Georgia Institute of Technology Promotes Dr. Ronald L. Johnson to Chief of Staff and Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives

President Ángel Cabrera has announced that Ronald Johnson will join Georgia Tech’s leadership team as the next senior vice president of strategic initiatives and chief of staff, effective June 1.

Johnson, currently a professor of the practice in the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, will serve as a member of Tech’s Executive Leadership Team, advising the president on a variety of administrative and executive duties, special projects, and initiatives.

“Ron’s organizational and leadership skills, honed during his exemplary military career, combined with his love for and understanding of Georgia Tech, make him uniquely suited to support me and our leadership team in executing our strategic priorities during this era of unprecedented growth,” Cabrera said. “I look forward to working with him in leading Georgia Tech to even greater heights.”

Prior to Georgia Tech in 2014, Johnson served as the National Basketball Association’s first senior vice president of referee operations, overseeing all aspects of the NBA’s officiating program. He served for 32 years in the U.S. Army, attaining the rank of major general while serving as the second highest-ranking senior engineer staff officer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and as director of the U.S. Army Installation Management Agency. He also served as the commander of USACE’s Gulf Region Division and U.S. deputy director of the Program Management Office in Iraq.

He has been recognized with numerous awards and decorations, including the Distinguished Service Medal, Bronze Star, and Legion of Merit. He is the recipient of the 2003 Black Engineer of the Year Award for Professional Achievement in Government Service, an inductee into the 2005 Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni at Georgia Tech, and recipient of the 2008 Black Engineer Lifetime Achievement Award. Johnson also received the Trailblazer Award from the Georgia Tech Black Alumni Organization and the Georgia Tech Alumni Association’s Joseph Pettit Distinguished Service Award. Johnson is an emeritus trustee for the Georgia Tech Foundation, served as a Georgia Tech Alumni Association Trustee from 2015 to 2018, served on the Georgia Tech Advisory Board from 2020 to 2023, and has provided an endowment for two student scholarships.

“I want to thank President Cabrera and the Georgia Tech leadership team for their confidence in my abilities to serve in this critical role,” Johnson said. “I am eager to work alongside such a dedicated leadership team, faculty, staff, and students who embody Georgia Tech’s motto of Progress and Service.”

Johnson holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering and mathematics from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, a Master of Science in strategic planning from the School of Advanced Military Studies, a Master of Science in operations research from Georgia Tech, and an Educational Doctorate in higher education management and leadership from the University of Georgia.