Kristina M. Johnson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kristina Johnson
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Johnson in 2009
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| 16th President of The Ohio State University | |
| In office August 24, 2020 – May 7, 2023 |
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| Preceded by | Michael V. Drake |
| Succeeded by | Walter E. Carter Jr. |
| 13th Chancellor of the State University of New York | |
| In office September 2017 – June 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Nancy L. Zimpher |
| Succeeded by | Jim Malatras |
| 12th Provost of Johns Hopkins University | |
| In office 2007–2009 |
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| Preceded by | Steven Knapp |
| Succeeded by | Lloyd B. Minor |
| 7th Dean of the Pratt School of Engineering | |
| In office 1999–2007 |
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| Preceded by | Earl H. Dowell |
| Succeeded by | Robert L. Clark |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 7, 1957 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Spouse | Veronica Meinhard |
| Education | Stanford University (BS, MS, PhD) |
| Awards | International Dennis Gabor Award (1993) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Electrical engineering |
| Institutions | University of Colorado Boulder Duke University Johns Hopkins University State University of New York Ohio State University |
| Thesis | Holographic Reciprocity Law Failure, with Applications to the 3-D Display of Medical Data (1984) |
| Doctoral advisor | Joseph W. Goodman |
Kristina M. Johnson (born May 7, 1957) is an American electrical engineer, business leader, and educator. She is known for her work in developing special systems that use light and electronics. These systems include 3D imaging and color management.
She has held important leadership roles at major universities. For example, she was the head (chancellor) of the State University of New York from 2017 to 2020. She also served as the president of Ohio State University from 2020 to 2023. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering, which is a big honor for engineers.
Early Life and Education
Kristina Johnson was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She grew up in Denver, Colorado. When she was in high school, she was very good at science. She won the Denver City and Colorado State science fair competitions. She also placed second in physics at the International Science Fair. Her project was about holograms.
Her family was very active and athletic. Kristina played Tae Kwon Do and learned lacrosse on the boys' team. Her grandfather, Charles W. Johnson, played football for the Buckeyes in 1896. Years later, Kristina would become the president of that same university.
Kristina went to Stanford University for college. There, she started the women's club lacrosse team. She also played on the field hockey team. In 1979, she faced a health challenge. This made her focus more on her studies. She earned her bachelor's, master's, and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford. She also did advanced research in Ireland at Trinity College Dublin.
Career Highlights
After her studies, Kristina Johnson became a professor in 1985. She taught electrical and computer engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder. While there, she helped start a research center for optoelectronic computing. This led to new companies being created from her research.
One of these companies was ColorLink, Inc. This company developed technology that helped bring back 3D movies. ColorLink was later sold to RealD. In 1999, Johnson became the Dean of the School of Engineering at Duke University.
From 2007 to 2009, she was a Senior Vice-President and Provost at Johns Hopkins University. In 2009, President Obama chose her for a big job in the government. She became the Under Secretary of Energy for Energy and Environment at the United States Department of Energy. This role involved working on energy and environmental issues for the country.
Kristina Johnson also founded Enduring Hydro. This company focuses on making energy using hydropower. Hydropower uses the force of moving water to create electricity. Her company owns and runs many hydropower plants in the Eastern United States.
In 2016, she was elected to the National Academy of Engineering. This was for her work on liquid crystal displays. These displays are important for high-speed 3D imaging. She has also served on the boards of several large companies, including Cisco Systems.
In 2017, Johnson became the chancellor of the State University of New York. This is a huge system of 64 schools. Then, in 2020, she became the president of Ohio State University. During her time at Ohio State, research spending grew a lot. The university also raised significant funds and increased scholarships for students.
Personal Life
Kristina Johnson is married to Veronica Meinhard. Veronica is the founder and president of Juniper Philanthropy Partners.
Awards and Honors
Kristina Johnson has received many awards for her important work:
- In 1993, she was the first woman to win the International Dennis Gabor Award for creativity in optics.
- In 2003, she was named a Fellow of the IEEE. This was for her work on optoelectronic systems.
- In 2004, she received the Society of Women Engineers Achievement Award. This is the highest honor from that society.
- In 2008, she was awarded the John Fritz Medal.
- In 2010, she won the ABIE Award for Technical Leadership.
- In 2014, she was added to the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame.
- In 2015, she was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. This was for her work on polarization-control technologies.
- In 2016, she was elected to the National Academy of Engineering.
- In 2017, she received an honorary doctorate from NUI Galway.
- In 2021, she received the IEEE Mildred Dresselhaus Medal. This award recognizes major technical contributions in science and engineering.
- In 2025, she was a recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.
