When Katherine Johnson came to Pasco County a decade ago, the educational institution she was leading was known by a different name.
It had fewer campuses, fewer students and a smaller endowment fund, too.
When Johnson came on board, the college was known as Pasco-Hernando Community College and had three campuses.
(Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)
In 2010, the college added its Spring Hill campus, and in 2014, it opened Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch.
The college also added baccalaureate degree programs in 2014 and changed its name to reflect its four-year degree programs.
During the past decade, the college increased its graduation by 43 percent — a statistic that is perhaps most meaningful to Johnson, who herself graduated from what was then called a junior college.
Johnson continued her education to complete a doctorate and become a college president, but it all began with the opportunity offered at the junior college.
She is passionate about the educational opportunities offered by institutions like Pasco-Hernando State College.
“My father couldn’t afford to send me to college. He was a railroad worker. My mother was a homemaker, and I didn’t have stellar grades. I wasn’t a poor student, but I wasn’t a stellar student, either,” she recalled.
“Sometimes, community colleges are viewed as the red-headed stepchild — that we take any and all (students) — but quite honestly, I think that’s a wonderful mantra.”
She believes that community colleges are sometimes the first option, sometimes the only option and sometimes the last option.
Some students choose to attend a community college because they are on scholarship. Others choose it because it’s their only feasible option. And, sometimes they choose it because they can’t get in any other postsecondary institution.
“We are an open-door institution,” Johnson said.
Besides being an option for students on a traditional path, schools like PHSC offer opportunities for people who are in the work force or who have lost their jobs and need to develop new workplace skills.
“We’ve had to adjust our programs of study, not just here at PHSC, but everywhere due to technology, the changing work force, certainly, the economics, particularly crawling out of this recession,” Johnson said.
(Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)
“People had to learn to be flexible. They had to come back and learn new skills. And, so I think that the nimbleness of our institutions has provided access to perhaps many students who never even thought about coming back to college,” Johnson said.
She uses these three As to describe PHSC’s mission: “It’s accountability, accessibility and affordability. Those three As truly make an equation for success,” Johnson said.
“Those are the three As that I’ve always tried to tie our mission to, so that we don’t lose our way,” she said.
The college is focused on providing educational opportunities.
“Students, students, students – are at the heart of what we do,” Johnson said.
While she has played a visible role in steering the college through change and growth, she is quick to point out that there are many people behind the scenes who have played a vital role in the college’s daily operations, and its long-term success.
As Johnson prepares to leave her post, she’s delighted that the administration building at Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch will bear her name.
“I was shocked that that would be a recommendation by the board, and that it would be so warmly engaged and approved by the board. I’m obviously humbled and honored to have my name on one of the buildings at Porter,” she said.
She recalled meeting Don Porter on her first day as college president.
At that very first lunch, Porter told Johnson about his vision for higher educational opportunities for students living in the community. The family’s later contribution of 60 acres for the campus played an instrumental role in making that vision come true,
“Don Porter has to be smiling from up above because this was his vision. This was Tom’s vision, God rest his soul, as well, and certainly Bill and J.D.”
The campus could not have happened without the Porter family, Johnson said.
“We couldn’t have afforded to buy that land,” she said, and she thinks it is fitting that the campus bears the family’s name.
“To know that that gift, for perpetuity, will forever change lives of students is a pretty strong legacy that we’re delighted to have associated with the Porter family,” Johnson said.
Now, the campus serves not only students living in Pasco and Hernando counties, but also students from Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.
“We certainly have picked up tremendous enrollment from our sister counties,” Johnson said, noting that the campus is convenient and offers attractive programs.
As PHSC looks to the future, it will be under the direction of Tim Beard, who becomes the college’s fourth president, effective July 1.
Johnson plans to move to Gainesville to join her husband, who has already moved to their retirement home.
She plans to sit out a year because of the state retirement system requirements, but after that, she’s interested in working part-time training potential college administrators through the Institute of Higher Education at the University of Florida.
“I don’t see myself being idle,” Johnson said.
As she reflects upon her life as an educator, she said she’s grateful for both its challenges and opportunities.
She said she couldn’t have asked for a better career.
Retirement receptions for Katherine M. Johnson
Pasco-Hernando State College will host several upcoming farewell receptions for president Katherine Johnson:
Wednesday, June 17
9 a.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road
- 9 a.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road
- 12:30 p.m., North Campus in Brooksville, 11415 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
- 4 p.m., Spring Hill Campus in Spring Hill, 450 Beverly Court
Thursday, June 18
- 9 a.m., East Campus in Dade City, 36727 Blanton Road
- 12:30 p.m., Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel, 2727 Mansfield Blvd.
- 4 p.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road
A decade of progress
During Katherine M. Johnson’s 10-year tenure, Pasco-Hernando State College has:
° Increased its graduation rate by 43 percent
° Increased its foundation’s assets by 50 percent
- Added the Spring Hill and Porter at Wiregrass Ranch campuses
- Transitioned to a state college offering baccalaureate degrees.
Published June 17, 2015
