Krista Johns
Consultant
Krista Johns brings her years of higher education experience to bear in her role as Consultant with Academic Search. She is hands-on, organized, and process oriented. She is also committed to ensuring that client institutions and candidates have a positive experience from which to build in the future.
Ms. Johns recently retired from the California Community College system after 20 years of service as faculty, dean, and C-level administrator. After serving at Diablo Valley College, Berkeley City College, and the Chabot-Las Positas District, she was selected by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office to serve as regional coordinator for the 26 Bay Area colleges during implementation of Guided Pathways strategies for student success.
Krista Johns took a hiatus from college administration to serve as Vice President at WASC- Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. She led the Commission’s process of updating the standards of accreditation, including the introduction of standards regarding student learning outcomes, distance education, and credit for prior learning, among others. Her role as a mentor to new and prospective college presidents- and her skilled advisement to experienced leaders during times of difficulty- began at WASC-ACCJC and has continued since that time.
Prior to moving into the community college system, Ms. Johns was a scholar and thought leader in judicial education, serving at the University of Mississippi as chief instructional officer for the state court system and at the University of Nevada-Reno where she was founding director of the Institute for Excellence in Judicial Education. At the National Center for State Courts and the California Administrative Office of the Courts, she helped to define curriculum-based instruction, learner equity and success focus, and outcomes assessment as essential practices in legal and court education.
Krista Johns holds a JD from Illinois Institute of Technology-Chicago Kent College of Law, and a BA degree in Political Science from University of Wisconsin-Parkside. She also completed a fellowship with the California Community College Leadership Development Institute at Claremont Graduate University. She is licensed to practice law in Illinois, Mississippi, and California.
