A second wave member of The Scholars Network, Odis Johnson Jr., PhD, is a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University, where he has faculty appointments in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the School of Education as Executive Director of the Center for Safe and Healthy Schools, and in the Department of Sociology at the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences. He also directs the Institute in Critical Quantitative, Computational, and Mixed Methodologies (ICQCM).
Dr. Johnson’s research in education policy, gun violence, health policy and more offers unique insights into some of the most pertinent issues facing our nation today. Recent activities include contributing to the ETS Research Institutes conversation on Artificial Intelligence policy, which calls for more regulation as AI expands its reach in the sphere of education. Dr. Johnson has also recently published, along with a team of scholars, a new study titled: “National Burden of Injury and Deaths From Shootings by Police in the United States, 2015-2020.” According to Johnson, this study “is the first to provide national estimates of non fatal injuries caused by police shootings.”
His most recent scholarship, “Historical Redlining and Contemporary Violent Victimization Over the Life Course,” investigates the relationship between living in historically redlined areas and the probability of being victim to violence, with conclusions “emphasizing the urgent need to confront and rectify historical injustices to enhance contemporary safety and well-being.”
Dr. Johnson was also recently appointed by ETS as Edmund W. Gordon Chair for Policy Research and Evaluation. “In this role,” says ETS, “Dr. Johnson will guide policy research to advance equitable access to quality education and fair assessment for all learners, including underrepresented populations.” The announcement cites the fact that Dr. Johnson’s work on social change was mentioned in over 800 media outlets throughout 2023, underscoring the importance of his recent scholarship.
We invite you to read more of Dr. Johnson’s scholarship using the links above. We also commend Dr. Johnson for all his recent accomplishments!