The Johnson sisters: Five powerful Jamaican siblings excelling in US

This is a five-sister act, the likes of which have rarely been seen or heard of and, certainly, there’s no stopping them.

The five sisters, children of Leon and Gladwin Johnson, who left Jamaica with their mother several decades ago as children, have achieved what some might believe was impossible, but their mother knew they were capable of and had groomed them for.

Each of the sisters attended an Ivy League university in the US, of which there are only eight, and are now top professionals in their fields. Harvard, Cornell, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania have each seen at least one of the Johnson sisters from Jamaica.

Among the five sisters are three doctors (two PhDs and one medical doctor), an attorney, and an actor-director-producer-educator, who opted out of studying aerospace engineering at Cornell to focus on her acting career.

The sisters are Dr Leonie Johnson-Sena, psychiatrist; Patrice Johnson-Chevannes, actor, director, producer, and educator; Dr Michelle J. Johnson, a roboticist scientist and an associate professor; Dr Karen A. Johnson, research scientist and an assistant professor of social work; and Marsha M. S. Johnson, attorney-at-law.

The family originated from Kingston, Jamaica, and migrated to the United States in 1980 where the then young ladies, along with brothers Michael A. Johnson, a computer engineer and CEO of his own consulting company, and Robert ‘Bobby’ Johnson of Ubigwitus Inc, heeded the urgings of their mother to ensure they got a proper education. Decades later, they are still happy for the guidance of their mother, who passed away in 2017. They are happy too, that she lived long enough to see her dream for her children come true.

Here is a brief look at all five sisters.

1. Dr Leonie Johnson-Sena, medical doctor and psychiatrist. Leonie attended Cornell University.

After New Providence Primary, Leonie attended St Andrew High School for Girls, completing fourth form before leaving Jamaica at age 15.

In the US, the family lived in a “poor neighbourhood” and Leonie attended a “terrible” high school, yet excelled and later got accepted to Cornell.

“I am a medical doctor, more specifically a child, adolescent and adult psychiatrist. I went to Cornell University for my undergraduate degree and Cornell University Medical College for my medical degree. I did a three-year adult residency at North Shore University Hospital and a two-year child fellowship at NYU-Bellevue Hospital Center.”

Leonie has been in private practice for more than 25 years and has worked in several mental health clinics and foster care agencies for children and adolescents.

Being a black psychiatrist in America, where only two per cent of 41,000 people in the field are black, can be daunting.

“When I was in medical school, there weren’t many black female psychiatrists at all. There was also a greater mental health stigma among communities of colour. I know how intimidating it can be to talk about your issues with someone who doesn’t look like you and I wanted to be part of bridging that gap.

“If I had to choose, I’d say that one of the highlights of my career has been bringing psychiatry into the Christian community and helping believers understand that mental health can affect a person regardless of their beliefs.”

Leonie credits her parents, especially her mother, with her success.

“My parents instilled the importance of education in us from a very young age, specifically my mother. She challenged us to start thinking about what we wanted to do. So much so, that at five years old, I declared to everyone that I wanted to be a doctor.”

Leonie’s advice to women: “It is important to develop discipline, it is also important to develop diligence, which is doing something right away and lastly, remember to maintain the dream. You cannot go far without a roadmap and having a plan is half the journey.”

2. Patrice Johnson-Chevannes is an actor, writer, director, producer, and educator who traded Cornell University for an acting career.

Patrice started studying aerospace engineering at Cornell University, but switched careers to get a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting at City College of New York.

Acting for more than 25 years and writing and directing since 2008, she also teaches public speaking in workshops to The Obama Scholars at Columbia University, and is an assistant professor of acting in the master’s programme at The New School in New York City.

“As a small child in Jamaica, I always had a secret dream of being an actor. I didn’t know it was possible to be one until I came to the United States,” Patrice shared.

As an actor, Patrice has worked onstage with Liam Neeson and Sir Patrick Stewart at the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington and is the first black actor to play Desdemona. In film, she worked alongside Viola Davis and Michelle Pfeiffer in the television show, The First Lady.

Through her production company, God-and-Allowee, Patrice has written, directed, and produced three films, Kings County (2003), NY’s Dirty Laundry (2007), and Hill and Gully (2013). Her brother, Robert ‘Bobby’ Johnson, co-produced the films and produced the soundtracks. Patrice’s movies have featured prominent actors such as E. Roger Mitchell, Donnell Rawlins, Heather Simms, among others.

She, like all her siblings, paid tribute to her parents.

“Our parents told us education would take us through the world. Our mother not only expected the best, but she sat with every one of us and pushed us to study and do our homework. We were eight children, she worked full-time so this was no easy task, but she made sure we knew she believed in us.”

For Patrice, the path to success was challenging, with a truckload of isms to go through – racism, sexism, elitism, favouritism, colourism, and ageism.

On her shift from aeronautical engineering to the arts, Patrice explained that she was good at math and thought it would be a good career for her.

“But it was not my passion. I wanted to find my passion, so I prayed. Acting gave me joy.”

Patrice said she and her siblings feel a very strong and proud tie to Jamaica and she would love to give back. She has applied for a Fulbright to enable her to come and teach at Edna Manley College.

“What a joy it would be to come back to Jamaica to teach and help to nourish young people who had the same dream I had as a child,” she said.

Patrice’s sentiments are shared by all five Johnson sisters, who say their desire is to give of their skills and training to Jamaica, the land of their birth. No doubt, Jamaica would welcome them with open arms.

3. Dr Michelle J.A. Johnson, PhD. Michelle, a roboticist scientist, attended University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University.

Michelle went to New Providence Primary School, then spent a year at Immaculate Conception High School in St Andrew before migrating in her pre-teen years.

She is director of the Rehabilitation Robotics Lab, and an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehab, and Department of Bioengineering. She did her bachelor’s in mechanical engineering at UPenn and her PhD in mechanical engineering at Stanford University. In 2015 she did a TedX Talk.

“My Ph.D. is in mechanical engineering,” Michelle told The Gleaner. “I emphasise robotics, design, and control. I focus on developing these smart and affordable systems for people with impairments due to non-traumatic brain injury like stroke. I got into it because I wanted to help my grandmother who had a stroke.”

Some of her highlights include graduating from Stanford with her Ph.D, in 2002 and having her mom attend her graduation, completing a two-year postdoc in Italy and learning Italian, and her mom (again) attending her first keynote address at rehab week in London in 2017.

“I am humbled to be a part of this family. I am thankful that my mom was my mom; she is the person who made us the way we are. Supportive.”

In 2020 Michelle secured tenure at UPenn and later became a US Fulbright scholar and spent time in Botswana.

Michelle faced obstacles, like in 1980, the administrators at the junior high school she was scheduled to attend, attempted to place her in a lower grade due to prejudiced viewpoints directed against Jamaicans, and due to Michelle’s Jamaican accent. Michelle’s mom stepped in and demanded that they place Michelle in the correct grade. Although the school administrators ultimately acquiesced, they placed Michelle in a classroom with the lowest-performing students. Michelle shone among her peers despite this challenge and later went on to become the valedictorian when she graduated from junior high.

Michelle has started giving back to Jamaica. In 2018 she developed a course, in her chosen field, for both the University of Technology and The University of the West Indies, Mona campus.

4. Dr Karen A. Johnson, PhD, Karen is a community-engaged research scientist, implementation scientist, and an assistant professor of social work. Karen attended Columbia University.

“I am an assistant professor at the University of Alabama, School of Social Work. I received my Ph.D. from Columbia University, School of Social Work and completed post-doctoral training in Global Mental Health and Implementation Science from Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute,” Karen informed The Gleaner.

Karen, who is also a visiting scholar at Yale University, was recently named a 2023 Boston Congress of Public Health, Health Innovator to Watch award recipient. In addition to her research training, she has more than 20 years of experience working with low-income women with high rates of incarceration, homelessness, drug use, and sexual risk behaviours.

She said she was drawn to social work from as young as five after seeing a homeless person who appeared to be mentally unstable.

“He was sitting at a bus stop right outside of Victoria Jubilee Hospital, where my mother was a nurse. I remember thinking, ‘How can I help?’ I was instinctively drawn to his pain and hurt. That feeling, which I believe was both a gift and a calling from God, has remained with me over the decades.”

Her areas of expertise include, among others, Implementation Science, Sexual Health and Wellness, System Involvement (Criminal Legal System, Homelessness), Depression / Trauma/Mental Health Prevention and Intervention, Substance Use Prevention and Intervention, and HIV/Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Karen says the most outstanding thing about the family is their bond in Christ.

“We love the Lord Jesus Christ with all our hearts and stay close to each other and to Him. We also actively encourage each other (and our amazing brothers) in every single way. We are our biggest cheerleaders,” she pointed out.

“My parents encouraged us to keep holding hands as children. We adhere to this guidance to this day, which is transferable to other key relationships. It suggests that relationships and unity should be pursued at all costs.”

5. Marsha M. S. Johnson, attorney-at-law, attended Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania.

Marsha is a civil litigator and has been practising for more than 21 years.

“I got my undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1997, and I got my Juris Doctor/Law degree from the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Law) in 2002,” Marsha shared. She also shared the experience she had at UWI Mona.

“During my third year of college, I did a co-op study and work abroad programme that was based at the University of the West Indies, on the Mona campus. Those three months, were among my most fulfilling academic experiences.

“As one who left Jamaica as a four-and-a-half-year-old child, much of my memories of Jamaica came through stories that I heard from my parents and family members. However, studying at UWI allowed me to create some memories for myself, and to engage with academics and professionals, who saw the world from a uniquely Jamaican perspective, which was both thrilling and eye-opening for me.”

Some of Marsha’s most important career moments have involved her taking on cases pro bono to help struggling people, who have been disadvantaged or manipulated, to navigate the legal system to get the level of compensation, service, or justice that they deserve.

On family, she says, “Our mother raised us very much in the Jamaican way, which is to work as hard as we could individually, but to remember that we are strongest when we ‘hold on to each other’s hands’ so that we rise or fall together. Work hard, push past other people’s low expectations of us as black women, pursue academic and professional excellence and carry ourselves with confidence, integrity, and humility.”

About her challenges in America, Marsha says, “Like any other black woman in America, I faced people who have misjudged me, underestimated me, tried to belittle me, and unfairly challenged me at every step along the way. I have faced instances of gender and racial discrimination, both on the job and in academic settings. Sometimes gender, racial, and country of origin bias is so loud and in your face that it is unmistakable, but most times it is very subtle.”

Currently, Marsha is “very much integrated” into the Jamaican-American diaspora in the United States and she helps prepare high school seniors to apply for colleges all over the United States.

editorial@gleanerjm.com