Jennifer Johnson

Professor of Geography

by John Smith - July 5, 2023

For Geography Professor Jennifer Johnson, a career-long commitment to student success has taken on a vastly different scope and role of responsibility over time through her capacity as chair of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences and service on committees crucial to the betterment of Ferris State University.

“My primary concern when I arrived here was to teach and continue at the university, committed to excellence in my instruction,” Johnson said. “I have always loved teaching, and I would be reluctant to take on any position that would take me completely out of the classroom. Each semester, I ensure my students know they are the best part of my job. I try to keep an open mind about other ways I can serve students, however, as I offer my service on committees, projects and campus leadership positions.”

An initiative that will significantly impact the university’s educational product and processes regularly calls for Johnson’s attention. She is co-chair of a working group moving Navigate into operation on campus.

“We have invested significant time and effort in bringing this student success platform to campus,” Johnson said. “When Navigate is fully operational, it will be a wholly responsive conduit allowing students to use their mobile devices to schedule requests for advice and support across campus, while faculty and staff can easily reach out to and support students proactively.”

Johnson said one aspect of Navigate’s implementation involves new emphasis on the language of alerting students to situations that may arise during an academic year.

“They may be missing class, finding difficulties with a particular subject or facing a non-academic concern,” Johnson said. “One example of the working group’s influence has been to review the messaging necessary when a student is placed on academic probation. There has been a range of content from colleges and departments employed. Our goal is to see that those alerts and communications are consistent and supportive across the university and provide concrete steps that the student can take next. We understand that words and tone matter, so it is cool to have had a part in developing this campus-wide review.”

According to Johnson, the students’ opportunities to seek information and assistance in Navigate are also promising.

“We are pleased that this platform will centralize all their inquiries related to student services,” Jennifer said. “Navigate will be linked with Banner and its data, so the requests are quickly and accurately directed to the campus advisors and other resources they wish to access.”

Such a significant adjustment in student service is not without complications, but Johnson said the working group and their campus partners are closing on the implementation of this application.

“Navigate is partnered with work in the Ferris Equity Initiative, which has goals of improving student retention, better four-year graduation rates for the university and eliminating the achievement gap in our student body,” Johnson said. “Our Navigate system is fully functional, and training rollout and campus-wide exposure will start to ramp up in the coming months.”

Another important role for Johnson is with the steering committee for the Ferris Forward Strategic Plan.

“I am proud to have been the lead author on final documents related to this plan,” Johnson said. “This is a living document that holds fast, even with a new administrative chief in President Bill Pink. The committee was led by vice president for Diversity, Inclusion and Strategic Initiatives David Pilgrim and College of Business faculty member and SPARC chair Spence Tower. With their focus and leadership, we have crafted a targeted system to improve academic programs and offerings, to measure and achieve institutional effectiveness, instill pride and community on our campus and present enhanced resources, all with an emphasis on student success. Even in times of pandemic, the University has operated in a very intentional fashion to set a course and achieve many key institutional targets.”

SPARC, Ferris’ Strategic Planning and Resource Council, has been idle since the fall of 2021, but it will begin meeting again in March 2023. Johnson said that she found SPARC to be a valuable resource in pursuing effectiveness in all university operations.

“It was great that anyone from academic affairs, student affairs, admissions, or faculty and staff could arrive at a SPARC meeting, be recognized and have the chance to offer their perspective,” she said. 

Johnson’s skills in collaboration are also brought to bear as she chairs the Academic Leadership Council.

“This is a diverse body comprised of members who serve in leadership positions below the deans of our respective colleges,” she said. “Each month, our agenda takes up important issues at that time. Navigate’s role on campus operations has been a topic for the council. Still, we also are informed about scholarship processes, recruitment, technology changes, and a host of other issues and activities across campus. Knowing about all these areas allows for better decisions and informed actions by our campus leadership.”

The Campus Climate Team is another university undertaking where Johnson’s contributions include service on a subcommittee considering the neurodiverse members of the Ferris community.

“Simply put, these distinct ways of processing information, learning, thinking and behaving need to be given the appropriate audience and accommodation, so we all feel at home at Ferris, with complete understanding the university will stand ready to assist in any regard,” Johnson said. “We want those who are neurodiverse to have assurance their goals are of great importance to all of us and that intentional efforts will be made in each case to promote their success.”

Johnson said an interesting aspect of applying the Ferris core value of Ethical Community to her work as an instructor and university facilitator presented itself through continuing service on the Environmental Sustainability Task Force.

“I am so pleased that this issue has gone from a concept to an active process on our campus, as evidenced by the yellow-capped dumpsters in our parking lots to the blue recycle bins in university buildings,” Johnson said. “By getting everyone to the table and allowing voices to be heard, we took input from custodians that brought us to select bins that were beneficial to their work patterns and presented the cheapest option for in-building collection. This is a true example of trusting others to know their job and accepting input based on their knowledge and experience to determine what would best benefit the Ferris campus.”

Johnson is also proud of her roles on the Honors Curriculum Committee and Natural Sciences-General Education Committee, which address issues pertinent to those programs.

Along with all the assignments described here for Johnson comes the regular conversations, exchanges and meetings required as chair of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department.

“This means I am a servant who removes obstacles and promotes classroom success, whether it is for any of our faculty or the students in these academic programs,” Johnson said. “I am the first one to be facing questions from faculty because we want everyone working with Ferris’ students to be informed and capable of offering the best assistance possible. Those questions are a source of joy, because they keep me focused on learning as an individual and administrator, so we can go ahead as a team in the best paths to support every student.

This philosophy of concerted engagement and involvement has been recognized during Johnson’s career at Ferris as she was honored as a 2014 Distinguished Teacher Award winner and was part of the 2018 Distinguished Service Award recipient.

John Smith is the communications specialist for News Services and Social Media in University Advancement and Marketing.

For others featured in the Faces of Ferris series, visit: 
https://ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/faces/