Program Director, Dementia Initiatives
California Department of Aging (CDA)
Michelle Johnston, MPH, joined the California Department of Aging (CDA) in 2022 as the Program Director for their dementia initiatives. Prior to starting at CDA, Michelle had spent over 11 years with the Alzheimer's Association, initially serving as Regional Director for the Greater Sacramento office, where she successfully grew partnerships, advocacy activities, program utilization, volunteer efforts, funding, physician outreach and diversity of audiences served. In 2017, she joined the communications team, helping to raise awareness about Alzheimer's and the programs available to support Northern Californians impacted by dementia.
Michelle has over 25 years of community health and organizational development experience. In prior positions, she worked for a nonprofit public health policy organization, managed a health promotion program at UC Davis and provided training and technical support to nonprofit organizations and community health collaboratives with the Public Health Institute. Michelle has also been a caregiver to multiple family members who faced chronic health issues, including her father (Parkinson’s disease and dementia) and her grandmother (ALS).
She earned a Master of Public Health Degree from San Diego State University, with an emphasis in Health Promotion and a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology from the University of California at Santa Barbara.