Fulfilling the Dream - Markas Johnson

There was a time that Markas Johnson never thought college would be in his future. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do with his life.

Things changed when his father died and Johnson sharpened his focus to become a role model for his family.

He got a job and eventually enrolled at the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville with plans to continue his studies after earning his degree.

In Imboden, Arkansas, where the population at the last Census was 638, Johnson said his was the only African-American family there. “It was a little different for me,” he said. “I was the only (African American) at my school, other than my siblings.”

He said when his dad married Johnson's mom they wanted to live around where he'd been raised, in nearby Pocahontas.

Johnson graduated from high school in 2021 and said for a long time he never had a clear picture of what he wanted to do when he got out of school.

“Growing up I didn't really have an idea of a career; neither of my parents gave me a good idea what that would look like. They both worked on and off jobs,” Johnson said. “My dad wasn't around very often, but one of the jobs I remember him having was a trash man.

“Mom worked at gas stations when she was younger, then at a Dollar General, where she became a manager. She eventually went to Dollar Tree and became a manager there.”

For a while, he thought he might take a similar path.

“I didn't think I would go to college because I didn't know what I wanted to do,” he said.

But his senior year, things changed when tragedy struck his family.

“I lost my dad and my uncle, and that made me focus on what I wanted to do to better myself,” Johnson said. “I see it as something that made me stronger in the end.”

With two sisters at home, Johnson admitted he felt some pressure to be the “man of the house” and took it upon himself to be a good father figure/role model to the younger one.

“I never got in trouble and always did my work,” he said. “I got all A's and B's.”

He said he made the honor roll by “self determination - me knowing what needs to be done and having a sense of responsibility to do that.”

Johnson said when it came time to choose a college, he knew he wanted to stay close to home, as he lives in Walnut Ridge and also works full time. But, he said, he also wanted to find a campus with diversity, and UACCB was just what he was looking for.

His mom ended up moving out of state, and Johnson soon found himself living on his own, which was another eye-opener, but he had a job at a local Walmart and enrolled in college.

“I had a plan (when he started classes) but that plan has definitely changed,” Johnson said. “I wanted to major in psychology so I could learn more about helping other people (with struggles in life) but I switched to business management because now I'm a manager at Walmart in Pocahontas.”

Johnson is also currently serving as president of UACCB's Multicultural Student Association.

“My first day of class I saw my advisor, Ms. Van (Taylor). I talked to her and she said I would make a good fit for it and they'd never had a male president before,” Johnson said. “It's been awesome because our main focus is to help the community. We did something for Hispanic Heritage Month and at Christmas we did a toy drive for kids in Batesville.”

Between a full-time job, school, extracurriculars and friends, Johnson said some days it is hard to find balance - particularly with his schoolwork.

“Since I'm a manager I work four 10's (four 10-hour shifts) Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. I go to school Tuesday and Thursday, and I use Wednesday as a day to get my studies and focus on myself.”

Now in his second semester at UACCB, Johnson said he hopes to obtain an associate degree in business with a focus in management, then get a bachelor's degree at a four-year institution.

“Since I'm in a supervisor position I could move up especially with a college degree,” Johnson said, adding that he would like to eventually transfer stores and move to a larger community, such as in northwest Arkansas.

“Some days, school is rough; some days, work is rough, but at the end of it I get to come home and relax. I like to sit on the couch and eat some food and spend time with my girlfriend and best friend, play some video games and have a good time,” he said.

“The right thing is not always the easiest thing. Sometimes it's the hardest thing but at the end of the day it's worth it,” he said, adding that he hopes his story will inspire someone else.

Taylor said she has been very impressed by Johnson's tenacity and work ethic. “His first semester, he had a 3.5 GPA, even with being employed full-time. I truly believe Markas can be anything he chooses to become.”

“Markas is a great kid,” Taylor said. “Martin Luther King, Jr., had a lot of great quotes, but there is one I use to describe Markas: 'If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't walk, then crawl, but by all means, keep moving.'”

“I feel like I am on the way to 'fulfilling the dream,'” Johnson said. “Sometimes I feel like I'm not doing that much but then when I look at it and see how much I am doing, it might make a difference in someone's life - that's one of the biggest parts of fulfilling the dream, his dream for sure.”

Taylor added, “If Dr. King was alive today, I think young Black men like Markas W. Johnson would make him very proud.”

By Andrea Bruner

Editor's Note: In honor of Black History Month, the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville would like to highlight some of its outstanding students and their successes. This is the second in a two-part series.