Gordon Butler, the new principal of Lake Travis High School, was hired in April and brings 15 years of education experience to Lake Travis ISD.[/caption]

In his 15 years in academia, Gordon Butler said he has had the unique privilege of working at every level of public education. Starting as an elementary school teacher in the Dallas area and Boston, he moved to Walnut Grove Middle School in Dallas as a teacher and later became an assistant principal. He then spent time as director of program evaluation at McKinney ISD near Dallas.

Now, after serving as McKinney High School principal for a year, Butler has taken over as principal of Lake Travis High School, filling the vacancy created when former LTHS Principal Kimberly Brents left the district in January to become deputy superintendent of Lockhart ISD. Butler was hired in April and began preparing for the new role before the end of the 2015-16 school year. By June, Butler “was neck-deep in all things Lake Travis,” he said.

“Moving after one year [at MHS] was difficult because one doesn’t tend to job hop in education, but I always looked at LTISD like the New York Yankees,” Butler said. “When they call, you take it because this is one of the top five jobs in the state. That opportunity doesn’t come up often.”

Although Butler said he is still getting used to life in Central Texas, the similarities in size and demographics between MISD and LTISD have helped ease the adjustment.

“Kids are kids,” he said. “The same issues I saw and dealt with at McKinney are what I’m now dealing with here. I love my job because I don’t see it as work. I see it as relationship building. Ultimately, I look to see how I can make a difference, even if it’s just one moment with a parent, a student or a staff member where I give them [confidence or direction].”

Butler said the success of LTHS in many facets–academics, fine arts and athletics–as well as its placement in a fast–growth district attracted him to the job. He said he wants to embrace the district’s fast-growth status; however, maintaining the school’s success and making changes at an established institution is what he said he sees as his greatest challenge.

“My biggest challenge is exerting the right amount of pressure to get us to that next level,” Butler said. “I have to build a case for why we should change when everything is already really good. I’ve left some things in place and honored the past by not touching some of those sacred practices. This is a year of observing, taking time and collaborating to figure out what we want to tackle.”

A tradition Butler brought from McKinney involves interacting with the student body. Every so often, he brings cookies and brownies to school, and he tweets out his locations so students will come to say hi.

“It’s not about passing around cookies and getting the kids sugared up before class,” Butler said. “It’s about having a moment with a student, where they have the chance to engage and have a conversation with the principal of a school with almost 3,000 students. All the minutiae of being an administrator, there are still areas I can grow, but as far as being with and connecting with students, that’s my wheelhouse.”