Ashleigh Johnson '12 makes a triumphant return to Ransom Everglades

Ashleigh Johnson ’12 received a standing ovation and roaring cheers on both campuses as she returned to Ransom Everglades for the first time since winning an Olympic gold medal. Johnson addressed students during assemblies at the Upper and Middle Schools, answering their questions, posing for photos, displaying her medal and enjoying a triumphant reception.
She gamely attempted taking selfies with the entire Upper School student body from the stage of the Lewis Family Auditorium, and later posed with more than 400 Middle Schoolers on the floor of the gymnasium. Reporters from ABC 10, Fox 7, NBC 6, CBS 4 and the Miami Herald showed up to chronicle her return. See their online stories by clicking on the links.

Head of School Penny Townsend got choked up introducing Johnson, then explained to the assembled media why.

“When you get to introduce a former student who has done what she’s done and who actually embodies all we hope for in our students, you get emotional,” the Miami Herald wrote. “She’s an amazing young woman. … What I hope the students took away is that the gold medal is amazing, but it’s the other things … honoring her mother, the balance she brought to her life, being a hard-working student.

“Our mission is about giving more to the world than you take from it, and I think she’s done exactly that.”

During question-and-answer sessions with Interim Athletic Director Andy De Angulo on the Upper Campus and Head of the Middle School Rachel Rodriguez on the Middle School campus, Johnson also shared details of her experiences at the Olympics and encouraged RE’s student body to dream big.
 
“At Ransom, I learned to work hard,” Johnson told the Middle Schoolers. “I learned to appreciate the opportunities that I had and to make the most of them, and I learned to reach out to the people around me if I needed help or someone to lean on.

“That’s something I really wanted you guys to take away from your experience here – don’t be afraid to reach out to your friends or your teachers or your coaches or your family. If you need help, ask for it, and you’re going to make it as far as you want to go.”

Johnson attended with her sister Chelsea Johnson ’14, mother Donna Johnson and two aunts. She posted this on her Instagram account after:
 
Thank you @ransomevergladesschool for playing such a huge role in the person that I am today and for letting me be a celebrity for a few hours 😂😂#selfiesonselfies
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Middle School

2045 South Bayshore Drive, Coconut Grove, FL 33133
Phone: 305 250 6850

Upper School

3575 Main Highway, Coconut Grove, FL 33133
Phone: 305 460 8800
Founded in 1903, Ransom Everglades School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for grades 6 - 12 located on two campuses in Coconut Grove, Florida. Ransom Everglades School produces graduates who "believe that they are in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it." The school provides rigorous college preparation that promotes the student's sense of identity, community, personal integrity and values for a productive and satisfying life, and prepares the student to lead and to contribute to society.