Awards

IU Indianapolis Spirit of Philanthropy Award - 1999

About Donald W. Johnson

Donald W. Johnson attended what is now Ball State University for two years as a presidential student and then transferred to Indiana University, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1953 and a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree in 1956.

Immediately after graduating from IU he practiced as a clinical dentist, providing patient care in the U.S. Navy for almost five years. He later attended the University of Michigan School of Public Health, where he was one of only four students to be accepted into the U.S. Public Health Service's inaugural three-year dental public health training program. He earned the Master of Public Health degree in 1963.

He lived in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C., for over 20 years. As a specialist in public health dentistry, he conducted applied research for the U.S. Public Health Service.

He returned to Indiana after his retirement in 1987 and resided in Carmel for 25 years.

He was a longtime philanthropist who supported many organizations, and he used his gifts to preserve and celebrate the memory of his father and mother: Frank Johnson, a glassware engineer who specialized in the design and construction of automobile headlight lenses at Dunkirk's Indiana Glass Company until his death in 1957; and Jessie Johnson, a homemaker and community volunteer who died in 1982. Dr. Johnson established the Johnson Fund for the Dunkirk community through the Dunkirk Foundation.

As the lead donor for the Indiana University School of Dentistry's Community Dentistry division for 37 years, he served as a much-valued external adviser for several key initiatives. In honor of his parents, he established the annual Johnson Public Health Dentistry Scholarship to recognize the community service efforts of dental and dental hygiene students. He created the annual Donald W. Johnson Community Service Award for civic-minded dental faculty and staff, and he sponsored a dental mascot that represents the school at health fairs and other community events. In 2001, he sponsored a symposium for health professions educators and administrators from IU and community organizations to familiarize them with the objectives and methods of service-learning education.