Mordecai Wyatt Johnson

Mordecai Wyatt Johnson (January 4, 1891 – September 10, 1976) was an American educator and pastor. He served as the first black president of Howard University, from 1926 until 1960. Johnson has been considered one of the three leading African-American preachers of the early 20th-century, along with Vernon Johns and Howard Thurman.

Johnson was born on January 12, 1890, in Paris, Tennessee. His parents were former slaves, his father was Reverend Wyatt J. Johnson and Carolyn Freeman (a preacher and mill worker) and his mother was a domestic worker for one of the prominent families in town.

Mordecai studied primary school on a small elementary school in his native town. After it, he moved to Nashville where studied at Roger Williams University, then Memphis at Howe Institute in Memphis.

Later was transferred to the Atlanta Baptist College (now Morehouse College) where he completed his secondary and undergraduate education. During his college career, he was a member of the debating team and the Glee Club, a star athlete in three sports, and quarterback of the football team. Offered a faculty position at the college upon graduation, he taught English and economics and served a year as acting dean. He maintained a profound interest in economics throughout his career—an interest that was apparent in some of his major addresses.

After one year of teaching, he continued his education at the University of Chicago, where he received a second A.B. degree, and at the Rochester Theological Seminary in Rochester, New York, where he earned the B.D. degree. At Rochester he was profoundly influenced by the great "social gospel" advocate, Walter Rauchenbusch. His experiences there made an indelible impact upon his thinking and his entire career.

Johnson received his B.A. from Morehouse College in 1911, and second bachelor of arts degree from the University of Chicago two years later. He studied at several other institutions of higher education, including the Rochester Theological Seminary, Harvard University, Howard University, and the Gammon Theological Seminary.

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