A lover of education, nature, and the arts, Clayton grew up in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina and studied music composition and English at Duke University, where a summer spent as a literacy tutor in a CDF Freedom School ignited a passion for youth work. Upon graduating in 2020, he moved to Minneapolis and worked as an AmeriCorps academic coach, supporting EL students at Andersen United Middle School before joining the PS team in 2022. Clayton loves working with youth because of their authenticity, playfulness, and sense of justice. His favorite workshops utilize familiar and engaging structures found in music, stories, games, and other media to provide students a space for exploring and expanding their self-understanding.
Clayton also works on a variety of arts and media projects–as a songwriter on theater productions like the original movie-musical 1660 Vine, as a writer, composer, and sound designer on film collaborations with his sister Christine, and as a guitarist. You can find him inventing delicious new sandwiches to pack for a weekend hiking trip, jamming with his friends in a covert effort to push bluegrass music on them, or advocating for a spontaneous trip to get ice cream.
Favorite musicians:
Jason Isbell, Punch Brothers, Nickel Creek, Adrianne Lenker, Bruce Springsteen
If you had to pick a theme song that would play every time you entered the room, what would it be?
Love on Top by Beyonce, but it doesn’t stop and the key keeps changing up and up forever
Favorite book:
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo
Favorite movies:
Fargo, Almost Famous, Vertigo, Amadeus, Night of the Hunter
Favorite food:
Pulled pork BBQ
Favorite subjects in school:
English, History, Choir
If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
Knowing exactly how long to microwave something
The most influential person in your life/favorite teacher or mentor:
My 3rd grade teacher Mrs. MacKay, who brought the entire world into our classroom
What you wanted to be when you grew up:
A rockstar