The Alex F. Johnson Academic Conference Room will be a lasting recognition of the MGH Institute’s first provost who has played a major role in the school’s success and accomplishments over the past 14 years.

The room that will now bear Alex Johnson’s name is located just a few steps from where he began his MGH Institute tenure 14 years ago.

Officially named on June 14 in recognition of the MGH Institute’s first provost and academic vice president, the Alex F. Johnson Academic Conference Room is a fitting honor to the person who was a driving force in bringing the school to its current position as a vibrant and growing health professions graduate school whose influence continues to increase within the Mass General Brigham system and throughout the country.

“Some of you will remember my office was right next to this room,” Dr. Johnson told the audience of about 30 academic and administration leaders who gathered to pay tribute to his impact. “It was where the Board of Trustees met. This room has special memories for me.”

While he spent just a few minutes humbly deflecting praise and thanking all those with whom he has worked – “No one really prepares you on what to say on a day like this. It is so nice to have this acknowledgement and this recognition” – it was President Paula Milone-Nuzzo who articulated what Johnson has meant to the IHP as he prepares to retire at the end of this month.

“When you come to an organization that is small and unformed and has so much potential, you get a chance to put your mark in a lot of different places and that is what Alex has done over the years,” Dr. Milone-Nuzzo said. “I can’t imagine another provost will ever have the opportunity to make the kind of change and to make the kind of impact that Alex has made during his time here at the IHP.”

When Johnson arrived in 2008, the Institute had just over 800 students in four academic programs and was at a crossroads as to its future. But after arriving from Wayne State University, where he was chair of its Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, the speech-language pathologist developed a series of initiatives that has led over the years to establishing its schools (Nursing, Health & Rehabilitation Sciences), adding several new masters and doctoral programs, doubling enrollment, and overseeing a dramatic expansion in research dollars - from a $750,000 portfolio in 2011 to almost $30 million in grants today.

“He has made us a stellar academic institution with all of your help – I recognize he never wants to take credit – but without a leader who can point you in the right direction and give you the support and guidance and hold your hand through the tough times, it doesn’t happen,” the president said. “That’s what Alex has provided for this organization – and I know that because I see it every single day.”

Wielding a pair of gold scissors engraved with the MGH Institute name, the pair cut a ceremonial ribbon and unveiled a large portrait of Johnson standing in front of a conference table, confidently looking out over the room that faculty and staff will continue to use, as Milone-Nuzzo noted, “as a source of wonderful academic conversations.”

Looking over his shoulder at the painting, a sly grin on his face, he remarked to great laughter, “It’s like one of those Harry Potter pictures where the eyes follow you.”

While those eyes won’t actually move, his legacy will forever be viewed as an indelible imprint on the school and its history.