awards for arts achievement

Sheila C. Johnson, co-founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), is the CEO of Salamander Hospitality LLC and president, managing partner, and governor for the Washington Mystics WNBA team. She is an entrepreneur whose philanthropy concerns are primarily devoted to making opportunities available for children and young adults to express their creativity through the arts.

An accomplished violinist, Ms. Johnson sits on the boards of Parsons The New School for Design and Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts, and has made major gifts in support of the arts in education to Strings for Schools in Philadelphia, Urban Gateways in Chicago, and The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts for its early childhood education programs. She also established the Sheila C. Johnson Performing Arts Center at the Hill School in Middleburg, VA.

Ms. Johnson has always been committed to enhancing the lives of children, and at Black Entertainment Television one of her crowning achievements was the development of an award-wining weekly program Teen Summit, which gave teenagers a chance to speak frankly about critical issues in their lives. She is a board member of The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, the Curry School of Education Foundation at the University of Virginia, the Centers for Disease Control Foundation, the SUNY Morrisville Foundation, the University of Illinois Foundation, and the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership, among others. She is also on the board of the United States Equestrian Team Foundation and serves as the president of the Washington International Horse Show.

As an advocate for the protection of children, Ms. Johnson has spoken around the world on behalf of the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and currently serves as international ambassador for CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere, Inc.). Her contributions in this arena have helped introduce tougher sanctions and legislation to protect children globally.