Bemidji State's Nina Johnson named Service Faculty of the Year

BEMIDJI — Bemidji State University’s Nina Johnson is the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Board of Trustees’ 2025 Service Faculty of the Year.

Johnson has served as the director of the Hobson Memorial Union since 2017. She was honored at a statewide ceremony in St. Paul on April 16.

Johnson has been with Bemidji State since 2013, and a news release stated she transformed the Hobson Memorial Union into an inclusive, student-centered environment.

“Nina Johnson has limitless energy and enthusiasm for students, a passion for service to campus and community and a drive for continuous improvement — both in her own professional growth and in the operations of Bemidji State University’s Hobson Memorial Union,” stated university president John Hoffman.

Johnson, among her many listed accomplishments, is credited with partnering with the United Way of Bemidji Area to create a campus food pantry and coordinating the Hunger-Free Campus Task Force with the BSU Alumni & Foundation.

She was also an early adopter of gender-neutral restrooms and providing menstrual products in all union restrooms, initiatives that predated state mandates.

“No matter how you look at the five criteria that the Board of Trustees has established for this honor — leadership, expertise, advancement of equity and inclusion, professional development and commitment to student success — Nina Johnson excels,” Hoffman said.

Johnson was selected from a competitive pool of service faculty across the system’s universities, and it’s the state's highest recognition for administrative service faculty.