Illinois Association of School Boards
Dr. Michael D. Johnson
Executive Director
Illinois Association of School Boards
Dr. Michael Johnson is the fifth executive director of the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB), serving since September 2000. He retired from IASB on June 1, 2007, and returned to employment there in July 2007. He served 18 years as a school superintendent in Toluca, Wenona, and Evergreen Park and six years in principalships in Bluffs and Stronghurst. He started his career teaching in Quincy, Illinois.
He taught 15 years for the Illinois Administrator’s Academy and in the Master’s Degree Program at St. Xavier University. Johnson holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, a master’s degree in education administration, and an educational specialist degree from Western Illinois University. He earned a doctorate of education from Illinois State University.
He is a board member of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Self-Insurance Trust (WCSIT) and the Illinois School District Agency (ISDA – a property casualty trust). He is secretary of the Illinois School District Liquid Asset Fund Plus (ISDLAF+) and a board member and secretary of the Illinois Energy Consortium (IEC).
Dr. Johnson has been chairman of the School Leaders Risk Management Association (SLRMA) since its inception. He has served as a speaker for the Paul Simon Institute at Southern Illinois University. He sits on doctoral committees at Northern Illinois University and Western Illinois University.
He is a member of the Illinois State Board of Education State Accountability Committee and the Illinois Administrators’ Academy Committee. He served as a co-chair of Governor Blagojevich’s 2003 transition team. He was the chair of the 2007-2008 Federation Member Executive Directors' NSBA (National School Boards Association) Liaison Committee.
Dr. Johnson was selected for membership in the Illinois State University’s Hall of Fame. He was selected as Educator of the Year by the Illinois Crime Commission. He is a member of the Education League of Illinois and the Horace Mann League.