Faculty News Notes July 24, 2014--Remembering James Johnson

July 24, 2014

Remembering James W. Johnson:

James Johnson, retired counselor,  music professor, and  English professor at Compton College, for over 35 years and former President of the Compton Community College Federation of Employees, Faculty for 18 of those years, passed away on July 7, 2014 following a lengthy battle with stomach cancer.  After retiring from Compton College, James moved to Hope, Arkansas, where he had grown up and where he had purchased 10 acres on which he built his dream house, complete with a pond stocked with catfish.  Not that James himself fished;  the pond was for his mother when she came to visit.

James  is remembered by his colleagues, both classified staff and faculty, for his pithy language and meticulously researched reports to the Board of Trustees, his sartorial splendor, and his jewelry.  James always made lengthy reports to the board, usually peppered with exhortations to follow the law, and in his  imprecations against management,  he sounded the righteous indignation of Biblical prophets crying out for justice; he was passionate for faculty rights and institutional “right action.”  During the fall and spring semesters, he dressed formally:  his shoes matched his suits, and his ties and handkerchiefs complemented the shirts. On the rare occasions he might come on campus during the summer, he wore track suits.  All those who knew him remember his jewelry:  rings on every finger of both hands, gold bracelets on each wrist, gold watch, and gold chains and pendants.  James sported “bling” years before Snoop Dogg was even born.

One of his major accomplishments as a labor leader was his ability to keep the faculty united in the face of not too subtle but repeated administrative efforts to divide it on racial lines. He was completely dedicated to the faculty and protecting faculty rights through his commitment to the union, our local, the state organization (California Federation of Teachers,) and the national organization, (the American Federation of Teachers). The main challenges were always within the local, and James was a consummate fighter for faculty rights and for unity among professionals. 

He worked hard, but he knew how to relax.  James enjoyed life and was able to use his summers for trips to Arkansas, barbecues in the backyard of his house on Poinsettia, and a  respite from the concerns of the union presidency. He bought his 10 acre lot in Hope nearly twenty years before he retired, and he checked on it each year.  During the school year, he began relaxing on Friday afternoons, as soon as his classes and meetings ended, and inaugurated the weekend with his favorite libation, Canadian Club.  Yet, despite the pressures of his job, he never imbibed during the week. His self-discipline, amid his zest for living, partying with friends,  playing the trombone, and playing dominoes with friends and neighbors, testifies to his commitment to his work representing the faculty.

Serving as a Vice-President of the California Federation of Teachers for most of the time he served as our local’s president,  he was the first African American elected to serve on the executive board of the state organization. Not only did he attend the quarterly Community College Council meetings as required of the local presidents, but he also attended the CFT executive board meetings which took him out of town, often for the entire weekend when the meetings coincided with the Vice-Presidents’ meetings. So much of his time was devoted to Compton College, its faculty and the members’ issues that it seems impossible  he would have found the time and energy for his vital social life, but he did. 

James leaves a son from his first marriage that pre-dates his coming to Compton College in the 1969-70 academic year.  He also leaves his ex-wife Barbara and their daughter Kristi—a former student at Compton College and herself now a mother, and his wife Jacqueline who shared his dream of moving to Hope, Arkansas.

His mother, Amy Johnson, at age 95 ,still lives in Hope.

            The Federation will greatly appreciate faculty and classified staff members submitting their individual memories of James so that we can provide his family members with a collection of memories of James’ career at Compton.   After the semester begins, we will have a memorial for James on a  Thursday or Friday evening to celebrate his life and share our memories. Details will be made available once the semester is under way.  Please email your individual special memories of James to Vanessa Haynes:  vhaynes@elcamino.edu, to David Maruyama at dmaruyama@elcamino.edu,  or to Toni Wasserberger:  twasserberger@elcamino.edu.