Spring 2007 - College of Education - Michigan State University

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JOHNSON LEADS EFFORT TO BUILD GLOBAL COMMUNITY FOR THE FIELD OF DEAF EDUCATION out of isolati 16 new educator
n>> Andrea Billups Johnson engages his class in a discussion as interpreter Donna Leahy signs along to his lecture. For the record, Professor Harold Johnson is not deaf or even hard of hearing, and neither is anyone in his family. Yet when he meets with a visitor to his office, he occasionally signs along as he speaks, an elegant articulation in a parallel language that suggests he’s been talking with his hands all of his life. Johnson’s connection to his profession came not as part of a grand plan but in a moment of serendipity when he sought to change his undergraduate major from psychology to literacy. It was 1969, and as Johnson made his way down a hallway one day during his sophomore year at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, a professor he had never met stopped him for a second and the two began a brief discussion about what Johnson should study. It came about that day as a suggestion: “What about majoring in deaf education” the professor asked. Johnson recalls that it was an interesting idea, and although he had no personal background or experience with the deaf, he latched onto it immediately, as if it were meant to be. Little did he know that day that their impromptu talk would send him down the path that would lead to a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree, a doctorate (he cashed in his life savings and even his insurance policy to help fund his Ph.D. program) and ultimately his becoming a worldwide expert in his field. “I had never thought about being a teacher. I’d never even met a deaf person. Most people have some connection to someone who is deaf, but mine was just luck,” says Johnson of his early career. “Ultimately, for me, what it came down to was about making a difference in someone’s life,” says Johnson, a veteran educator who joined the MSU College of Education faculty last fall. “I felt wanted and valued in deaf ed. I am passionate about my work, and my goal every day is to learn something and to make a difference. I am constantly awed by this field.” Before his arrival at MSU, the College of Education had been looking for just the right person to fill the huge void left when Professor David Stewart died suddenly of a heart attack in 2004. When college administrators wanted suggestions for someone new, they sought the advice of Johnson, at the time a professor at Kent State University. Johnson submitted name after name of known academics he thought would be right for the MSU job. Finally, after much consideration, all roads led back to Johnson as the . spring 2007 17
Page 1 and 2: New Educator MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERS
Page 3 and 4: [ FEATURES ] 12 16 20 NEW COUNTRY,
Page 5 and 6: COE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION from the Pre
Page 7 and 8: upfront Buy a Bagel, Help a Student
Page 9 and 10: upfront New Database Expands Resear
Page 11 and 12: upfront International Education Con
Page 13 and 14: upfront 13 IS INDEED A LUCKY NUMBER
Page 15 and 16: Literacy re & LI’S RESEARCH BRIDG
Page 17: can acquire mainstream knowledge an
Page 21 and 22: Johnson uses the latest technology
Page 23 and 24: SCHNEIDER STUDIES HOW OUR MOST IMPO
Page 25 and 26: Schneider values family, the center
Page 27 and 28: “American families and their empl
Page 29 and 30: THE RESEARCH collected and analyzed
Page 31 and 32: etter THE POLICY ers are receiving
Page 33 and 34: THE POLICY middle school reform, an
Page 35 and 36: FACULTY ground up—reading. He too
Page 37 and 38: FACULTY Edwards Elected President o
Page 39 and 40: FACULTY International Research Conf
Page 41 and 42: STUDENTS Coach! STUDENT HONORS “I
Page 43 and 44: ALUMNI ITY ORPHANAGE >> Kristen Par
Page 45 and 46: ALUMNI awareness of his or her soci
Page 47 and 48: New merchandise coming soon! Check
Page 49 and 50: DEVELOPMENT and Jim Putnam Chair in
Page 51 and 52: DEVELOPMENT Accomplishments of Educ
Page 53 and 54: • MSU ALUMNI 50 YEAR REUNION DAYS

Spring 2007 - College of Education - Michigan State University

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