When we are challenged to grow, we can either remain where we are or rise to meet that challenge. Ethel (she/her) and Kevin (he/him) Davis, KLN ‘78, were lucky enough to have a friend in James Johnson, KLN ‘78 (he/him), who always dared them to achieve to their fullest potential. Following his unexpected death in 1998 at the age of 44, the Davises knew they had to honor the friend that always brought others up with him on his way to success. 

And so, the couple decided in 2018 to establish the James Johnson ’78 Memorial Scholarship in their friend’s memory with the purpose of helping Klein College of Media and Communication students with financial need to study abroad in London, an experience they said transformed Johnson for the rest of his life. In 2021, the Davises chose to fully endow the scholarship ahead of schedule and provide further funding so that it covers all fees for the London study abroad program.

Johnson was Kevin Davis’ first friend when Davis transferred from Catholic school to his local public school in seventh grade. They became inseparable, and when Johnson told Davis he would be attending Temple University to study communications after graduating from high school, he convinced Davis to apply as well. Though Davis didn’t get in at first, his friend continued to encourage and inspire him to attend Rutgers Camden for two years before reapplying to Temple. He got in, transferred, and the two were reunited.

“That was probably the most important thing he did for me, was getting me into Temple University,” Davis said. “Nobody else gave me advice saying, ‘This is important. Go to a university.’” 

During their senior year, Davis met Ethel, an early childhood education major in the College of Education, in their work-study program. Ethel quickly befriended James as well, and would also come to seek his advice. “He was always willing to give you advice, but if you didn’t ask for it, he wouldn’t tell you,” she said.

It was also during their senior year that Johnson decided he would study abroad in London. “The one thing he did that I didn’t do was he went to London his last semester before graduating,” he said. “And he came back a totally different person.”

This newly transformed version of Johnson knew he couldn’t move back in with his family after graduating, and so he lived with Davis and his parents for a few weeks before he went out on his own in Philadelphia. After that, Johnson worked for Temple’s media center his entire career until his death, overseeing technology and audio/visual equipment for Main and Center City Campuses.

When looking back on Johnson’s impact on the Davises and the many other lives he touched, they understood that the transformative power of travel, branching out and pushing one’s horizons was essential to the kind of growth mindset Johnson embodied.

“Klein wants students to feel the life-changing impact of studying abroad, so to have this scholarship in James' memory is very important to our office,” said Klein’s Assistant Director of Global Opportunities Gabrielle Verzella (she/her). “Scholarships are crucial in providing access to all Temple students to be able to participate in such a life-shaping experience.”

Today, in part due to Johnson’s inspiration, the Davises live in the Los Angeles area, where they raised their two grown children and where Kevin is a successful business owner. 

As they sow the seeds for students to succeed in their friend’s memory, the Davises also reflected on what it means to defy odds when one can gain support from those around them, and how Johnson would have loved to be part of creating such an incredible opportunity.

“James made it possible for not only himself but for others around him to blossom, and do the things they didn’t think were possible,” Ethel said. “This would have been something that he would have loved to be a part of.”

Kevin added, “Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it, because we weren’t supposed to do it.”
 

If you wish to make a donation to the James Johnson KLN ’78 Memorial Scholarship, please visit giving.temple.edu/johnsonscholarship.

To learn more about establishing a scholarship or supporting Klein students in other ways, please contact Karen Gallagher, assistant dean, development and alumni relations at [click-for-email] or go to giving.temple.edu/kleincollege.