From his time on the basketball court at Penn State to his work as a counselor, to his two decades as a State College school administrator, Curtis Johnson has spent the better part of his life helping people achieve goals.
Now, with the encouragement of others, he’s achieved a significant career milestone of his own while making history in the process. But this achievement was not part of his plan.
The State College Area School District board on March 13 appointed Johnson as the district’s superintendent. Johnson, who is Black, is the first person of color to hold the position.
He never expected to be spending his career in State College.
After working as an assistant principal in the Reading School District, Johnson was looking for a job in Philadelphia schools. He interviewed for an assistant principal position in State College as “practice,” he says.
Then-Superintendent Patricia Best offered him a job here in 2003 after his second interview.
“She said, ‘You really need to think about coming here,’” Johnson says.
“It was at that point that I ended up here, and I’ve just never left,” he says. “The community, the administrators, the support, the teachers, the students—I fell in love with them all. And so, I never left.”
When he was named interim superintendent in June 2022 after Bob O’Donnell, who had led SCASD for eleven years, left to become superintendent in Downingtown, Johnson focused on filling the gap while the board searched for a more permanent replacement. It was only later, with plenty of encouragement, that he applied for the position.
With his unanimous selection by the board after an extensive search, Johnson now leads a school district of about 6,800 students and 1,900 employees.
“It’s always been people that saw things in me that I didn’t really see, that encouraged me throughout the whole process from each leadership position,” he says.
One of his key goals as the district’s leader, Johnson says, is to raise the graduation rate to 98 percent (or higher); it now ranges between 92 and 95 percent.
Johnson sat down with Town&Gown the day after his appointment; here’s more from our discussion:
After 20 years here, what does it mean to you to officially be leading the district?
Johnson: It’s amazing. I always thought when coming into this district that I would be the assistant principal, that was it. My journey has taken me one step up the ladder each of so many years. I thought that Bob O’Donnell was going to be here for the duration of my career and that I would just be under him and I would learn from him and go off into the pasture and retire.
But it’s been the people pushing me to strive higher, giving me the confidence to accept the challenges that are ahead of me, and it’s just worked out for me. I really haven’t given it much thought yet. It was just the interim gig, and people [were] talking to me saying, “You’re doing a great job at this, you need to put your name in the ring.” And so, I did.
When you were initially named interim superintendent, you didn’t know you’d apply for the position?
Johnson: No. I said I would [cover] the interim; see what you can find, and if there’s a better candidate out there, I will support that candidate in whatever capacity I possibly could. But then as I was doing the job, people were encouraging me and I found out that it was a doable job for me. That’s when I said, “OK, I can do this,” and I put my name in the hat.
You are making history as the first African American to lead the district. Does that make it extra special?
Johnson: Yes. I was the first principal and then the first assistant superintendent and now the first superintendent, so it is a milestone. I always felt that as an administrator in this district, I was able to break the stereotypes, provide a different type of mentorship role model, something positive that people could see and look up to and respect. I have been able to do that throughout my journey.
There’s often been times, earlier on in my years, where I thought that I could contribute more by being in a more diverse community. But in talking to some community members, close friends, they said, “You’re actually doing more good here than you realize because people see you in a different light now. You’re shaping the lives or the minds of some of the students and people that will be out there leading the world and could have a totally different mindset when hiring and interacting with other individuals of different backgrounds.”
How did your counseling background influence your career?
Johnson: I started as a secondary school counselor for (grades) nine through twelve. During that time, I also worked as a mobile therapist and a behavioral specialist, where I would go out to the homes of low-socioeconomic students and work on any type of issues that their students were having within the home. That was a real eye-opener, going into a family cold and helping them deal with whatever ailments or mental health issues their student was having, and how to manage it, how to make them productive. A lot of times, I had to actually remove my sessions from the home because the home was bringing so much chaos to the student or child before I could integrate it and work with the family on managing or helping deal with the student’s mental health issues.
So, those types of skills have helped me in these relationships; how to work collaboratively, how to find common ground has been instrumental in moving forward. It’s more of setting a goal but bringing people together to achieve the goal and making sure that they’re all behind the goal.
You played basketball at Penn State about thirty years ago [1987-91]. How did that experience influence you and help you along the way to where you are now?
Johnson: It taught me a work ethic. How to get up early, work hard, give it your all, how to work together as a team. You’re not on an island by yourself. The work ethic has really been instrumental. They say this is hard work; it was nothing compared to going to school, getting up early, going to all those games, and maintaining your marks. One of the reasons my mom insisted I go to Penn State was their graduation level, how many of their student-athletes graduate. It has been extremely beneficial for me; it was the best decision I’ve made. I wouldn’t take back that experience for anything.
One of your stated [long-term] goals is to have all students in fourth grade and above participate in at least one extracurricular activity or some kind of community activity during the school year. Why do you see that as important?
Johnson: I’ve found that students that are involved in any type of community activity, especially an extracurricular activity within school, are more invested in school.
It helps them socially, emotionally, builds their confidence; they learn how to manage their behaviors and it exposes them to new information and expectations. I found as an assistant principal and a counselor that the students that were not invested in any of those things were mainly the students that are looking into other means—disruptive means—to occupy their time. We have the State College Area School District Education Foundation that raises monies for the district, and I have asked them to raise funds for these types of programs. … For kids to get involved, … whether it’s in school or in a community, church group, or whatever, I just know it benefits the students on so many different levels. It will help us in the end.
Three years down the road when you’re looking at how things [are going], what do you hope to have achieved that will make you most proud of leading this district?
Johnson: That the pendulum for all students growing in the district has moved in a positive direction. It’s easy to move students that want to learn, but not so much for the students that are reluctant. [The goal is] that we’re providing the resources and framework for them to be successful. If I’m moving that needle, even a hair, I’ll be ecstatic because it will be monumental. Those are the students that you’re really focusing on, though you still want to grow the students that are in the middle; you want them to attain their goals.
I don’t want the same students taking AP courses; I want a lot more students taking AP courses. I want to broaden the success rate of our school district, whether it’s college or career-focused. T&G
Mark Brackenbury is a former editor of Town&Gown.
