Laura T. Johnson

Dr. Laura Johnson is the Chief Science Officer at the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD), where she co-leads the recently established Office of Agricultural Science and Research (OASR). In this role, she is working with a variety of partners across the state to address the current issues facing the food and agricultural industry using the best-available science and innovative research. Laura is a leading expert on agricultural conservation and Great Lakes water quality, having previously directed the National Center for Water Quality Research at Heidelberg University in Ohio for nearly a decade. Dr. Johnson earned her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the University of Notre Dame in 2008 and was a postdoctoral research associate at Indiana University in Bloomington from 2008-2012.