graduated in Spring 2026 and represented the student voice as a student responder during one of the graduation ceremonies, said he came to Gateway to complete his degree because he saw the light at the end of the tunnel “getting darker and darker.”

“I went to work right out of high school. I took classes here and there, and even attended a four-year college for a semester,” he says. “I had work and a kid, and I’ve been a single dad for the past 18 years.

“About seven years ago, I attended college again for just a semester. After finishing that, I saw in my mind that the tunnel leading to a college degree kept getting further and further away. Then, a year and a half ago, I said to myself ‘I will finish my degree. I will get it done.’ I took classes in summer, fall and spring semesters. And I graduated this spring.”

Butler says he believed the degree would help move him along in a career and that it would be a good example for his son. That example sank in, and he said his son has enrolled in Gateway and will soon begin taking classes.

He said his return to college at Gateway was smooth. “The instructors were great, always very helpful and I think it was easy to navigate the classes,” says Butler. “I did much of my coursework online because of my work schedule, but I was also able to engage with other students as well.”

Finally, returning to the classroom at Gateway in his 40s was no obstacle to Butler and, this time, he really did see the light from the end of the tunnel.

“I did not feel super uncomfortable. All the instructors I had were helpful, and the student makeup was mixed – some were younger, some a little older. A bunch had full-time jobs, and many had kids of their own. Many were in the same boat as me – coming back later in life to obtain a degree.”

Butler has been in a supervisory management role for the past 15 years and said he’s ready to move on to his next position. “I have the skills and life experience to do the job, and Gateway has prepared me well.”

Butler, in his final work at Gateway, gave the student response speech at the 2026 commencement as the official Student Responder. In it, he told graduates that “The world we’re stepping into is changing fast — industries evolve, technology advances and new opportunities appear every day. But the mindset we built here — the willingness to learn, adapt, and grow — will carry us forward. Let this degree be a foundation."