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Dr. Benjamin Johnson

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Phone: (801) 863-8228
Mail Stop: 275
Curriculum Vitae: Benjamin Johnson CV

Biography

Dr. Benjamin A. Johnson is Professor of Student Leadership and Success Studies at Utah Valley University. His teaching, scholarship, and service focus on educational design, civic and ethical leadership, fundraising and endowment building, student success (resilience), self-regulated learning, metacognition, faculty-student mentoring, experiential learning, history of higher education, and the first-year college experience. He earned his Ph.D. in Education_ Policy and Leadership from The Ohio State University. He regularly presents this work at local, national, and international conferences and contributes to faculty development related to teaching and faculty-student research mentoring.

Outside the university, Ben enjoys hiking, ultimate frisbee, Dutch Golden Age paintings, practicing Dutch and French, and spending time with family and friends.

Courses Taught
Dr. Johnson teaches courses that help students develop academic success strategies, leadership capacity, well-being, civic engagement, and global awareness.

SLSS 1000 — University Student Success
SLSS 1100 — Stress Management
SLSS 1120G — Leadership and Civic Engagement
SLSS 1200 — The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
SLSS 3200 — Leader—Teacher and Mentor
SLSS 1010R / 3210R — Applied Leadership Topics (The Journal of Student Leadership)
SLSS 3800R — Advanced Student Leadership Development
SLSS 4050G — Leader—Global Contributor
UVST 2900R — Community Engagement and Applied Service Learning
UVST 4810R — Internship
HIST 1700 — American Civilization

Students interested in course offerings, undergraduate research, or involvement with The Journal of Student Leadership are welcome to contact Dr. Johnson through the UVU directory message form.

STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES
The Journal of Student Leadership
Want to join the staff of an academic journal? Students interested in writing, editing, design, marketing, or publishing may apply to participate on The Journal of Student Leadership, a double-blind peer-reviewed student and professional journal. Student staff gain hands-on experience in professional communication, collaborative leadership, and academic publishing.

Interested in getting published? Authors and artists may submit their work (papers, essays, artwork, and poems accepted) on leadership-related topics for publication consideration. uvu.edu/slss/jsl/

Undergraduate Research and Mentoring
Dr. Johnson mentors students interested in research related to metacognition, leadership, global issues, civic engagement, higher education, or public history.

Depending on the project and semester, students may have opportunities to develop independent research, present at conferences, contribute to publications, or participate in community-engaged scholarship. Opportunities vary by semester. Students are encouraged to contact Dr. Johnson through the UVU directory message form to learn more.

Selected Scholarship and Public Engagement
Dr. Johnson’s work has appeared in outlets including Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, New Directions for Teaching and Learning, Teachers College Record, History of Education Quarterly, Educational Theory, and the Scientific American.

Recent Scholarship
Tolman, A. O., & Johnson, B. A. (2025). Students into scholars_ Using practical metacognitive tools to help students succeed. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 36(1), 82–92.

Johnson, B. A., Arocho, R., & Tolman, A. O. (2023). Mentoring by design_ Examples of effective faculty development programs. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 2023(175), 101–110.

Arocho, R., & Johnson, B. A. (2023). Formal mentoring programs_ Characteristics, benefits, and outcomes. In D. Law & N. Domínguez (Eds.), Making connections_ A handbook for effective formal mentoring programs in academia (pp. 84–100). Utah State University.

Public Scholarship
Johnson, B. A. (2020). “Change Instead of Continuity_ Using Metacognition to Enhance Student Motivation for Learning.” Improve with Metacognition.
https://www.improvewithmetacognition.com/change-instead-of-continuity/

Warnick, B. R., Johnson, B. A., & Rocha, S. (2018). “Can security measures really stop school shootings?” Scientific American. https_//www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-security-measures-really-stop-school-shootings/

Google Scholar Profile for Dr. Johnson
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=D7zGA2kAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra

Education

PhD, Ohio State University , 2013

Major: Educational Policy & Leadership_ Educational Philosophy and Psychology

MA, Ohio State University , 2010

Major: Education: Foundations, Leadership, and Policy of Education

MA, Brigham Young University , 2007

Major: European History

BA, Brigham Young University, 2004

Major: History

Teaching

Presentations

Johnson, Benjamin , Tolman, Anton , UVU Roots of Knowledge Speaker Series, "The Scholar’s Journey_ Turning Students into Scholars through Metacognition and Civic Responsibility.", UVU Fulton Library, Bingham Gallery (intricate stained-glass mural that depicts human innovation, creativity, and the pursuit of learning over time), Utah Valley University. (April 16, 2026)

Johnson, Benjamin , Kimball, Bruce , Virtual Seminar Presentation with Q&A on Economics, Morality, and the Modern University, "Permanent and Productive? Defining University Endowments_ Implications for Governance and Public Trust", Hosted by Religion and Public Life at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University, Online. (March 5, 2026)

Ashman, Marinda , Johnson, Benjamin , Waddoups, Stacy , Bennett, Sandi , 45th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, "Empowering You and Your Students_ Cultivating Persistence, Resilience, and Mindfulness", Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, Seattle, WA. (February 15, 2026)

Ashman, Marinda , Bennett, Sandi , Johnson, Benjamin , Waddoups, Stacy , The 2026 National Symposium on Student Retention , "Increasing Student Retention by Fostering Resilience, Mindfulness, and Personal Leadership", National Symposium on Student Retention , Reno, NV. (October 20, 2025)

Ashman, Marinda , Johnson, Benjamin , Waddoups, Stacy , Bennett, Sandi , 7x Summit - Around the World in 48 Hours, "Resilience: Embracing Change in an Uncertain World", Experience Research Society (EXPRESSO), Online. (September 29, 2025)

Ashman, Marinda (Co-Presenter), Waddoups, Stacy (Co-Presenter), Bennett, Sandra C (Co-Presenter), Johnson, Benjamin A (Co-Presenter), 44th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, "Supporting a generation in need_ Fostering resilience, mindfulness, and personal leadership", National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition (University of South Carolina), New Orleans, Louisiana. (February 16, 2025)

Scholarly/Creative Works

Mullen, Greg , Johnson, Benjamin A., Tolman, Anton O., "Validation of Metacognitive Instruments Related to eduScrum for K-16 Instructors" . AERA Open.

Johnson, Benjamin A, Tolman, Anton O, "Empowering learning_ Leveraging relationships and metacognitive rools to support student achievement" . Insights for College Transitions.

Tolman, Anton O., Johnson, Benjamin A., (2025) "Students into scholars_ Using practical metacognitive tools to help students succeed." . Journal on Excellence in College Teaching.

Warnick, Bryan , Johnson, Benjamin A., Rocha, Sam , (2023) "Why security measures won't stop school shootings" . Most recently re-published in McFarland Publishers. https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/keeping-schools-safe/

Johnson, Benjamin A., Arocho, Rachel , Tolman, Anton O., (2023) "Mentoring by Design - Examples of Effective Faculty Development Programs " . New Directions for Teaching and Learning.

Arocho, Rachel , Johnson, Benjamin A., Law, David D., Dominguez, Nora , (2023) "Formal mentoring programs - Characteristics, benefits, and outcomes" . Utah State University. https://doi.org/10.26079/ff55-d7a0

Johnson, Benjamin , “Career Connections", "Career Connections – Faculty Roundtable Activity Faculty Roundtable", , UVU Excelerate Program , UVU . (July, 2024)

Johnson, Benjamin , National Council for Public History (NCPH), "Capturing Stories from Vineyard, Utah, a Rapidly Growing City.", , Salt Lake City, Utah. (April, 2024)

Ashman, Marinda (Co-Presenter), Waddoups, Stacy (Co-Presenter), Johnson, Benjamin A., Jensen, Mike (Co-Presenter), 43rd Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, "Resilience skills_ adapting to today’s learners", , The National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, Seattle, Washington. (February 20, 2024)

Mullen, Greg , Johnson, Benjamin A. , Tolman, Anton O., Wijnands, Willy , Fritsch, Kristina , EduScrum Gathering, "Validation of Metacognitive Instruments related to eduScrum for K-12 Instructors.", , EduScrum Europe, Heide, Germany. (November, 2023)

Johnson, Benjamin A. , Tolman, Anton O., Christensen, Nick , Lilly - Miami of Ohio, "Faculty Perspectives on the Value of Metacognition to Promote Student Civic Engagement.", , Lilly Conference at Miami of Ohio, Miami, Ohio. (November, 2023)

Johnson, Benjamin , Meeting with the Utah Lake Project, a National Science Foundation funded project, "Mentoring Refresher 2023", , Eddy Cadet (PI) for NSF Project, UVU . (April, 2023)

Arocho, Rachel , Johnson, Benjamin , Tolman, Anton , Wilson-Ashworth, Heather , UVU SCULPT Roundtable Presentation, "Mentoring By Design and the Future of SCULPT Education.", , UVU SCULPT Roundtable Presentation.. (March, 2023)

Tolman, Anton , Johnson, Benjamin , Lilly Conference, "Boosting Student Success in Undergraduate Research by Improving Faculty Mentoring.", , Lilly Conference, San Diego. (January, 2023)

Johnson, Benjamin , Lilly Conference , " Midterm Reflection as a Metacognitive Tool to Enhance Learning.", , Lilly , San Diego. (January, 2023)

Arocho, Rachel , Johnson, Benjamin , UVU SCULPT Roundtable Presentation, "A Discussion on Formalized Mentoring.", , UVU SCULPT Roundtable Presentation, UVU. (January, 2023)

Johnson, Benjamin , Tolman, Anton , Society for Experiential Education, "Using a Metacognitive Intervention to Help Students Become Engaged", , Society for Experiential Education, SLC, Utah. ()

Johnson, Benjamin , Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum (SEAC) annual conference, "Concept Maps as a Metacognitive Assignment to Develop Ethical Virtues.", , Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum (SEAC), Oxford (University of Mississippi), Mississippi.. (October, 2022)

Johnson, Benjamin , Meeting with the Utah Lake Project, a National Science Foundation funded project, "Mentoring Refresher 2022", , Eddy Cadet (PI) for NSF Project, UVU. (May, 2022)

Johnson, Benjamin , History of Education Society, "Leading from the Front_ Case Studies in University Endowment Building.", , History of Education Society, San Diego, CA. (November, 2021)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "Aligning the argument with the evidence_ Teaching source checking in the digital age", , History of Education Society, Columbus, Ohio. (November, 2019)

Johnson, Benjamin , Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum, "Cultivating editors_ Infusing ethics in leadership education ", , Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum. (October, 2019)

Ashman, Marinda , Waddoups, Stacy , Johnson, Benjamin A., The 38th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, "Risky business_ How to incorporate design thinking values into teaching", . (February, 2019)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Student Leadership and Success Studies Department Forum, "Success, progress, and opportunities for our double-blind, peer-reviewed journal_ The Journal of Student Leadership", . (January, 2019)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "Arming teachers with knowledge instead of guns_ Teaching the recent history of school shootings", . (November, 2018)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Southwest Association for Developmental Education (SWADE), "Blending theory with practice_ Producing a journal to help students flourish.", . (October, 2018)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Wong, Cynthia , Eckton, Darin R., Goslin, Christopher H., The Experiential Learning Leadership Institute Annual Conference, "Innovating leadership for personal and social impact", . (June, 2018)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Bennett, Sandi C. , Gehrig, Tyler , UVU’s Leadership Week, "Publish your writing on leadership_ A writers workshop by staff of The Journal of Student Leadership", . (February, 2018)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "Engaging students in the art of creating their own narratives", . (November, 2017)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Eckton, Darin R., Inaugural Teaching 4 Learning Conference, "The Evolution of Practice and Pedagogy in a New Online First Year Course,", . (March, 2017)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Lewis, Kati , Utah First Year Experience Consortium, "High-Impact Strategies in First-Year Courses,", . (March, 2017)

Johnson, Benjamin A., 36th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience, "From competition to comrade_ Organizing FYE-focused collaborations closer to home", . (February, 2017)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "The foundations of education project_ An ongoing workshop on politicizing and expanding our work in colleges and universities", . (November, 2016)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Inaugural Utah First Year Experience Consortium, "Early Alert Programs, and Wrap up,", . (March, 2016)

Garcia, Elena , Gerber, Lindsey , Johnson, Benjamin A., Scholarship of Teaching and Engagement Conference in Orem, "The Role Reflection Plays in Students’ Development of Deep and Engaged Learning Practices.", . (March, 2016)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "From student leader to university president_ George W. Rightmire of Ohio State University", . (November, 2015)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Scholarship of Teaching and Engagement Conference, "Integrating service learning into a first-year experience course_ A Few Considerations", . (January, 2015)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society Annual Meeting, "The awakening of philanthropy and endowment building in American higher education_ The case of The Ohio State University", . (November, 2014)

Johnson, Benjamin A., National Conference on Students in Transition, "Intergenerational views on technology, multitasking, and privacy", . (October, 2014)

Johnson, Benjamin A., 15th Annual Conference by the Faculty, "A Critical Period for Endowment Building at a Public University_ A Case Study from the Twentieth Century.", . (January, 2014)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Student Affairs Assessment & Research Conference in The Ohio State University, "Conceptualizing and Managing Assessment in Academic Support Services,", . (June, 2013)

Hensley, Lauren , Rowe, Samuel , Levitt, Stephanie , Johnson, Benjamin A., Student Affairs Assessment and Research Annual Conference, "Conceptualizing and managing assessment in academic support services", . (June, 2013)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Ohio Educational Technology Conference, "Digital Distractions_ Exploring Benefits and Detriments of Technology for Teaching and Learning,", . (February, 2013)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Research Roundtable, School of Educational Policy and Leadership in Columbus at The Ohio State University, "Why and How the University of Michigan Eclipsed The Ohio State University in Building an Endowment in the Critical Period 1910 to 1940.", . (March, 2012)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society in Chicago, "When Persistence Pays_ The Dead Hand Debate and the Financing of Higher Education.", . (November, 2011)

Johnson, Benjamin A., History of Education Society, "Educational Fundraising in the 1920s and 1930s_ Endowment Building at Ohio State University, the University of Michigan, and Harvard University.", . (November, 2010)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Graduate Student Conference on Philosophy and Education, "Permanently Tainted? The Acceptance of Ill-Begotten and Restricted Funds in Education.", . (October, 2010)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Comparative and International Education Society, "Turning Points in Endowment Building_ Comparing Ohio State University, University of Michigan, and Harvard University.", . (March, 2010)

Johnson, Benjamin A., American Educational Studies Association, "John Dewey and Contemporary Politics_ Scholarly Work Outside the Classroom.", . (November, 2009)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Ohio Valley Philosophy of Education Society, "The Ethics of Corporatization_ Competing Visions of Leadership in Higher Education.", . (September, 2009)

Johnson, Benjamin A., 13th Annual Diversity Forum & Graduate Student Symposium in Columbus at The Ohio State University, "Women and Tenure in Higher Education.", . (May, 2008)

Johnson, Benjamin A., Midwest Comparative and International Education Society Conference, "Qualitative Research and the Reassessment of a National Hero_ A Major Dilemma for Educational Policy.", . (November, 2007)

Arocho, Rachel , Johnson, Benjamin , (2023) "Formal mentoring programs_ characteristics, benefits, and outcomes" . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROATJPjMSn0

Tolman, Anton , Johnson, Benjamin , (2022) "Preparing faculty to mentor students for success in undergraduate research." (Issue: 4, vol. 33). Journal on Excellence in College Teaching. www.miamioh.edu/ject/

Johnson, Benjamin , (2020) "Change Instead of Continuity_ Using Metacognition to Enhance Student Motivation for Learning" . Improvewithmetacognition.com. https://www.improvewithmetacognition.com/change-instead-of-continuity/

Johnson, Benjamin , (2019) "Editorial Review of A Brief History of Schooling in the United States_ From Pre-Colonial Times to the Present (The Cultural and Social Foundations of Education). This was an unsolicited and invited review asked for by the editor. My review is excerpted on the back cover of the published book." . Palgrave Macmillan.

Johnson, Benjamin , (2010) "Sustaining Higher Learning_ Endowment Building and Financing Higher Education" (Issue: 2, vol. 2). Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.64899/2151-0407.1046

Dr. Benjamin Johnson

Biography

Education

Teaching

Presentations

Scholarly/Creative Works

Student

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