The National Steering Committee is an important feature of the governance structure of the Johnson Institute. Composed of leaders in the academy, the arts, commerce, and civil rights, the National Steering Committee provides guidance to the Director of the Johnson Institute in several vital areas. As both advocate and counselor, the charge of the National Steering Committee is to raise national awareness of the mission and programs of the Johnson Institute; to raise funds to provide ongoing and future support of the institute’s various programs; and to nominate individuals for the Johnson Medal. Above all, the charge of the National Steering Committee is to provide guidance to the Director in actualizing the mission of the Johnson Institute.

The National Steering Committee is comprised of the following individuals:

Julian Bond,
Former Chair of the Board, the NAACP

Dr. Rudolph P. Byrd
Chair of the National Steering Committee, Emory University

Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole
President Emerita of Spelman College and Bennett College for Women

Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Professor and Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute at Harvard University

Ingrid Saunders Jones
Senior Vice President, The Coca-Cola Company

Mildred Bond Roxborough
Senior Advisor, the NAACP

Dr. Beverly Guy Sheftall
Professor and Founding Director of the Women’s Research and Resource Center of Spelman College