A client account manager at Jacobs in Los Angeles, CA, Judy Johnson was an early champion of the firm’s Global Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality.

“Judy embodies the values of Jacobs—to do things right, to challenge the accepted, to aim higher, and to live inclusion,” wrote a Jacobs exec in her nomination for a Women of Color STEM Corporate Responsibility Award.

Johnson prioritizes connecting Jacobs with the community in myriad ways. She organized a DIY Girls’ Dream Big Engineering Movie Event and discussion for more than 100 elementary and high school female students to foster their interest in science, technology, engineering, math, and the arts.

She advocated early for Jacobs to become a benefactor to the SEED-LA boarding school, a joint effort of Los Angeles Metro and the County of Los Angeles.

The school will provide a 24-hour STEAM-based education for 400 students in grades 9 to 12. Once open, Johnson will lead the firm’s engagement in education and learning opportunities for the students. The development will also provide 180 affordable housing units, community-serving retail, a transportation-focused job training center, and a mobility hub.

"My colleagues teased me, that I go big or go home," Judy said during the 2022 Women of Color STEM gala where she accepted her award. "So when Jacob's launched its action plan for advancing justice and equality, we asked for one million dollars to support the seed School of Los Angeles County, a STEM boarding school built on a strip mall that burned down during the 1992 Los Angeles uprising. I am proud of our Jacobs culture where we're living inclusion and contributing to the structural change in our broader society. What inspires me most is being empowered to put our values into action," she said.