Stacey Johnston has always been a hard worker. In high school, she played sports and earned a basketball scholarship, and later, as a single mom, she earned her teaching certificate and began a new career.
Now, as a teacher at the Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex, Johnston is proud of how far she’s come. “If you’d have told me 35 years ago that I would be doing this, I’d think you were a liar,”she said. “I thought I was just going to be a mom and stay-at-home person [without a career]. So to have been full circle and to be doing what I do now is crazy.”
Johnston graduated from Dublin High School in 1981, and although she had a scholarship, she decided to turn it down and get married instead. She worked at the Stephenville mental health clinic (now called the Pecan Valley Centers for Behavioral and Developmental Healthcare) for nearly three years, until she had her first child in 1984.
She spent the next few years staying home, and had two more children. She and her husband divorced while her children were still young, and Johnston went back to school. She knew she needed a career that could allow her to support her family, and she had long considered going into education.
“One of my coaches that I had in high school, who was also my math teacher, was always so cool and put together,” Johnston said. “She had what was my idea of the perfect job, so that’s kind of why I went towards education.”
Going back to school was not easy for Johnston. “I went back to college with three kids and still tried to be the perfect mom and all that,” she said. “I nearly drove myself crazy.”
But in 1998 she graduated with her teaching certificate, and began her new career. Her first job was in Gustine. In the early 2000s, Johnston considered switching careers and went back to Tarleton to earn her masters in business in 2004. She ended up going back into teaching, though.
For the next few years, her teaching and coaching career took Johnston all around the state. She taught in Moran, then moved to Alpine.
Along the way, Johnston learned to coach volleyball, having never played it herself. “Dublin didn’t even have it when I went to school, but I learned a lot from working in Alpine, because they were a real powerhouse in volleyball,” she said.
Her next job was in Eastland, where she started as head volleyball coach. “I was there for six years, and I pretty much started the volleyball program and their high school there,” she said. “I had quite a bit of success, and I enjoyed it. It was a great adventure.”
After Eastland, Johnston moved closer to the Metroplex, and taught in the small town of Boyd, and then in Woodson. “They had less than 100 kids from K-12 when I got there,” Johnston said. “It was a lot of work because I was the math department, and I coached both junior high and high school girls. There was a lot to it, but I was really blessed to coach with a really good guy there and we worked really well together. “
She then moved to Breckenridge and stayed there for a few years teaching and coaching. “I really loved it,” she said.
In 2018, Johnston and her now-husband decided to move closer to home. “My husband’s family’s from Comanche, and so his mom and dad have gotten a little bit older and we wanted to get closer so we could help them when they needed help,” she said.
While looking for jobs in the area, Johnston came across a posting for a teaching position at the Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex. She applied and got the job, and has been there ever since.
“It’s probably the hardest job I’ve ever had, but it’s rewarding in a different kind of way,” she said. “I feel like God sent me there.”
Johnston teaches six classes a day, mostly remotely since the pandemic. Her students are all minors who have been convicted of felonies. “We can’t even imagine some of the stuff these kids have gone through,” she said. “They’ve been trafficked, their families are deep in the gangs. It really is different. They’re still just kids.”
Johnston finds the work environment at the state school very supportive. “I’ve worked with a lot of teachers and coaches in my life, and I’ve never worked for a place where there’s so much camaraderie amongst the people I work with. It’s really kind of cool.”
She also enjoys helping the students, both in school and in life. “We try to teach more than just curriculum,” she said. “And just be there for them. Some of these kids have never had anybody listen to them.”
Johnston hopes to stay at the state school until retirement age, and then maybe go back to work somewhere else. “I do miss coaching,” she said. “Someone told me one time, it’s like coaching is in my blood. And that’s exactly right. I miss the games, the whistles, the smell of popcorn.”
Johnston and her husband Brian live near Comanche, and when she gets some free time she enjoys spending it with her family enjoying their company. She and Brian started dating when she was in college. “He was really the main father figure for my boys,” she said. “He’s amazing.”
Johnston’s three sons, Clint 39, Dane, 37, Dathan, 34, live nearby. “They’re all married and two of them have produced me some grandchildren, so life is really pretty cool,” she said. “My mom always said if she had known having grandchildren was so wonderful, she’d have skipped having kids and just gone straight to that!”
Throughout her life, she’s found inspiration in her role models in her career. “One guy that I coached with was probably one of the most amazing men I had ever worked with,” she said. “He taught morals to the kids and things that were much more important than just education.”
Johnston’s advice to Dublin graduates is to take their time when it comes to life milestones like getting married. “Make sure you’ve had the chance to go out and do things,” she said. “One regret I have is turning down my basketball scholarship to get married instead. If you have a choice between getting married or going to college, go to college. Or go out and get a job somewhere else. Be on your own first, because it puts everything else in perspective. And don’t give up on your dreams.”
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen.com.