Keynote Address

Combining a passion for helping people through law, education, and faith; Francys Johnson is called to serve this present age. Francys Johnson is in private practice as an attorney with The Johnson Firm P.C. in Statesboro, Georgia. He represents individuals in criminal and civil matters before all State and Federal Courts in Georgia. Previously, Johnson worked for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in a variety of capacities including State Legal Redress Director; State Executive Director; and Southeast Regional Director. As Southeast Regional Director, Johnson was the chief manager of the NAACP’s public policy agenda and administrative activities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Mr. John-son managed over 60% of the group\u27s total membership base. Today he serves as the President of the Georgia NAACP, and continues to advise and consult the organization’s national agenda. As a result of his work with the NAACP, Johnson went to work for America’s premier health advocacy organization, the American Heart and Stroke Association as the Vice President of Cultural Health Initiatives. There, Johnson developed effective strategies to overcome the social injustices of racial, ethnic and gender health disparities and strengthen diversity within the organization’s operations. Johnson, a graduate of Georgia Southern University and The University of Georgia, frequently lectures and writes on the concepts of race, equity measures, and understandings of power in public policy. He served on the Political Science and Criminal Justice faculties at Georgia Southern University and Savannah State University. Johnson has served in ordained ministry for seventeen years. He is the Senior Minister at the Mount Moriah Baptist Church in Pembroke, Georgia and the Magnolia Missionary Baptist Church in Statesboro, Georgia. He is married to Dr. Meca Renee Williams, an educational psychologist and tenured professor at Georgia Southern University. They have three sons, Thurgood Marshall Joshua; Langston Hughes Elijah and the late Frederick Douglass Caleb. Distinguished Leadership Keynote Speaker Francys Johnso