PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (December 7, 2021) – Garnett Johnson, who is on the verge of earning her master’s degree in community development from Prairie View A&M University, has been appointed assistant director of community and economic development for the city of Marshall, Texas. Johnson’s full-time role began just as she was entering her final month in the School of Architecture.
As an assistant director in Marshall, a town near the Texas/Louisiana border, Johnson is involved in a number of different areas of economic development oversight, including monitoring code enforcement, health inspections, CDBG (community development building grants), and building permits, planning and zoning. She is also assisting with Marshall Main Street, which aids in the revitalization of Marshall’s downtown through the use of historic preservation and economic development strategies known as the Four Points: Economic Vitality, Design, Promotion, and Organization.
“I’m hitting the ground running,” Johnson said. “The sky’s the limit for me, and the sky’s the limit for this city.”
Johnson is in the first “pandemic class” of PVAMU students, having received a degree entirely through online education. This would have been necessary anyway, given the 240 miles that separate Prairie View A&M and Marshall.
But Johnson is also in a more singular class of students: she’s a veteran, with two of her three children currently in graduate school, one of whom is also at PVAMU.
“When the pandemic hit, I thought, ‘OK, I’ll go back to school,’” she said. “The kids were already in place, and I thought, ‘Why not? I love learning.’ And I’ve had a great time at Prairie View.”
“Garnett is another example of what we are trying to achieve through our program: creating professionals with skills and a vision that centers the people and their communities,” said Tiffany D. Thomas, program coordinator and assistant professor of Community Development. “Hopefully, as we continue to develop a curriculum that aligns with the newest trends in government, economic and community development, we will attract more high-performing professionals seeking to advance their career.”
Garnett told The Marshall News Messenger, reporting on her city appointment, that her stint included serving as an advocate for underserved families in the form of mentorship and volunteering. The Johnson family lives on the outskirts of Marshall, a small city of not quite 23,000 residents that lost approximately 3 percent of its population over the past decade. Still, Johnson describes Marshall as “a diamond in the rough.”
“I see the potential that’s here,” she said. “We have to make it a space that’s appealing to the retirees who are already here and the youth who are coming in.”
A steady stream of young people reach Marshall during their college educations; the city is home to Wiley College, one of the nation’s oldest Historically Black College/University, as well as East Texas Baptist University and two smaller institutions.
“How do you bring young people to this space and get them to stay?” Johnson asked. “If I want you to stay, I have to grow so you can see the potential.”
Johnson noted that established residents often are a hard sell when it comes to growth. “They see their community as safer; they know everybody, they know what is going on,” she said. “But if you want your community to survive, you must grow. If you don’t grow, the space here will be no more.”
Therefore, Johnson’s task is a balancing act: trying to help businesses thrive, beautifying the downtown core, and bringing in development that attracts residents and visitors, all the while preserving what is already beautiful and essential to the community. She views her military background and her PVAMU education as having prepared her to take it on.
“We’ve always done community development,” Johnson said. “It was untitled and unrecognized. But being military people, we’ve always been in that position. This is a really natural position for a person with that kind of background, and it fits with my goals. To actually be in the position to be able to help attract people to the city, to help local businesses, to work in real estate development and property beautification, to help build up low-income areas — these are all things I’m absolutely interested in. I’m trying to make Marshall the vibrant place it can be.”
Visit www.pvamu.edu/academicaffairs/commencement/graduates to view this semester’s notable graduates and read their stories.
Visit www.pvamu.edu/commencement to learn more information about PVAMU’s upcoming fall graduation.
By Andrew Cohen
-PVAMU-