By Lindsay Doty
The Brownsburg Education Foundation recently announced Kenneth Buetow as the 2021 inductee to the BHS Alumni Hall of Fame, an honor that recognizes outstanding alumni.
The 1975 BHS graduate has had an impressive career as a human geneticist and genomicist.
“I was surprised and deeply humbled. It is a great honor to be recognized and remembered so many years since leaving the BCSC community,” said Buetow, who has not forgotten his days as a Bulldog.
From marching with the BHS band down Main Street for the homecoming parade with sousaphone on his shoulder to holding an elaborate funeral with his friends for a lab rat that died unexpectedly during their science fair project, the Brownsburg experiences have shaped the person he is today.
“My Hoosier roots inform and underpin how I lead my life — the values I bring to day-to-day interactions, the pioneering spirit I bring to problem-solving,” said Buetow.
“My proudest professional accomplishment was my participation in the Human Genome Project and my group’s role in helping it meet/exceed an early milestone — constructing the human genetic map that served as the ‘mile markers’ used throughout the project,” said Buetow.
He later joined the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI) where he was able to translate the then-new genomics point of view into cancer research.
For the last 15 years, Buetow has been working as a professor and mentor at Arizona State University (ASU).
He joins 2020 inductees Rick Wagers and Gene Ploughe. Buetow will be recognized at the upcoming virtual BEF Rally for Our Kids Gala on March 12.
To nominate someone for the 2022 Alumni Hall of Fame class, submit nominations electronically by Oct. 1. Visit http://bit.ly/2lTTnE4 to fill out the nomination form.
