Interview with Dr. Carla Adkinson-Johnson

This is an interview with WMU Professor Dr. Carla Adkinson-Johnson recorded in 2024. Dr. Adkinson-Johnson was interviewed by Dorcas Doku as a part of SHARE's “Standing on Her Shoulders” oral history project. During the interview Dr. Adkinson-Johnson discusses the following topics: Her childhood and family life; Finding her place in Kalamazoo as a Black Woman academic; Learning from inspirational people in her family; Pursuing her PhD to research Black mental health; Being in academic leadership as a Black Woman; How her faith and family history has led her through her career; Identifying one’s purpose; Her strengths as a professor; The importance of maintaining sisterhood and relationships; Advice to young Black Women in academica; Her definition and measurement of success; Her hope for a racially and ethnically diverse Kalamazoo; The impact of watching her Black students succeed; Winning the YWCA’s Women of Achievement Award in 2024; The importance of oral history; Her passion for the preservation of the Black Family; Bible verses that guide her life, and; Balancing her personal and professional lives.