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Lakenisha Johnson is bringing a bubbly personality to her new job teaching physical education to students at Brewton Elementary School.
Johnson was born and raised in the small community of Sweetwater in Marengo County. She attended and graduated from Sweetwater High School in 2011.
“I spent a lot of time with my grandparents while I was growing up,” Johnson said. “I am very close to them, especially my grandmother. I can call on her for her ideas and opinions any time. She is the one I can call when I need advice and just to stay in touch.”
Johnson started college at the University of West Alabama in Livingston, planning to pursue a teaching degree in education.
“Right after I started, I realized that I needed to change my major and I changed from education to physical education,” she said. “I played a lot of sports in high school and thought it would be a good change. I graduated from the University of West Alabama in 2016 and got my first job at Smith Middle School in Birmingham teaching volleyball. It was not at all what I had planned on. The environment there was not very nice. I was used to small-town living and it was a shock to see what inter-city life was like. It almost made me want to quit teaching.”
She said she was very lucky to find a position in Brewton which is more like she thought teaching would be.
“I am very lucky,” she said. “After my first experience, I began to search for other jobs and this one in Brewton was just what I was looking for. It’s like a breath of fresh air and I feel at home here.
“I have always wanted to be a meteorologist and that is my ultimate goal,” she added. “I am attending Mississippi State on line and hope to become a severe weather specialist some day. I am goal oriented and I plan on following my dream.”
Who knows? We may see Johnson pop up on the television chasing tornados around the country. If not, look for her in a classroom.
Right now she is single, but she said she has a boy friend who works at Georgia-Pacific in Pennington.
“Since we have GP here in Brewton, it’s possible that he could come down here one day,” she laughed.