Bernett L. Johnson, Jr. Endowed Professor of Dermatology
This Professorship was established in 1983 to recognize an outstanding member of the Department of Dermatology. Its namesake, Dr. Bernett “Bernie” L. Johnson, Jr. (1932-2009), was not only an excellent physician and teacher, but also an effective champion of underrepresented groups at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Perelman School of Medicine. Dr. Johnson was well-known for his dedication to his patients and students, his amiable personality, his artistic skills, and his commitment to community service and social justice.
Dr. Johnson received his medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. In 1958, he was commissioned into the U.S. Navy Medical Corps. and served as the Chairman of the Department and Commanding Officer of the Naval Regional Medical Center in Philadelphia.
After retirement from the Navy with the rank of Captain, Dr. Johnson became a clinical professor at Penn and served as the Interim Chair of the Department of Dermatology. He went on to become Senior Medical Officer for HUP and Senior Associate Dean for the Veterans Affairs Medical Center and then for Diversity and Community Outreach.
At Penn, he brought the concerns of trainees, veterans, minorities and others to the highest levels of leadership. As a physician, he specialized in skin diseases affecting people of color while as an administrator he pressed for the equitable treatment of minorities in the selection of medical students, residents and faculty.
Throughout his career, Dr. Johnson held many leadership roles. He served on the National Board of Medical Examiners and was an editor of the classic textbook, Lever’s Histopathology of the Skin. He was active in organizations such as the American College of Physicians and the Pennsylvania Academy of Dermatology. He was recognized as an outstanding teacher, winning the University’s Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching in 1997. Dr. Johnson received the Services to the Sciences Award from the NAACP and was named Practitioner of the Year by the National Medical Association in 1993.
Dr. Johnson brought the human touch to all he did. He has been described as “a friend to everyone he met” and “the heart and soul of HUP.” Colleagues recalled it was impossible to take a quick walk with him anywhere on campus as so many former and current students, patients, and professors were eager to stop and talk with him.
Dr. Johnson was also known for his oil paintings. He took first place at an art show sponsored by the American Medical Association, and several of his portraits of faculty members can be seen on campus.
At Penn, one of Dr. Johnson’s most cherished projects was the health clinic created by Penn and Sayre Middle School. The Sayre Health Center opened in 2007 to serve West Philadelphians and to bring health and professional education opportunities to Sayre students and graduate and undergraduate students from Penn. In recognition of Dr. Johnson’s devotion to community-based medicine and to the Center, in 2009 it was renamed the Dr. Bernett L Johnson Jr. Sayre Health Center.
Current Chairholder
Susan C. Taylor, MD
Susan C. Taylor, MD is the Bernett L. Johnson, Jr. Endowed Professor of Dermatology at the Perelman School of Medicine and Director of the Skin of Color Research Fellowship and Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Department of Dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Taylor is at the forefront of scientific research, health education, and clinical care. She has performed pioneering work establishing skin of color as a sub-specialty within dermatology. Her groundbreaking work has focused on advancing clinical knowledge and addressing gaps in research and education regarding skin-of-color populations.
Dr. Taylor’s clinical and research focus includes pigmentary disorders and alopecia. Her work has concentrated on advancing clinical knowledge and addressing gaps in central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, a disorder that disproportionately affects women of color. Despite a paucity of funding for this disorder, Dr. Taylor has conducted important research that has contributed to the body of knowledge regarding this form of alopecia. Her research has appeared in high-impact dermatology journals.
As Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Department of Dermatology and as past Vice President of the American Academy of Dermatology, she has led education, policy, and research initiatives that have invigorated a national dialogue about diversity, health disparities, and skin of color-related issues.
Dr. Taylor completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania and her his medical training at Harvard University, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and Pennsylvania Hospital. She is board certified in internal medicine and dermatology.
She was the recipient of the American Academy of Dermatology’s 2022 inaugural John Kenney Jr., MD Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2022 Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching from the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania.