Interviewer:

In one word, what is your top priority for the district's children and why and how would you prioritize that?

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

So in my one word, my top priority for the district's children would be achievement.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

And when I think about the word achievement, we already know about the literacy rates. And we already know about the graduation rates and things like parent engagement. But what I really think about, is achievement, overcoming the barriers that feed into that. So when we think about what they come to school with, what heaviness they bring with them, some of them, not all of them, bring with them into the doors that hinder achievement, attendance. Coming to school on time or even their test scores. Those things, those barriers that they have. We I want to address those. And when I go deeper and deeper into that, you know, being an educator and a school leader, I understood that I understood the disparities that students face. And then I understood that the transparency of that being able to tell us that or we as educators, being able to observe and help them with that, helped with the achievement. And so when we have things in place and tools in place, not saying that Detroit Public School Community District does not, but being part of that team to continue to enhance it is what I want to do. So my one word would be achievement. What I stand on is education, prevention and community leadership. So all of those encompassed together come first. So when I come in that straight in the door understanding the Blueprint 2027, understanding the strategic plans, that action plan that's in place and then seeing how I can expand on it.

Interviewer:

When I was a student, I wish my school had...

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

When I was a student. See, there's a background to becoming a student to me becoming a student at Northwestern High School.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

Class of 1986.

Interviewer:

All right.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

Now, we just celebrated our 40th. So I'm excited.

Interviewer:

Okay, we are celebrating that. Awesome.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

It takes me back to I was a transfer student.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

So I came from a different school district, and I transferred into Northwestern High School the second half of my junior year.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

So that everyone had formed their groups and their friends and things like that. But the reason that I had to transfer into Detroit Public Schools because my family, my parents had divorced.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

And so that was traumatic for me. You know, we left our home and different things like that. So when I got to, Northwestern High School, I, I would cry literally. As a 15 year old. I would sit there and cry. I didn't know where I fit in, where I belong. Even the way I dressed was different because we had to wear uniforms back then where I came from. And so what I would have wanted different was what they currently have now. To focus on trauma informed care. To have that social emotional learning. I had one teacher and I always talk about her, Meredith Campbell, who came into the office because I actually refused to go to class, and they just let me sit in the office and and do my work from the office. But she came to me and she asked me what was so good about my other school. And I gave her all this rundown, and she told me what was so great about northwestern. And so with that she said, now figure out where you fit in and what you would like to do. So I was a cheerleader. She was a cheer coach. I spent that that fall. Excuse me. That spring I tried out for the cheer team. And then I met all the friends and all the athletes and going into my senior year. Turned out I turned out to be the cheer captain.

Interviewer:

Okay.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

When I came into my senior year, that leadership always been there. But what I saw different was, you know, it was, here's this new student. Put her where she needed to go. Let's continue with the years. She came in in January, but I didn't feel back then that I was prioritized in regards to. Why is she crying all the time at 15? You know, why is she? What is this trauma or what is she feeling? And it was fear because a lot of times we expect our students to be resilient. And beyond that, behind that resilience is fear. It is hope that we want to have a good time, hope that we're going to be successful. And so what I look at now with Detroit Public School Community District, and when I become a board member is to again what's not what's what did this student do? What's wrong with this student and why? And even go back not just with the student, but to generational and make sure we reach out and say, hey, you know, your student is this if the student, especially our migrant students, are homeless students, our foster care students, when we think about them going from school to school to school, I think back as an educator, as a teacher, as a principal, I think back on to my time.

Interviewer:

Yeah.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

And how that one little extra step would have made it a better transition for me.

Interviewer:

Shout out to Northwestern, though.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

I love me some Northwestern.

Interviewer:

Shout out to Northwestern.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

Red and gray.

Interviewer:

Yeah.

Dr. Shinese Johnson:

the one thing that I would have changed in my school is a little bit more attention to the transfer students.

Candidates appear in ballot order, alphabetical by last name.

Vote for not more than 4

• Natalie Bien-Aime*

• Steve Bland Jr.

• Michelle Broughton

• Katrina Brown

• Cidney Calloway

• Bobby Christian*

• Nicole Conaway

• Vilma Escamilla Duran

• Daniel Ferguson III*

• Duane Larry Grigsby Jr.

• Bessie L. Harris

• David Harris

• C. Allan Hubbard

• Henrietta Ivey*

• Tabrian C. Joe

• Shinese Johnson

• Theodore Jones

• Georgia Mae Lemmons

• LaMar D. Lemmons

• Clement O. Lett*

• Phil Lloyd II

• Darious Morris*

• Liana Mulholland

• Tyshea Pope

• DaNetta L. Simpson

• Tawanna Simpson

• Jameel Montgomery Smith

• Calesther Smith-Arnold*

• Terry E. Whitfield

• Elizabeth A. Williams

• Theresa Williams*

* Did not participate in the CitizenDetroit candidate video series.

Ijazz Jackson*

Aliya Moore

Shawn Vaughn

* Did not participate in the CitizenDetroit candidate video series.