Children's author, motivational speaker and award winning educator, Kimberly P. Johnson was born in Shelby, NC.  She currently resides with her husband Jeff and niece Whitney.

Kimberly graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she majored in Communications Studies. She earned an Associate's Degree in Early Childhood Education and completed the Advanced Poetry Writing Program and Spanish IV at UNC-Chapel Hill.  She also holds a Master's Degree in Youth Development and Leadership from Clemson University.

 

Kimberly is currently enrolled in the Doctor of Education (EdD) program at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. Her area of concentration is Curriculum, Teaching, Learning and Leadership. This concentration will "help educational leaders develop the competencies, dispositions, and values required to pursue educational reform, based on a commitment to social justice”.  Kimberly's focus “will explore the relationship between effective educational leadership and the ways that curriculum and teaching can enhance learning opportunities for students across their lifespan".

 

A few of Kimberly’s accomplishments include:

• Serving as a hostess for the 1989 Presidential Inaugural Gala for President George Bush.

• Invited by President and Mrs. George W. Bush, Kimberly served as a guest reader at the annual 2002 Easter Egg Roll at the White House.

• As a former Head Start student, Kimberly works avidly with their programs. She has developed and helps fund a summer learning program.  The program focuses on academic and social enrichment.

• She has established scholarships through Fayetteville Technical Community College, Fayetteville, NC And Alamance Community College, Burlington, NC to help assist students pursuing a degree in Education.

• Served as celebrity reader for the Charlotte Bobcats basketball team on their NBA "Read to Achieve" all-star reading program.

• Appeared on the Today Show in New York City (November 2000) during a book signing for Children's Book Week.

• She was a presenter at the North Carolina Literary Festival held in Chapel Hill, N.C., a collaboration between the libraries on the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State and Duke University.

• Kimberly was named the Fayetteville Community College's Outstanding Alumni for 2002-2003.

• In 2005 she received the Paul Harris Fellow Award presented by Rotary International for her work in literacy.

• Kimberly has authored over 15 children’s books. "Paperback Poetry Part 2"  was her first venture written in both English and Spanish.

 

As a motivational speaker and educator, many national organizations have utilized Kimberly’s talents, including Project Read To Me, Smart Start, National Reading Associations and Office of Head Start.   Kimberly visits schools throughout the U.S. speaking to children and adults about literacy and writing. She conducts staff development workshops on how to motivate children in the classroom. She also teaches creative writing to elementary and middle school students.

 

She is a member of the International Reading Association, Society of Children's Book Writers and Children's Book Insider, and has developed a line of greeting cards, motivational CD's and motivational posters for teachers and children. 

 

Kimberly is an advocate of children's literacy and gives a portion of her proceeds to children's literacy organizations.