Cassius F. Butts, former regional administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), has joined Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business as an executive in residence where he will focus on the university’s entrepreneurship and innovation initiatives. He will have two primary areas of focus: industry outreach to build mentoring and advisory boards, and connecting students with the local and broader entrepreneurial community; and fundraising that is both philanthropic as well as seeking venture capital for student-led startups.

Butts brings a wealth of experience to his new position. Appointed by President Barack Obama as regional administrator for the eight Southeastern states comprising Region IV, he managed five record-breaking years for SBA lending. Nearly $30 billion in SBA-backed loans were awarded to small businesses within the region, representing a 53 percent increase in lending during his tenure.

“Cultivating an inclusive and energized entrepreneurial ecosystem across the entire university is an institutional imperative,” said Dean Richard Phillips of the Robinson College of Business. “We are excited to have Cassius join the Robinson College and Georgia State; his knowledge and contacts will help us move our collective entrepreneurship initiatives forward.”

Butts began his federal career as a Presidential Management Fellow under the George W. Bush Administration with the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), where he became branch chief in 2002. Since 1992, Butts has worked in leadership positions for Bank of America, Fleet Bank and the City of Atlanta. A 20-year serial entrepreneur, he co-founded CB Consulting Group, LLC, which primarily offered entrepreneurial, strategy and community engagement services. He also has forged over 100 strategic alliances with chambers, associations, accelerators/centers for innovation, and foundations.

In 2013, he was appointed to the National Partnership Council, and he has been an active policy board member for the Atlanta Federal Executive Board. Butts is a graduate of Atlanta’s Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University’s School of Public Administration. He is also a 2012 graduate of Leadership Atlanta.