Meridian Community College: Johnson Explores 'From Handprints On Cave Walls To Posting On Social Media'

Press release from Meridian Community College:

January 27, 2022

When Anne Lacy Johnson learned she earned the honor of being Mississippi Humanities
Teacher of the Year from Meridian Community College, she was thrilled.

And she exactly knew what she wanted to say.

The Mississippi Humanities Council sponsors the Humanities Teacher of the Year Award,
recognizing the outstanding work of the humanities faculty who have made significant
advancements in the mission of the humanities in the state. As part of the award,
the honoree presents a free public lecture, and all state universities and community
colleges honor a faculty member.

Johnson, interim chair of the MCC Fine Arts division and a speech instructor, will
present “From Handprints on Cave Walls to Posting on Social Media: Seeking Validation
Through Our Personal Narrative” on Friday, Feb. 4, at 10 a.m. in the College’s McCain
Theater.

“Lacy epitomizes academic excellence and is committed to the advancement and promotion
of humanities education.  We are all looking forward to her presentation,” said Michael
Thompson, vice president for academic affairs at MCC.

“The very core of who we are and how we speak and present ourselves comes from our
personal story, our narrative through life,” Johnson said, adding, “but at the core
of it is that every one of us long to be validated for our existence.”

“We want to have meaning in our lives; we want to have something that says, ‘I was
here,” Johnson said.

And Johnson said, “it started with handprints on walls.”

Johnson noted cave drawings can be found on every continent – except Antarctica. “It’s
not unique to one tribe or people. There are places where somebody put their hand
on a wall.” That action, Johnson said, is unique because it speaks to others saying,
“I was here.”

“It developed into ‘this is what I saw,’ and then it goes into more storytelling,”
she said. “In a way, we do the same thing with social media. ‘Pay attention to me.
Validate me.’”

People's stories inspire art, literature, prose, and music because the personal narrative
is at the heart of the humanities. “It reflects on so many things that happen in our
society, too,” she said.

Johnson began working at MCC as a part-time speech instructor in 1990 and four year
later, she started teaching full time. She has also served as instructor and program
coordinator for Broadcast Technology Program.

She and her husband Philip are the parents of adult children, son Daniel, and his
wife Chelsey who live in Nashville, Tenn., and daughter Emmie who lives in Jackson
Hole, Wyo.

Johnson will be celebrated along with the other state recipients at an awards ceremony
later this spring.

This press release was produced by Meridian Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.