Parker School District 60-4

Hello, my name is Janelle Johnson. I joined the Parker School District in July of 2020, fresh out of Covid quarantine. My roles thus far in Parker have consisted of JH/HS principal, K-12 principal, elementary principal, and now superintendent and elementary principal. 

My husband and I celebrated our 20th wedding in August of 2022. Together we have two children; one girl and one boy. Our daughter, Sarianna, is 17 years old and a senior in high school, and is our personal chauffeur for her brother! She is our quiet child who loves adult coloring books and reading. Spicer, our son, is 13 years old and in 7th grade. He is our wild one, busy with baseball, football, and wrestling.

When I am not working or partaking in graduate classes, I enjoy being outdoors with my family, whether it be riding a bike, walking, fishing (both summer and winter), reading, or mowing the lawn. Yes, I love to mow the lawn. 😊

I am originally from East Grand Forks, MN, a somewhat small town in northwestern Minnesota, where most of my family still resides. After graduation, I attended North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, ND, where I originally thought I wanted to pursue a career as a dental hygienist. During my third semester at NDSCS, I was asked to tutor struggling athletes in math and science. I found the opportunity to be rewarding and decided to switch majors, earning a Liberal Arts degree.

I immediately enrolled at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, where I graduated with a degree in middle-level education mid-year. I completed the remainder of the school year as a substitute teacher for the Grand Forks Public School system before becoming an EA. The following spring, my husband was then transferred to Sioux Falls, SD, where I worked for the Sioux Falls School District for 18 years. While with the SFSD, I taught 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade math, directed math, science, and language arts for 17 years, and was an administrative intern for one year at Axtell Parker Middle School (now George McGovern).

While working full-time, raising a family, and being an assistant volleyball coach with Embe, I worked hard to earn a Master's in Science and Educational Technology from Dakota State University, a Specialist in PreK-12 Administration from the University of South Dakota, and completed the course work for a Specialist in Mathematics through the South Dakota Counts program, but did not receive my final transcripts in time to claim the degree on my certificate before the program was no longer honored (I have the credits for a math specialist degree just not the official title). My final degree is from the University of South Dakota and consists of a Specialist in Leadership with a concentration in Superintendent.