Serving the students: Claudia Butts’ path from Cedar Shoals to the school board

When Claudia Butts stepped off the graduation stage in Stegeman Coliseum in 2012, she concluded what she describes as  “a wonderful high school experience” at Cedar Shoals.

“I went to Coile Middle School, and I was so nervous to go to high school, but once I got there it was amazing. The building was so great, and it was a real transition into adulthood,” Butts said. 

11 years later, on Feb. 9,  Butts was appointed to the vacant District 2 seat on the Clarke County Board of Education after the previous seat holder Kirrena Gallahger resigned to run for county commission. 

Butts says that the support that she felt from the school board during her time in CCSD was invaluable. 

“When I was in school the school board had good members who focused on the students and students’ achievement,” Butts said. 

Her positive experience as a student in Clarke Country inspired Butts to apply for the school board seat, as she saw it as the best way to serve her school district.. 

“By me being a graduate of CCSD, I feel like I’m giving back what my community once gave me,” Butts said.

While attending Cedar Butts was active in the school community, being in multiple clubs such as the Health Occupations Students Of America, a now defunct club which promoted student leaders in the healthcare industry, as well as  Future Farmers of America. Butts also forayed into starting her own club called Sisters of Success, a club whose objective was to support and uplift other girls at Cedar.

“We got together once a month, did community service and had dinners. At the end of the year we got together and pooled our money to give each other gift cards to shop for things for our dorm rooms,” Butts said. 

After graduating from Cedar, Butts attended what she describes as “the best HBCU in all the land,” Paine College in Augusta, Georgia, where she studied psychology. 

“I absolutely love my HBCU. Paine College made me who I am today by preparing me for the world. Paine students operate as a family, and we support and encourage each other through the journey. I would really encourage any graduating senior to attend Paine,” Butts said.

After graduating from Paine and returning to Athens, Butts continued her community involvement by involving herself in numerous local organizations, specifically ones which involved interacting with children. 

“I started a tennis club in 2021 with the East Athens Development Corporation. We started with eight children and we currently have around 20-25 kids. We celebrated our first year anniversary last July,” Butts said.

Butts also heads a girl scout troop and is in the process of involving the young girls she works with in Sisters of Success. 

“I’m so excited to get children involved with this organization and see it grow,” Butts said.

Butts is interested in bringing her expertise working with children to the school board.

“The experience has helped me as a leader to understand that you can follow and learn from the younger generation. While I’m serving on the school board I always remind myself that I am here to serve the students in the district and be a voice for the community,”  Butts said. 

Aside from her incentive to help the students in the district, Butts says that her faith in God motivated her to apply for the empty board seat. 

“I believe in Jesus Christ and the Bible. In the Bible everything comes in threes, and I had three different people tell me to apply for the vacant position. I was very nervous the whole time. I didn’t know who also applied, I didn’t know who was running against me. But my motivation was really good because like I said, three people told me the same thing,” Butts said.

In her new role, Butts wishes to serve as a link between the school board and the Athens community, which she says starts with more involvement from parents. 

“I would like our community to be more involved, which includes having more people at the board meeting, having the parents in the community asking more questions, knowing what’s actually going on,” Butts said. 

While serving on the school board, improving school spirit is a main goal of Butts, as she feels that the school board is integral to supporting school morale. 

“When I was in school we had so many community organizations involved in the schools and student morale was very high. I am hoping to bring student morale back up to where it once was,” Butts said.  “As I observe the different schools I notice students are not as involved as they should be.” Butts said. Butts plans to make students her biggest priority, hoping her continued work with youth aids her goal.

“I want to make sure that every decision, every vote, every discussion is centered around our students,” Butts said. “Sometimes we can lose sight of our purpose, which is to serve the students.”