Greetings David W. Butler Families:

Welcome to the 2022-23 school year! I would like to extend a special welcome to all of the new families joining Butler High School this year and welcome back all of our returning families. I am honored to be your principal and look forward to a productive year of effective teaching and learning and engaged students. Our goal is to provide a safe, supportive and enjoyable learning environment in which everyone is equal and all achievements are celebrated; an environment for each student to develop a curiosity of learning, discover their interests, and grow in their love of learning. We will achieve this by providing an inclusive curriculum, addressing a range of learning styles, and offering an array of diversity efforts and programs.

Butler High School has a rich tradition of excellence dating back to its opening in 1997.  Butler serves 2,000 scholars and is located on 74 acres in Matthews, a suburban community just east of Charlotte. Butler is a community-based high school named in honor of David W. Butler, an outstanding teacher who perished in a house fire while saving the lives of his family.  Today, Butler High School upholds the principles set forth by David W. Butler—dedication, perseverance, and commitment.

The student body at Butler is very diverse (31% White, 31% Hispanic, 28% African-American, 6% Asian, 3% Multi-Ethnic, 0.2% American Indian and 0.1% Pacific Islander) and our Butler staff is a loyal group of educators who are life-long learners, with student success being their number one priority.  Our beautiful campus is well maintained and includes a performing arts auditorium, gymnasium, football stadium, baseball field, softball field, practice fields, tennis courts, and a greenhouse.  Our scholars experience academic growth on state assessments that are among the highest in CMS. Butler High School offers multiple Honors Level and Advanced Placement (AP) courses that challenge and prepare our scholars for college and careers in the 21st century.  Additionally, our Butler Academy of Health Sciences provides opportunities and internships for any scholar wishing to pursue a career in the growing field of health care.

As educators, we will discover how each child learns so we may differentiate our instruction to support multiple learning styles. In a collaborative effort, we want our students to thrive and be successful in all possibilities. Additionally, we want to provide every student a rigorous, challenging, diverse and engaging curriculum and instruction with the opportunity to enroll in honors and advanced placement (AP) courses. My hope is that all Butler students enjoy their experiences here in a learning environment that is positive, safe, warm, caring, as well as a fun place to grow and succeed.  

I believe student success is attributed to the partnership and the relationships we build within our community. This is important now more than ever.  It truly takes a village to make sure all students are successful. At Butler High School, we value teamwork and collaboration! Education is a joint venture and Team Bulldogs greatly appreciate the support you provide for your student both at home and at school to help them meet their learning goals.  The support of parent contributions through our extraordinary PTSO, teacher conferences, consistent communication and volunteerism will help us reach our goals. Please consider joining and contributing to the PTSO so we can continue to maintain our reputation for excellence.

In the Butler spirit, we pride ourselves on excellence. No matter the situation or circumstance, we keep excellence at the forefront of every decision we make. I challenge each student to have a steadfast mentality to continue learning with the target of being a successful high school graduate. I look forward to working with you this school year as we move forward to achieving the objective of graduating our children as college and career ready Bulldogs!

My vision, as principal, is to always put "Children First!" My firm belief that when the school, home and community come together as one, making education a top priority, all students can achieve at high levels.  Thank you for your continued support.  We look forward to seeing our students and families again soon.

With Children First,

Vincent G. Golden, Principal