Carolyn A. Butts is a publisher/writer and arts advocate. She has served as an assistant press secretary to former New York State Comptroller H. Carl McCall and a press aide to former Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger. A former reporter, Carolyn was featured in Ms. Magazine’s October/November 2001 “Women to Watch” column for her outstanding achievements. She is the 2010 recipient of the Zora Neale Hurston Award for her collaboration with the Brooklyn Public Library in organizing events celebrating "Their Eyes Were Watching God" for the Big Read.