Award Honorees

Dr. Victoria Johnson '74 grew up in Deephaven and attended Minnetonka High School, graduating in 1974. Bob Sorenson, her childhood friend and award nominator, remembers her from early on as “so bright. Everyone knew she’d go places and do amazing things."

“She was interested in science from the start,” said Victoria’s mother, Shirley Eastwood Johnson. “She was dedicated to her learning and nurtured by very good teachers, who could see she was going somewhere.”

After graduating from MHS, Dr. Johnson attended St. Olaf College, where a virology class captured her imagination and set her on her path to become a research physician. She also spent time at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and the University of Colorado Health Science Center.

Dr. Johnson served on numerous prestigious boards and committees in addition to being the principal author or co-author of more than 98 peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts and 12 reviews and book chapters. As an infectious disease program director for eight years, she mentored more than 25 infectious disease fellows and taught and mentored more than 750 physicians and 100 medical students who have pursued successful careers.

Dr. Johnson passed away in October, 2023. She is remembered as a leader, researcher, mentor, teacher and deeply compassionate physician. She made a historic impact through her virology and infectious disease research and her clinical practice. Dr. Johnson was a leader for both HIV/AIDS research and for women in medicine, playing a pivotal role in integrating HIV drug resistance testing into clinical settings worldwide.

“She loved what she did. She enjoyed seeing and befriending her patients, as well as mentoring young doctors,” reflected Bruce Bodner, Dr. Johnson’s husband. “One thing she used to always tell them is to know your patients. What that really means is to spend the time and effort to prepare and review their previous history thoroughly, so that there are no shortcuts. Hard work and effort on your part is so important in everything you want to do.”