Kelly Darryl Girtz (born November 12, 1971) is an American educator and politician currently serving as mayor of the unified government of Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, having succeeded Nancy Denson in January 2019. Before he was sworn in as mayor, Girtz maintained a long career as a teacher and school administrator in Northeast Georgia.

Early life

Girtz was born on November 12, 1971, in

Bath, Maine Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. The population was 8,766 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County, which includes one city and 10 towns. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its ...

to Darryl Sylvester and Joanne (née Kirsch) Girtz (now Claridge), while his father was stationed aboard the ''

USS Dale USS ''Dale'' may refer to: *, was a sloop-of-war, launched in 1839 and transferred to the Maryland Naval Militia in 1895 *, was a , launched in 1900 and struck in 1919 *, was a , launched in 1919 and struck in 1930 *, was a destroyer, launched i ...

.'' The ''Dale'' was homeported in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

, where Girtz and his family then lived for a year before moving to

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

for a year. From 1974 to 1994, he was raised and resided in Norfolk, Virginia, where he graduated from

Lake Taylor High School Lake Taylor High School is a public high school located in Norfolk, Virginia and is the "Home of the Mighty Titans". It is administered by Norfolk City Public Schools. The school colors are red and black and its mascot is the Titans. Lake Taylor ...

in 1989 and

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...

in 1993.

Educator

Girtz earned his Master of Arts in Teaching from

Piedmont College Piedmont University is a private university in Demorest and Athens, Georgia. Founded in 1897, Piedmont's Demorest campus includes 300 acres in a traditional residential-college setting located in the foothills of the northeast Georgia Blue Rid ...

. From 1998 to 2014, he was a teacher and administrator in the Clarke County School District in Athens. He then served as Regional Director for Student Services and Special Education for Foothills Charter High School, a public charter high school.

Political career

County commissioner

In November 2006, Girtz was elected to serve as a member of the Athens-Clarke County commission, representing District 9. He was re-elected unopposed in both 2010 and 2014.

Mayoral candidate

In May 2017, Girtz announced that he would run for mayor of Athens-Clarke County. On May 22, 2018, he defeated fellow commissioner Harry Sims and local businessman Richie Knight, earning over 60 percent of the vote, to become mayor-elect.

Mayor

Girtz was sworn in as Mayor on January 8, 2019. Former Clarke County School District Board of Education member Ovita Thornton was sworn in as Girtz's replacement for the District 9 commissioner seat. During the 2020 COV-ID 19 pandemic in the United States, Girtz urged Athens residents to continue sheltering in place, opposing Governor

Brian Kemp Brian Porter Kemp (born November 2, 1963) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 83rd governor of Georgia since January 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Kemp served as the 27th secretary of state of Georgia from 2010 to ...

's April 20 announcement that non-essential Georgia businesses, like gyms and hair salons, could re-open that week. During the Black Lives Matter protests of late May/early June 2020, Mayor Girtz joined protesters in calling for the removal of a Confederate monument on Broad Street. The demand came after local law enforcement teargassed protesters at a March for a World Without Cops demonstration in front of the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

Arch on the night of May 31.

Electoral history

2006

2018

2022

References

External links

Official website
of the Mayor of Athens-Clarke County {{DEFAULTSORT:Girtz, Kelly Mayors of places in Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia (U.S. state) Democrats Living people 21st-century American politicians 1971 births