Vada Johnson, HEB ISD's first African-American teacher
Community Says Goodbye to Devoted Educator
Vada Mae Johnson said she always wanted to be a teacher. “I loved teaching,” she said. “It was hard, but it was worth it.” Johnson’s hard work, her dedication to children, and her love of her Mosier Valley ancestral roots made her an icon in the local community.
Johnson passed away November 9. She will be buried at Mosier Valley Cemetery http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dfw/obituary.aspx?n=vada-mae-johnson&pid=146545554&fhid=2846)
The following is taken from an article in the Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD newsletter, “Making the Grade,” published in 2002.
Vada Johnson was raised in Mosier Valley and went to IM Terrell High School in Fort Worth, which was financially difficult for her family
“No one provided any free transportation to Fort Worth schools,” Johnson said. “Our families had to work extra hard just to earn that bus fare so we could attend school in Fort Worth. No one ever gave us any help.”
After graduating from Paul Quinn College in Waco, Johnson returned to Mosier Valley to teach first through third grade in 1950. That building had replaced a 1918 wood structure, which had replaced an even earlier building. Johnson taught in that wood frame schoolhouse for one year. She then taught in the new brick building, beginning in September 1951.
Johnson was one of two teachers at the new school, and when the school became part of the current HEB ISD in 1965, Johnson was the District’s first African-American teacher. She taught at Mosier Valley until the school closed in 1969, when court rulings mandated complete classroom integration.
The Mosier Valley School was eventually torn down, but a historical marker dedicated in 1984 marks the place where the school once stood.
Johnson taught first grade at Wilshire Elementary School from 1969 until she retired in 1986. By this time, she had been a teacher 36 years and had a earned a master’s degree from Prairie View A&M.
“I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, ever since I was a little girl,” she said. “I just loved teaching.”
Read MoreVada Mae Johnson said she always wanted to be a teacher. “I loved teaching,” she said. “It was hard, but it was worth it.” Johnson’s hard work, her dedication to children, and her love of her Mosier Valley ancestral roots made her an icon in the local community.
Johnson passed away November 9. She will be buried at Mosier Valley Cemetery http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dfw/obituary.aspx?n=vada-mae-johnson&pid=146545554&fhid=2846)
The following is taken from an article in the Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD newsletter, “Making the Grade,” published in 2002.
Vada Johnson was raised in Mosier Valley and went to IM Terrell High School in Fort Worth, which was financially difficult for her family
“No one provided any free transportation to Fort Worth schools,” Johnson said. “Our families had to work extra hard just to earn that bus fare so we could attend school in Fort Worth. No one ever gave us any help.”
After graduating from Paul Quinn College in Waco, Johnson returned to Mosier Valley to teach first through third grade in 1950. That building had replaced a 1918 wood structure, which had replaced an even earlier building. Johnson taught in that wood frame schoolhouse for one year. She then taught in the new brick building, beginning in September 1951.
Johnson was one of two teachers at the new school, and when the school became part of the current HEB ISD in 1965, Johnson was the District’s first African-American teacher. She taught at Mosier Valley until the school closed in 1969, when court rulings mandated complete classroom integration.
The Mosier Valley School was eventually torn down, but a historical marker dedicated in 1984 marks the place where the school once stood.
Johnson taught first grade at Wilshire Elementary School from 1969 until she retired in 1986. By this time, she had been a teacher 36 years and had a earned a master’s degree from Prairie View A&M.
“I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, ever since I was a little girl,” she said. “I just loved teaching.”
