CAMPUS

ALUMNAE IPROFILESBrown JohnsonClass of 1970Clued into Kids“We were ready for parents to call ussaying, ‘We’re in America; why do youB Y N A N C Y S H O H E T W E S T ’ 8 4have characters speaking Spanish?’”C O N C O R D A C A D E M Y M A G A Z I N E F A L L 2 0 0 9T H I S10I S S U E• Brown JohnsonClass of 1970• Andrea Morgan DonaghyClass of 1963• John LaurenceClass of 1992• Bess RattrayClass of 1984Courtesy of NickelodeonIf you spend time around young children, youcan probably sing along with the catchy themesongs from Dora the Explorer and Blue’s Clues,TV shows known for their vivid hues anddynamic characters. But you may also haverealized, as most parents have, that thesecolorful animated programs do morethan entertain: they stimulate kids’thought processes by urging them toanswer questions and giving them thetime to think.You can give credit for that to BrownJohnson ’70. The president of animationfor Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and FamilyGroup and a force behind much of Nickelodeon’spreschool-oriented programming,Johnson is known in the industry for implementing“the pause.” That planned moment ofsilence, after a character asks a thought-provokingquestion, allows young viewers to pause andformulate their own answers.Though PBS’s Sesame Street is usuallyacknowledged for bringing education to children’s television,Johnson envisioned a way to take learning further:by simply inviting children to listen, think, and supplyanswers. The kids seem to appreciate the interactivity.Johnson conceived and developed many of Nickelodeon’smost popular shows for preschoolers, starting with Dora theExplorer and Blue’s Clues, then branching out to newerhits such as Go, Diego, Go!, The Wonder Pets!, TheBackyardigans, and Yo Gabba Gabba! “It’s really all about