She received a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Princeton University in 1996. As a graduate student with Yash Hiromi at Princeton University, Dr. Butler studied the genetic mechanisms that establish neural identity in the Drosophila eye during development. Dr. Butler then trained as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Jane Dodd at Columbia University where she focused on understanding the molecular identity of the factors that guide axons into their stereotyped trajectories in the developing spinal cord. Dr. Butler showed that molecules previously identified as morphogens, specifically the Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP) family of growth factors, can act as axon guidance signals.