Endowment Showcases Alum’s Support for Field Hockey

With a gift for an assistant coachship, Kristina Johnson, ’79, MS ’81, PhD ’84, is helping to ensure that the field hockey program will continue to recruit and retain top coaching talent. Johnson’s gift is the second coaching endowment for the program and highlights the strong community support Stanford field hockey enjoys.
 
“As an alumna who earned three Stanford degrees and served as a leader in science, business, government, and higher education, Kristina has blazed an impressive trail,” said Bernard Muir, the Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics. “Her accomplishments both on the Farm and in her career exemplify how excellence in athletics and academics prepare our student-athletes for leadership and purposeful contribution. We are incredibly grateful for this gift and are thrilled that someone who has a deep appreciation for the program’s past is helping to build for the future.”
 
A member of the Stanford field hockey team from 1976-78, Johnson was a staunch advocate for student-athletes, as a member of the Stanford Athletic Committee (SAC) and a founding board member of the Cardinal Club (now the Buck/Cardinal Club). In 1978, she attended the United States National Team Development Camp ahead of the 1979 World Cup. She also co-founded the club lacrosse program as a student-athlete, prior to the elevation of the sport to varsity status. Johnson earned three degrees in electrical engineering at Stanford, culminating in a PhD in 1984.
 
Johnson has a distinguished record of leadership in academia, industry, and public service. She has served as dean of the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke, senior vice president and provost of Johns Hopkins University, chancellor of the State University of New York, and president of the Ohio State University. Johnson was also the Under Secretary of Energy for the Energy and Environment under President Barack Obama. She is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, the National Inventors Hall of Fame, and holds 45 U.S. patents and patents pending for pioneering work in optoelectronics. Technology developed by Johnson and her students has been used extensively in modern 3D movies including Avatar, Gravity, and hundreds of others.
 
“The field hockey program was an integral part of my undergraduate experience,” said Johnson. “The determination and grit I honed on the field have played an important role in my career. I am excited to support the program and offer future generations of student-athletes the same opportunities I had.”
 
Under head coach Roz Ellis, Stanford is a program on the rise. The Cardinal was one of the most improved teams in the country in 2022, winning 10 games (including three over ranked opponents) and reaching the championship game of the America East Tournament, where it led in goals-against average.
 
“This show of support from an alumna means the world to us,” said Ellis. “We’ve been building the program to compete for championships since I arrived on the Farm and rallying support from a community of field hockey fans has really made a difference. This gift will help us support and empower the women in our program and keep building a talented roster on the Farm.”
 
Craig Haley will be the inaugural Kristina M. Johnson Assistant Field Hockey Coach.