Katherine Johnson

Dean, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies.

Katherine Johnson has extensive academic leadership experience in Australia and the UK, including as Executive Dean, Head of Department, Research Centre Director and Associate Dean, Research and Innovation. She is motivated by a commitment to equity and social justice, and delivering transformative student experiences, maximising research impact, and promoting a culture where staff and students flourish.

Her academic background is in interdisciplinary social sciences, particularly the intersection of community psychology, psychosocial and sexuality studies. She is a leading researcher in LGBTQ+ suicide prevention, transgender health, and early mental health interventions for LGBTQ+ youth, with international collaborations in the UK, Europe, and Mexico that focus on transforming policy, practice and lives.

She has held Visiting Fellowships in Gender and Cultural Studies, University of Sydney, Australia (2007), in social psychology and psychosocial interventions at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (2009-2012), in participatory action research and LGBT health inequalities at the Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, Brazil (2016), in social sciences at the Universidad de Colima, Mexico (2016), and at the Centre for Transforming Sexuality and Gender, University of Brighton, UK (2018-2022). She is a Chartered Psychologist and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society.

Industry Experience:
Extensive experience working in research, policy and governance with community-based LGBTQ+ organisations, mental health and youth organisations, including as a trustee.