Johnson has been a major contributor to the health and success of colleges and universities and nonprofit organizations in Indiana and nationally. He is a founding member of the IU Center on Philanthropy and the National Committee of Planned Giving. He also organized the Indiana Chapter of the National Society of Fund Raising Executives.

Johnson initiated a program funded by the Lilly Endowment and others to provide training on an ongoing basis for Indiana private college presidents, board members and fund- raising personnel through the Independent Colleges of Indiana Foundation. He received the Henry A. Rosso Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Ethical Fundraising in 1995.