Dr. Arcelia Marshallene Johnson-Fannin

From humble beginnings in the small East Texas town of Linden, Arcelia is a 2nd generation college graduate who absorbed the teachings, lessons, experiences of her surroundings to become a person who contributed much to our world. From becoming the 1st African American female graduate of Columbia University Pharmacy school, to becoming the 1st African American pharmacist at a 1000 bed NYC hospital, to building a program at FAMU that gave the university its first doctorate degree, her 45-year career continues to touch the lives of thousands.

Dr. Johnson-Fannin received a B.S. in Chemistry from Dillard University, a B.S. in Pharmacy from Columbia University, performed graduate work at NYU and St. John’s University and finished with her doctorate from Mercer University.

In addition to creating a new degree at FAMU, Dr. Johnson-Fannin and her students became involved in what would later be called “health disparities” research. The research they performed in the early 1980s was rejected by the professional community, deemed “biased” because of the race of the researchers. Dr. Johnson-Fannin and her colleagues continued their work and eventually received significant funding. For one seven-year period, she received grants from The Lilly Foundation, The Kellogg Foundation, NIH, and DOE, totaling more than $6,500,000. It is interesting to note that health disparities is one of the most significant concerns in health care today. Dr. Johnson-Fannin carried her talent for teaching and Program development into a variety of venues. She taught in a developing medical school for women in Saudi Arabia and helped develop educational programs for foreign physicians at a large state hospital in Florida. She was also a member of the NAPLEX Review committee that transitioned the pharmacy licensing exam from paper to electronic format.

In 1997, Dr. Johnson-Fannin was selected to head the development of the pharmacy program at Hampton University in Virginia. A decade later, she became the founding dean of the Feik School of Pharmacy at University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio Texas. With that appointment, Dr. Johnson-Fannin became the first woman and only Black female to be founding dean at two new pharmacy schools.

In 1999, Dr. Johnson-Fannin was designated one of the 50 most influential pharmacists in America. In 2005, she was Highlighted by AETNA as one 12 most highly accomplished African American pharmacists in the USA. She was selected to appear in the inaugural edition of Who’s Who in Black San Antonio. In addition to numerous other awards and recognitions, Dr. Johnson-Fannin is an honored member of the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame, received a COMET award from the San Antonio Women’s Chamber, and in 2018 was selected Alumni of the year by her Alma Mater, Dillard University. She has received accolades and recognitions from numerous organizations such as Top Ladies of Distinction, elected to the Educators Hall of Fame by Phi Delta Kappa, Inc., and been featured in the media from Forida to Virginia, Texas, California, Spain, Argentina, and Brazil. She was active in the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, American Pharmacists Association, American Society of Health System Pharmacists, American College of Clinical Pharmacists, and the National Pharmacist Association. She was involved with the community through Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. (a Golden Soror with over 50 years of service) and several Board appointments, including Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas; a CHRISTUS Health Corporate Board Committee; a former board member of Communities in Schools; and was the long standing president of the Board of a small nonprofit –Small Beginnings, Big Results—an organization that raised funds to build 53 water wells in Africa and Asia. She is also a life member of NACCP. It is interesting to note that from 2008 to 2016, Drs. Larry and Arcelia were both deans at pharmacy schools, the only such couple in the academy. Just as Dr. Arcelia was recognized by the San Antonio Business Journal as a HealthCare Hero, Dr. Larry received similar recognition from the Utah Business Journal. They are a power-couple who made history together.

Dr. Johnson-Fannin loved to travel. She has visited 42 of the 50 States, including Alaska and Hawaii. She made educational exchange connections with schools in Brazil, Spain, Germany, and Uzbekistan. She has visited Canada, Great Britain, Denmark, The Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Russia, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan, Australia, Israel, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Argentina, Mexico, and numerous sites in the Caribbean Islands, Central America, including a trip through the Panama Canal. She lived for over a year in Saudi Arabia teaching at a medical school, which afforded the opportunity to visit several surrounding countries. This may have been the experience that lit the fire for travel and exploration which lasted throughout her life.

Affectionately known as “Dr. J”, Dr. Johnson-Fannin is married to Dr. Larry Fannin, Dean for the Roseman College of Pharmacy of Nevada. The couple is proud of their children: Dr. Ehriel Fannin, a nurse educator and researcher (deceased), and Lawrence Marshall Fannin, a Principal systems engineer with Sandia National Labs in Albuquerque, NM. Survivors include Her brother Don (Vera) Johnson Sr., sister-in-law Vivian Gail Hines, Nephews: Jeffrey (Teresa) Spencer, Brian Spencer, Don (Leonissa) Johnson II, Carey (Naomi) Hines, Gary Hines, Charlie Hines Jr, Nieces: Ahnekii (Robert) Tanner, Adrienne Johnson, Andraya (Vincent) Hibbert, Jasmine (Bryan) Meyers, 6 great nieces, 3 great nephews, and a host of cousins and well-wishers.