[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17024]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    TRIBUTE TO MARIA GOODLOE-JOHNSON BY CONGRESSMAN JAMES E. CLYBURN

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                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 12, 2012

  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a dedicated 
educator, who devoted her life to improving educational opportunities 
for all children and ending historic achievement gaps in our public 
schools. I had the privilege of knowing Dr. Maria Louis Goodloe-Johnson 
when she served as the Superintendent of the Charleston County School 
District from 2003-2007, and she left an indelible mark during her time 
in South Carolina. Although Dr. Goodloe-Johnson left this world all too 
soon, her legacy lives on in the countless students she touched 
throughout her career.
  Dr. Maria Louis Goodloe-Johnson was born September 3, 1957 in Omaha, 
Nebraska, the second of two children of Jewell Eva and Leonard O. 
Goodloe. She married Bruce Johnson, on September 22, 2004, and the two 
had one daughter, Maya Jewell.
  Maria spent her formative years in Omaha. She graduated from Central 
High School in 1975. In 1979, she graduated from the University of 
Nebraska at Lincoln, where she earned a Bachelor's of Science in 
Special Education. While in college, she also played trumpet in the 
Cornhusker Marching Band.
  In 1980, she moved to Colorado to attend the University of Northern 
Colorado at Greeley, where she completed her master's degree 
(Educationally Handicapped, K-12) and began her career as a special 
education teacher and soccer and cross country coach in the Aurora 
Public Schools.
  In 1987, Maria was named assistant principal at Broomfield High 
School in the Boulder Valley Schools. Three years later, she became the 
youngest African American female high school principal in the state of 
Colorado. While principal at Broomfield High School, she completed her 
doctorate in Educational Administration, Supervision, Curriculum and 
Instruction. She next served as director of secondary instruction for 
the St. Vrain Valley School District before moving to Texas.
  Maria joined the Corpus Christi Independent School District in 1999, 
where she served as Assistant Superintendent. During her tenure, she 
was one of 20 educators selected from across the country to participate 
in the 2003 Urban Superintendents Academy, a highly specialized 
training program with the Broad Superintendents Academy.
  She continued to serve in the Corpus Christi District until accepting 
the position as Superintendent of Schools for Charleston County School 
District, the largest urban district in South Carolina, in October 
2003. Maria is not only the first black but also the first woman to 
hold the position; Maria was noted for improved student achievement 
faster than other districts in the state.
  In September 2007, Maria was selected as the Superintendent of 
Seattle Public School District where she served until March 2011.
  Maria then accepted a position as Deputy Chancellor, Instructional 
Support and Educational Accountability at Michigan Education 
Achievement System. Maria assisted in the development of a program 
designed to provide a new, stable, financially responsible set of 
public schools that create the conditions, supports, tools and 
resources under which teachers can help students make significant 
academic gains. It will first apply to underperforming schools in 
Detroit in the 2012-2013 school years and then be expanded to include 
low performing schools throughout Michigan.
  Maria was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. 
Throughout her life, she was actively involved in community service and 
received numerous honors and awards for these efforts.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in remembering 
this barrier-breaking educator. Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson was a 
trailblazer and an innovator in the public school arena. Her expertise 
and enthusiasm will be sorely missed, but her contributions will live 
on in perpetuity.

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