Lynette Johnson

Biography

Lynette (Gardin) Johnson joined the Salem College Track & Field/Cross Country staff as an assistant coach on April 1st, leading the sprinter/hurdle group. Johnson is a graduate of Appalachian State, where she was a distinguished sprinter earning numerous awards and accolades throughout her athletic career. Her impressive achievements led to her induction into the Appalachian State Hall of Fame in 2009. She served as a former board member of the Former Athletes Association at Appalachian State. In 2012, Johnson co-founded the Winston-Salem Roadrunners summer track club, serving as Athletic Director and coach for more than 10 years, during which she coached sprinters and hurdles that ranked among the top ten in the country at the Junior Olympics Championships with many earning scholarships to Division I schools. Johnson retired after 31 years in the private business sector as a director of benefits administration. She comes from a family of accomplished track and field athletes, including her husband Linell, a former sprinter and jumper at Appalachian State, and their sons who competed at the high school and collegiate levels. Her son Jordan competed at Appalachian State as a long jumper and sprinter, holding the school's indoor long jump record, while her youngest son Brandon competes at the University of Cincinnati as a sprinter and hurdler, ranking fifth in Bearcats history for the indoor 60m hurdles.