Biography

Johnny Allem
President, Johnson Institute

Johnny Allem got his political training working for Florida politicians, including integrationist Gov. Leroy Collins, before migrating to Washington in the 1970s to become a political consultant and open up a quick-print business. He met Marion Barry while working in Walter Fauntroy's 1971 campaign for Congress. A recovering alcoholic, Allem worked in Barry's successful 1994 mayoral campaign and then became the mayor's communications director. He was moved over to the Department of Human Services in mid-1996 after Cora Masters Barry and others complained about the beating Barry was getting in the media. He worked with the Commission on Mental Health and in February 2002 became president of the Johnson Institute, a D.C.- and Minnesota-based private foundation aiding in recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs. Allem, who earned a master's degree in communications from American University, is a founder of the Columbia Recovery Center.