The Right Man: The Story of Jacob L. Johnson, Author Talk with Glenn R. Burdick

The Right Man, by Glenn R. Burdick, is an authorized biography of the fourth superintendent of Winchester Public Schools, Jacob L. Johnson, who served in that role from 1965 to 1979, during a period of unprecedented social, political and educational change. Upon his appointment, he was immediately tasked by the Winchester School Board to formulate a plan to fully desegregate the city’s public school system after a decade of delay and minimal progress in carrying out the U. S. Supreme Court’s unanimous 1954 decision which declared segregated public schools to be unconstitutional. Within one year, by the fall of 1966, that plan was in place, satisfying the federal court and the federal executive branch, and Winchester Public Schools were fully desegregated. During his tenure, Superintendent Johnson oversaw the construction of a new John Kerr Elementary School and a new Daniel Morgan Middle School, partnered with his colleagues in Frederick County and Clarke counties to construct the Dowell J. Howard Vocational Center, led the fifteen year effort to substantially renovate the 1923 John Handley High School facility, dedicated just a few months after he retired, successfully directed the city schools as they absorbed nearly one thousand additional students in 1971 when Winchester annexed a portion of Frederick County, and initiated a systemwide developmental kindergarten program, expanded instructional programs in vocational education, special education, and remedial education, and developed a central administrative office capable of leading a modern public school system. In the mid-1970s, racial tensions turned violent at Handley High School, and Mr. Johnson played a critical role in helping the community to address the underlying issues and improve communication and relationships across the community. Jake Johnson proved to be the right man at the right time with the right skills and the right temperament to deal with the numerous challenges of leading the city’s school system during those challenging years. Those who knew him and worked with him described him as a Christian gentleman, quiet and humble, motivated by a sense of justice and fair play, a servant leader who trusted and nurtured his staff, and encouraged them to be innovative and caring. The book traces his life from his childhood in rural Pocahontas County, West Virginia, the son of a Presbyterian minister, his college days at Hampden-Sydney College, his early public school teaching assignments in Alleghany County, Virginia, his service as a Naval officer in World War II, his courtship, marriage and children, his lay leadership in the Presbyterian church, his civic leadership, his decade of service as an influential high school principal in Waynesboro, Virginia and his years in Winchester as school superintendent and city councilman.      

About the Author

Glenn R. Burdick is a native of Portsmouth, Virginia who was educated in the public schools there and completed his B. A. Degree in Mathematics and his M. S. Degree in Administration and Supervision at Old Dominion University. He completed his Doctor of Education Degree at the University of Virginia. He was a career educator, working as a high school mathematics teacher, high school principal, planning and budget coordinator, and assistant superintendent before he served as Superintendent of Winchester Public Schools, 1991- 2001. After retiring from public education in 2001, he served as Professor of Education at Shenandoah University for several years, directing a masters degree program in school administration. He returned to school at Lord Fairfax (now Laurel Ridge) Community College in his mid-50s and was licensed as a registered nurse, working at Winchester Medical Center, Blue Ridge Hospice, and St. Luke Community Clinic in Front Royal, Virginia. Now retired, he and his wife, Laura, live in Winchester, Virginia and have three adult sons, two of whom are graduates of John Handley High School.