austinbar.org DECEMBER 2023 / JANUARY 2024 | VOLUME 32, NUMBER 10
2024 Award Winners Announced
Edna Ramón Butts
Jeff Edwards
Marcy Hogan Greer
Randy Howry
he Austin Bar Association and Austin Bar Foundation are proud to announce the winners of the 2024 Distinguished Lawyer and David H. Walter Community Excellence awards! Edna Ramón Butts, Marcy Hogan Greer, and Randy Howry have won Distinguished Lawyer awards, and Jeff Edwards has won the David H. Walter Community Excellence Award. The Distinguished Lawyer Award recognizes the dedication and hard work of an attorney who has practiced for 30 years or more and has significantly contributed to the profession and the community. The David H. Walter Community Excellence Award is presented to an Austin Bar member who
has recently made a significant impact in the community and, at the same time, raised the profile of the profession. These awards will be presented at the 2024 Austin Bar Foundation Gala on Jan. 27, 2024, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. Tickets and sponsorships are available at austinbar.org. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
governmental Relations Committee to develop the board’s legislative priorities for the Texas legislature and serves as the primary liaison with congressional, legislative, and local government officials. She also develops policies for AISD, provides legal services, and serves as the elections administrator. Prior to AISD, Butts served as general counsel and senior policy advisor for then-Senator Kirk Watson, after having served as a special assistant attorney general for six years working on health care matters and as liaison for Mexican attorneys general and foreign consular officials. From 1998 to 2001, Butts was of-counsel at Hughes & Luce LLP and also worked for the Texas Department of Insurance, where she served, in addition to other roles, as the commissioner. From 1980 to 1993, Butts worked in the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in various capacities, including chief of the Finance Division and chief of the Insurance, Banking & Securities Section. She graduated from The University of Texas School of Law in 1978. She has served on a variety
of committees and boards over the years. From 2013 to 2016, she was a member of the implementation task force for The Texas Blueprint: Transforming Education Outcomes for Children and Youth in Foster Care, and also served as a member on the State Bar’s Committee on Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct for three years. Butts has served as a member of The University of Texas Chancellor’s Executive Committee since 2019. From 2013 to 2018, she served on the boards of directors for the Workforce Solutions Capital Area, the Long Center for the Performing Arts, and Communities in Schools of Central Texas. She has also volunteered on the YMCA Board Development Committee; Austin Partners in Education as a volunteer tutor; and the Ceden Family Resource Center as a volunteer English tutor, and is a graduate of the Leadership Austin Essential Program. In 2013, Butts received the 2013 Corazón Community Award given by the non-profit Con Mi Madre.
T
Edna Ramón Butts Austin Independent School District Butts currently serves as the director of intergovernmental relations and policy oversight for the Austin Independent School District (AISD), where she has worked since 2012. In her role, she works with the AISD Board of Trustees’ Inter-
continued on page 28