Sheila Johnson

Sheila Johnson
Johnson in 2008
Born
Sheila Crump

(1949-01-25) January 25, 1949
McKeesport, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (BA)
Occupations
  • Entrepreneur
  • philanthropist
Years active1979–present
Known forCo-founding BET
TitleVice chairwoman, Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1969; div. 2002)​
William Newman
​
​
(m. 2005; died 2026)​
Children2

Sheila Crump Johnson (born January 25, 1949) is an American businesswoman, who co-founded BET and is the CEO of Salamander Hotels and Resorts.[1] She was the first Black female billionaire.[2]

Johnson is a vice chairman and partner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, a professional sports holding company which manages the Washington Capitals (NHL), the Washington Wizards (NBA), and the Washington Mystics (WNBA). Johnson is CEO of Salamander Hospitality, a company she founded in 2005. Salamander's portfolio includes: Reunion Resort in Reunion, Florida, The Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club, a 900-acre (3.6 km2), 72 hole PGA tour golf course in Palm Harbor, FL, Hotel Bennett in Charleston, South Carolina; Half Moon in Montego Bay, Jamaica; Aurora Anguilla in British West Indies; and The Salamander Resort & Spa in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Middleburg, Virginia.[3]

Early life

Sheila Johnson was born on January 25, 1949,[4] in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, the daughter of a neurosurgeon father who worked for the Veterans Administration and an accountant mother. She has a younger brother, George.[5]

She attended Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois,[6] and graduated from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Career

Johnson, along with her first husband, Robert, co-founded the cable TV channel Black Entertainment Network (BET) in 1979.[7] Viacom bought the company in 1999 for $3 billion.[8]

In 2002, she sold her BET shares and used it to invest in hotels, real estate, and horses. Johnson founded Salamander Hotels and Resorts in 2005.[8] She has a principal shareholder stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, a professional sports holding company that manages the Washington Capitals (NHL), the Washington Wizards (NBA), and the Washington Mystics (WNBA).[9]

Philanthropy

Johnson is a Global Ambassador for CARE, a humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. Her initiative called Sheila's I Am Powerful Challenge was created to support the empowerment of women in fighting poverty and it raised over $8 million in 2007.[10] She serves as chair of the Board of Governors of Parsons The New School for Design in New York and funded the opening of the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, combining classrooms, public program spaces, and galleries.[11] She sits on the boards of VH1's Save the Music Foundation,[12] Americans for the Arts,[13] the School of Education and Human Development Foundation (formerly the Curry School of Education) at the University of Virginia, and the University of Illinois Foundation. Johnson is also the Ambassador for the Healthy Site Institute, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a member of Sigma Alpha Iota music fraternity. Johnson founded the Sheila C. Johnson Center for Clinical Services at the University of Virginia.

Film

Johnson's first film, Kicking It, premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. She served as one of 237 executive producers on her second film, A Powerful Noise, which premiered at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival in New York.[14]

Personal life

From 1969 to 2002, Johnson was married to Robert L. Johnson. They have two children.

On September 24, 2005, she married Arlington County Circuit Court Chief Judge William T. Newman, who had presided over her 2002 divorce. The couple first met three decades earlier when they acted in a play together.[15] Newman died on February 10, 2026.[16]

In 2007, Johnson was honored as one of the Library of Virginia's "Virginia Women in History" for her career and her contributions to society.[17]

In April 2021, Johnson, along with Washington Commanders team president, Jason Wright, formed the Inclusive Growth Strategy Council within the Greater Washington Partnership.[18]

Awards

Recognized as an Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Medalist in 2012, Johnson was honored as an individual whose far-reaching influence has left an impact on the global community through "education, advocacy, social justice, and civil and human rights".[19]

In 2018, she received the Lincoln Medal given by Ford's Theatre Society to those who, through their body of work, accomplishments, or personal attributes, exemplify the lasting legacy and mettle of character embodied by Abraham Lincoln.[20] In 2019, The Lincoln Academy of Illinois granted Johnson the Order of Lincoln award, the highest honor bestowed by the State of Illinois.[21] That same year, the Women's Sports Foundation honored Johnson with the Billie Jean King Leadership Award.[22]

Works

  • Walk through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph. Simon & Schuster. 2024

See also

  • List of speakers at The Economic Club of Washington, D.C.

References

  1. ^ "7 things I learned from the first black female billionaire". BizWoman. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
  2. ^ Bobrow, Emily (September 15, 2023). "Sheila Johnson, the First Black Female Billionaire, Keeps Reinventing Herself". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
  3. ^ Garman, Erica (September 2008). "Spa Aims to Turn Cold Shoulder Into Warm Embrace". Washington Post.
  4. ^ "Sheila Johnson". The Biography Channel website. Retrieved May 30, 2013.
  5. ^ "Sheila Johnson". Biography.com. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
  6. ^ "Provi 1966 "Sheila Crump" (Proviso East High School, Maywood, Illinois)". Ancestry.com. Generations Network. 1966. p. 190. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  7. ^ "Sheila Johnson". Forbes. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  8. ^ a b FreshySites (September 4, 2024). "Meet Entrepreneur Sheila Johnson: A Pioneer in Media + Sports + Hospitality | Corporate Counsel Women of Color Entrepreneurs". ccwomenofcolorentrepreneurs.org. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  9. ^ "Sheila Johnson's third act". www.hotelinvestmenttoday.com. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  10. ^ careadmin (August 29, 2013). "Home". CARE. Archived from the original on November 27, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  11. ^ "Architectural Record - News, Continuing Ed, Products, Green Bldg". archrecord.construction.com. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  12. ^ VH1 "DR. SHEILA JOHNSON AND GORDON SINGER APPOINTED TO THE VH1 SAVE THE MUSIC FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS", VH1, 19 Mar 2007 press release
  13. ^ "Press Release" Archived 2008-07-23 at the Wayback Machine, Americans for the Arts
  14. ^ Terranova, Genna (April 30, 2008). "A Powerful Noise". Tribeca Film Festival. Archived from the original on March 5, 2009.
  15. ^ Johnson, Darragh (September 25, 2005). "Sheila Johnson, Marrying Very Well". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  16. ^ McCaffrey, Scott (February 11, 2026). "JUST IN: Judge William Newman, Arlington's first Black County Board member, has died". ARLnow. Retrieved February 15, 2026.
  17. ^ "Sheila Crump Johnson (1949- ), Loudoun County, Entrepreneur and Philanthropist". Virginia Women in History. Library of Virginia. 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  18. ^ Sidersky, Robyn (June 13, 2022). "Greater Washington Partnership unveils 10-year inclusivity plan". Virginia Business. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  19. ^ "Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Past Medalists « Eleanor Roosevelt Center". Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  20. ^ "Annual Gala". Fords Theatre. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  21. ^ "2019 Laureates Announced by Gov. Rauner". The Lincoln Academy of Illinois.
  22. ^ "2019 Billie Jean King Leadership Award Recipient". Women's Sports Foundation. October 17, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
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