United States Army retired Sergeant Major and current Syracuse University doctoral candidate Michelle M. Johnson was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from high school in 1992, Michelle attended Cleveland State University and received her Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. Later, she would complete her master’s degree in communications and leadership from Park University. Michelle joined the Ohio Army National in 1997 and completed basic training and advanced individual training at Ft. McClellan, Alabama, becoming a military police officer.
In 1999, Michelle married her husband Selwyn Johnson, a retired U.S. Army Major. Together, they have three wonderful sons: Malcom, a senior student at the New York Film Academy; Ethan, an active-duty Navy Corpsman Second Class, and Nate, an active-duty Army Public Affairs Sergeant.
In 2001, Michelle transitioned to active-duty and changed her career field to public affairs. After training at the Defense Information School (DINFOS), she joined the American Forces Network in Heidelberg, Germany. While there, Michelle deployed to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom II as a broadcast correspondent assigned to cover the 1st Infantry Division’s deployment. She was later selected to anchor and co-produce the American Forces Network-Europe nightly 30-minute newscast. In 2005, Michelle became the executive producer and anchor of the Army’s flagship newscast, Army NewsWatch.
In 2007, Michelle attended drill sergeant school at Ft. Jackson, South Carolina and was then assigned as a drill sergeant at Ft. Meade, Maryland. In 2009, she was assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division public affairs office at Camp Red Cloud, South Korea. In 2012, Michelle was assigned to the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs community relations office where she coordinated with Army staffs, Department of Defense (DoD), and the White House to plan and execute the communication campaigns of 32 Medal of Honor recipients.
In 2015, Michelle was selected to serve as the communications director for the Army’s senior enlisted leader -Sergeant Major of the Army Daniel Dailey. In this role, she was often Dailey’s ghost-writer for speeches, statements, and appearances on the Hill. One of Michelle’s proudest military moments was writing testimony for SMA Daily to deliver in front of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees to help members better understand the morale and welfare needs of US Army soldiers. This information directly contributed to bettering the lives of military troops and their families.
In 2017, Michelle graduated from Class 67 of the Sergeant Major course at the Non-Commissioned Officer Leadership Center of Excellence in Fort Bliss, Texas where she was a distinguished graduate and earned an award for history research and writing. She then served as the public affairs sergeant major for Eighth Army South Korea, US Army Europe and Africa in Wiesbaden, Germany.
Michelle retired from active duty as a Sergeant Major in 2021 and today she is a doctoral candidate studying crisis communications at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse school of Public Communications. She also remains very active in supporting the veteran community on campus.
