David R. Johnson: A Life of Service
Colleagues, family members, and friends of David R. Johnson gathered on October 21 to celebrate a distinguished career and life of service to people with disabilities, loved ones, and the University of Minnesota.
Johnson was part of the team that founded the University’s Institute on Community Integration in the 1980s and eventually served as its director for two decades until 2018. He also served multiple leadership roles in the College of Education and Human Development until shortly before his death on July 4.
“For over 40 years, he devoted his career to improving education transition services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through research, teaching, and education, and without question made significant contributions to the creation and dissemination of new knowledge that made an impact at the local, state, national, and international levels,” ICI Director Amy Hewitt said during the Celebration of Life event at the University’s Campus Club. “ICI’s growth in size and national regard to a substantial degree is a result of David’s early commitment to ICI and his thought about our role at the University. During his tenure, he more than doubled our revenue, doubled our staff, and increased the topic areas in which we conduct research. He set clear expectations for leaders and let us do our work. This autonomy and his leadership made ICI what it is today.”
Several other colleagues from the University and beyond paid tribute to Johnson at the event, either in person or as part of a memorial video shared at the event.
“David’s passing ends an era in the [Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development] department,” said Ken Bartlett, OLPD professor. “David was a scholar and a gentleman…who maintained his career, his professionalism, his sense of humor, his support for others, and his kindness to the end. He left more than an incredible research, teaching, and service legacy in OLPD and far beyond. I don’t think he ever quite grasped the extent to which he was a role model and mentor, and not just for our students.”
Hewitt noted that Johnson was awarded more than 100 competitive grants totaling nearly $43 million for sponsored projects at the University. He authored more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and held many leadership roles in the disability field. In 2018, he received the George S. Jesien Distinguished Achievement Award from the Association of University Centers on Disability and the Education Award from the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, among many other awards throughout his career.
His contributions to the development, implementation, and refinement of Check & Connect, a long-running intervention program to keep students engaged in school and on track to graduate, were significant in helping the program reach students in all 50 states and several international locations.
Others paying tribute at the event included University of Minnesota President Emeritus Robert Bruininks; Ryan Warren, Innovation Partnership Officer; Michael Rodriguez, dean of CEHD; Laura Bloomberg, president of Cleveland State University; Martha Thurlow, former director of ICI’s National Center on Educational Outcomes; Jean Quam, former dean of CEHD; Bill Kiernan, former director of the Institute for Community Inclusion, UMass Boston; George Jesien, former executive director of the Association of University Centers on Disability; Sheryl and David Evelo; and several other ICI and CEHD colleagues.
Like many of his ICI colleagues, Johnson’s interest and life-long commitment to improving education and other services for people with disabilities were greatly influenced by his family, Hewitt said. His brother Vance was born with an intellectual disability, and his parents were early leaders in The Arc of Minnesota and in the early years of developing special education policy in the state.
“Throughout his career, he used education, research, policy, and advocacy as tools to drive his passion and to create opportunities for inclusive education and life for people with disabilities,” she said.
Despite all of his professional achievements, Johnson was deeply committed to his family, including his wife, Sharon, and their sons, Andrew and Travis, and their families, who attended the event.
“Nothing made David smile more than his family,” Hewitt said, recalling stories of grandchildren and fishing.
Bruininks, a longtime close colleague and friend, shared memories of the earliest days at ICI, when he asked Johnson to join the University without knowing if they would be able to secure enough funding to support the position beyond six months.
“David left enduring footprints on the hearts of his family, students, and colleagues, on the heart of this great university, and on mine,” he said. “His legacy lives in us, and we will miss him.”
A newly established fund to support the Institute, The David R. Johnson Fund , will be used for research, demonstration, and evaluation aimed at improving policy and services for people with disabilities. An anonymous donor has provided dollar-for-dollar matching funds for new gifts.