Bio

Mark Johnson - Sports Information Director at Governors State University

Hired in November, 2022 - Now into his 4th M/W Basketball Season With the Jaguars in 2025-26 - his 44th Year Working in Athletics. 

University Park, IL – Governors State University Athletic Director Tony Bates announced the hiring of Mark Johnson to the Sports Information Director position.

Johnson, a 40-year NCAA, NAIA, NJCAA,& Nevada AAU sports athletics administrator, is a native of Marquette, Michigan and graduate of Northern Michigan University in the Upper Peninsula. He has served NCAA athletic departments as Assistant SID at the University of Minnesota in the Big Ten Conference, SID at Indiana State University in the Missouri Valley Conference, SID at Marquette University in the Big East Conference, SID at Lamar University in Texas of the Sun Belt Conference, and Assistant Athletic Director/Sports Information Director at HBCU Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Johnson took over at GSU replacing first-ever SID Daniel Jankowski who joined the Strategic Athletic Communications staff with the Big Ten Conference earlier in the Fall of 2022 after six years with the Jaguars.

Mark was an SID at NJCAA member College of Southern Nevada in Henderson, NV-Las Vegas suburb (2013-2015) and worked three years at NCAA Division II Minnesota State University-Mankato. Johnson earned a Master’s Degree in Sports Administration from Strayer University, Washington, D.C. campus (2015) and earned his PhD, Doctor of Education, Sports Management from Northcentral University, National University, California campus (January, 2025).

Johnson is very familiar to Chicago serving as Assistant Athletic Director/SID, Head Men's and Women's Tennis Coach at Northeastern Illinois University for four years (NCAA Div. 1, Mid-Continent Conference athletics, NEIU dropped athletics in 1997). He was also Sports Information Director at Chicago State University (Mid-Continent Conference) in 2002-2003.

From 2015-2022, Johnson was working community, and athletics fundraising events in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula hospitals and health centers for Books Are Fun/Collective Goods, a Colorado based company directing book fairs in 17 U.P. county medical hospital facilities. With covid in 2020-2022, access to schools, hospitals, health centers was eliminated in the Upper Peninsula and around the USA forcing to cancel long-time books fairs and community events on campus sites.

Mark is enjoying his years with the GovState SID position. “This is an exciting time to be a part of Governors State University and Jaguar athletics. The five-year plan adding more men's and women's sports to GSU Athletics is underway. It is great to be a Jaguar and back in Chicagoland. The past two record-setting years for our Jaguars has been exciting.”

Johnson’s sports information and marketing departments have earned 17 national CoSIDA writing, designing, excellence awards through the years. And he has served in NCAA tournament and conference tournament director roles at both Marquette University (NCAA first and second round men’s basketball championship) and the University of Minnesota (Big Ten Conference championships).

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