John Johnson

Dr. John Johnson (he/him) joined Whitman College as the Vice President for Inclusive Excellence in July 2021. Johnson comes to Whitman with more than 20 years of experience as an advocate for diversity, equity, inclusion and antiracism in higher education as a student, staff or faculty member.

Johnson’s formal education includes a B.A. in Psychology (with a minor in Women’s Studies) from Pennsylvania State University, an M.A in Educational Psychology from Ball State University, and a Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Johnson’s scholarly interests include Black psychology, group processes, leadership development, and racial representations in mainstream cinema. Johnson was a fellow with the University of California All-Campus Consortium on Research for Diversity and his research on the contributions of Black Student Unions to predominantly white academic institutions was recognized by the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education. Johnson is a 2022–2023 CDO Fellow with the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education.

Prior to Whitman, Johnson served as the Director of Inclusive Excellence Learning and oversaw the Centers for Diversity and Inclusion at California State University, Sacramento.