- Clarke County School District │ Athens, GA
- Meet the Board
Board of Education
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The nine-member Clarke County Board of Education (BOE) is the official governing body for the Clarke County School District. It is responsible for policy-making, budget approval, evaluation of the superintendent, and other duties prescribed by law. Board members are elected to four-year terms. To contact a BOE member, use the "Board Members" dropdown menu below.
Please get in touch with the appropriate Clarke County School District office or school for information on a specific issue (such as school registration, disciplinary hearings, or employment). The school district's main number is 706-546-7721.
For board administration questions, contact:
Lisa Palmer
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent/Board Manager
palmerli@clarke.k12.ga.us
706-546-7721, Ext. 79201Meeting Schedule
Click here for the 2023 board meeting schedule. The meetings are held in the Vernon Payne Meeting Hall at the CCSD District Office, located at 595 Prince Ave., Athens. Meetings are also live-streamed and available for on-demand viewing on the CCSD YouTube channel.
Public Comments at Board Meetings
- The deadline to sign up to speak at a regular BOE meeting is 4 p.m. on the day of the meeting.
- To sign up, please call Lisa Palmer at 706-546-7721, Ext. 79201.
- Members of the public must provide their name, place of residence, contact information, and speaking topic.
BOE Members
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District 1 - Heidi Hensley
Heidi Hensley - District 1
Email: hensleyh@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2026 -
District 2 - Claudia Butts
Claudia Butts - District 2
Email: buttsc@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2024Claudia Butts is a native of Athens who graduated from Cedar Shoals High School. Claudia earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Paine College in Augusta, Georgia. After completing college, she decided to return to her hometown and help serve the youth in the community. She’s a member of the Order of Eastern Star, Jurisdiction of Georgia Zenith Chapter #92. She is a founder of the East Athens Inner City Tennis Team, a founder of Sisters of Success, and a member of Living Waters Christian Fellowship Church. She’s currently serving as Vice-President of the Athens Paine College Club. In her spare time, when she’s not serving the youth, she enjoys reading and shopping.
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District 3 - Linda Davis
Linda Davis - District 3
Email: davislin@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2026Ms. Linda E. Davis is secretary of Georgia-based Indigo Business Solutions, Inc. and an adjunct instructor at Athens Technical College. She is a native Athenian and product of the Clarke County School District. Ms. Davis earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Shorter College in 1996 and an MBA from Kennesaw State University in 2000. She retired from BellSouth Telecommunications, Inc and returned to Athens in 2006 to actively serve the youth in her community. Ms. Davis is engaged in other civic and community endeavors, such as the Bethlehem Cemetery Society, and is a Member of Historic Athens. She served on the Envision Athens Steering and Oversight Committee and the West Broad Feasibility Study Initiative. She has served on the Board of Education since 2012.
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District 4 - Dr. Patricia Yager
Dr. Patricia Yager - District 4
Email: yagerp@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2024Dr. Patricia Yager is a professor of marine science at the University of Georgia, where she has worked since moving to Athens in 1998. Her expertise includes climate change, ocean ecosystems, and the carbon cycle, but she has also partnered with K-12 educators to improve STEM education through PolarTrec, Scientist in the Classroom, and other programs. Middle or high school science teachers have accompanied her on major research expeditions she led to the Arctic, the Antarctic, and the Amazon River plume. Dr. Yager served as an elected parent representative on the Cedar Shoals High School Local School Governance Team (2016-2019) and has been an active parent volunteer at both Hilsman Middle School and Cedar Shoals High School.
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District 5 - Tim Denson
Tim Denson - District 5
Email: densont@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2026Tim Denson is a father, husband, musician, and community organizer who believes that, by uniting the people, we can make an Athens that works for everyone. Tim has lived in Athens since 2004 and has worked as a community organizer and labor organizer since 2011. He is lucky enough to be the husband of Jennifer Winchell Denson and the father of Sarah Michelle, who is a proud Koala Scholar at Whitehead Road Elementary. Tim was elected and served as an Athens-Clarke County Commissioner for District 5 from 2019-2022 before being drawn out of the district. Before that, he co-founded and served as Organization Coordinator of the community organization Athens for Everyone. Tim graduated from Edison College (AA) in 2003.
Tim currently serves on the Envision Athens Board, the ACC Federation of Neighborhoods, the Mayor's Inclusionary Housing Task Force, and as Chair of the Athens-Clarke County Democratic Committee. He has previously served on the Georgia Initiative for Community Housing, the ACC Vision Committee. Tim is excited to serve the students, parents, and workers of CCSD as the District 5 school board member.
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District 6 - Dr. Mumbi Anderson (Board Vice-President)
Dr. Mumbi Anderson - Vice-President - District 6
Email: andersonm@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2024
Dr. Anderson’s family moved to Athens in 1991, where she attended Gaines Elementary School, Hilsman Middle School, and Cedar Shoals High School. She also has three children, one of whom attended Chase Street School (where she served as PTO Secretary), Clarke Middle, and is currently at Clarke Central High School. Her youngest two children will soon attend Timothy Road Elementary. She received both her Master of Public Health (MPH) and Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) in Higher Education Management at UGA. She is currently a clinical assistant professor in the College of Public Health at UGA, where she teaches, oversees graduate education, and works on the College’s accreditation and evaluation activities. In addition to service on a number of committees in the College and University, Dr. Anderson’s involvement in the Athens-Clarke County community has included service on the Live Forward (formerly AIDS Athens) Board of Directors, the Athens-Oconee Heart Walk Leadership Committee, Athens-Clarke County Vision Committee, and Overview Commission. -
District 7 - Dr. LaKeisha Gantt (Board President)
Dr. LaKeisha Gantt - Board President- District 7
Email: ganttl@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2022Dr. LaKeisha Gantt is currently president of the Board. She is a native of Athens who graduated from Clarke Central High School. LaKeisha and her husband, Julius, have four children who are students at Timothy Road Elementary, Clarke Central High, and the Athens Community Career Academy. LaKeisha earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Mercer University. She earned her master's and Ph.D. in community counseling and counseling psychology from the University of Georgia. As a previous Behavior Specialist with the Clarke County School District, she has worked extensively with students, leaders, and staff on issues related to discipline and school climate. She has also provided professional development for school stakeholders including principals, teachers, transportation staff, and paraprofessionals. As a licensed counselor, psychologist, and certified school counselor, she has extensive experience working with children, adolescents, and young adults. Currently, she serves as an assistant professor at Piedmont College and manages a small private practice through which she provides counseling and organizational consultation.
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District 8 - Nicole Hull, J.D.
Attorney Nicole Hull - District 8
Email: hulln@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2024
Attorney Hull is the managing partner of The Hull Firm and practices in education law, child welfare law, and is also a registered mediator and state-approved mediation trainer. Attorney Hull was appointed by the Georgia Supreme Court to serve on the Commission on Dispute Resolution and serves as the Co-Chair for the Training and Credentialing Committee. In addition to her law and mediation practice, she is frequently retained by the Georgia Department of Education to facilitate contentious Individualized Education Plan meetings between families and school districts, and serves as an adjunct professor at Mercer University's Walter F. George School of Law. -
District 9 - Mark Evans
Mark Evans - District 9
Email: evansm@clarke.k12.ga.us
Term Ends: December 2026Mark Evans is a professor of education and the Director of the Center of Teaching and Learning at Piedmont University. Professor Evans has two scholars in Clarke County Schools. When Professor Evans is not working with pre-service teachers, he can be found playing video games online.