Kenneth Albert Johnson

Kenneth Johnson, 82, of Greeley, CO passed away peacefully at home on March 23, 2017. He was born in Beggs, OK to Burnis and Irma Jean Johnson. Growing up he lived in Berkeley, CA, Kansas City, MO and St. Paul, MN. Kenneth served as a paperboy in all these places and he always played basketball which he loved. Kenneth graduated high school in Kansas City and received a bachelors and master’s degree from Interamerican University in Puerto Rico. He earned a doctorate degree from Washington State University in Pullman, WA in 1974. While a Ph.D. student he met, and married his wife Karen in 1969. During the time he worked on his degree and subsequent to receiving it, he taught at the University of Idaho in Moscow, ID where he received tenure. Later he served as a professor at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, also receiving tenure there. He loved the activity of social research and published over 50 scholarly papers, many with his partner and wife Karen Jennison. He was expert at using national data sets such as the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth collected periodically by the U.S. Commerce Department, and international data sets available for downloading from Germany. Integral to social research, publishing and presenting papers, he was a member of the American Sociological Association, American Public Health Association, Western Social Science Association, Southwest Sociological Association, Pacific Sociological Society, Society for the Study of Social Problems, International Sociological Association, and International Society for the Study of Religion. Later in life he was also a sports fan of both football and basketball. After his retirement, he and Karen traveled 2-3 months each year to every continent including Antarctica, and to most countries of the world. He also endowed a graduate travel scholarship to his alma mater, Washington State University. Kenneth is survived by his wife, Karen; three sisters, Carolyn and Melissa of Davis, CA, and Mary of Pueblo, CO; brother, Burnis of Puerto Rico; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. A graveside service will be at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 30, 2017 at Linn Grove Cemetery. To leave condolences with Kenneth’s family visit adamsoncares.com