Gov. Rounds appoints Johnson to Board of Regents

PIERRE, S.D. – Governor Rounds has appointed Dr. Kathryn Johnson of Hill City to the South Dakota Board of Regents.  

“Kathryn brings a balanced combination of education and experience to the Board as we begin an exciting phase of linking our newest higher education programs with high-tech research, development and commercialization opportunities,” said Gov. Rounds.  “She has worked with both state and federal governments in addition to numerous business, industrial and commercial clients across the United States and Canada.”

Dr. Johnson has 25 years of environmental consulting experience and is currently the owner of Johnson Environmental Concepts of Rapid City.  The company provides consultation services in geochemistry, geohydrology, and environmental science.  She also owns and operates a retail business, The Pet Pantry, in Rapid City.  

She currently serves on the 2010 Research & Commercialization Council and the Board of Minerals and Environment.  She was federally appointed to the Congressional Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering and Technology, and is a member of the National Research Council Committee on Women in Science & Engineering.  She was a 1997 Bush Foundation Leadership Fellow and is a member of the American Chemical Society, Geochemical and Environmental Sections, South Dakota Association of Environmental Professionals and the Environmental Assessment Association.

Dr. Johnson graduated from Black Hills State University, received her M.S. from Iowa State University, and her Ph.D. from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.  She also has completed studies in Science, Technology and Public Policy at George Washington University in D.C.  Kathryn and her husband, Doyle Estes, reside in rural Pennington County. 

Dr. Johnson will begin her first term on the Board of Regents on March 31, 2005.