Your monthly support provides voters the knowledge they need to make confident decisions at the polls. Donate today.
Britney Johnson (Olympia School District school board District 3, Washington, candidate 2025)
From Ballotpedia
 |
Special state legislative • Appellate courts • State ballot measures • Local ballot measures • School boards • Municipal • All local elections by county • How to run for office |
 |
Do you have a photo that could go here? Click here to submit it for this profile!
Britney Johnson ran for election to the Olympia School District Board of Directors to represent District 3 in Washington. She was on the ballot in the primary on August 5, 2025.[source]
Johnson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
[1]Biography
Britney Johnson provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on July 4, 2025:
- Birth date: August 16, 1985
- Birth place: Hawarden, Iowa
- High school: West Sioux High School
- Bachelor's: Iowa State University, 2008
- Gender: Female
- Profession: Interior Designer
- Incumbent officeholder: No
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook
- Campaign Instagram
Elections
General election
General election for Olympia School District school board District 3
Renee Fullerton and Rhyan Smith are running in the general election for Olympia School District school board District 3 on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | ||
Renee Fullerton (Nonpartisan)  | ||
| Rhyan Smith (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Olympia School District school board District 3
Renee Fullerton, Britney Johnson, and Rhyan Smith ran in the primary for Olympia School District school board District 3 on August 5, 2025.
Candidate | ||
| Renee Fullerton (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Britney Johnson (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Rhyan Smith (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Election results
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
Pledges
Johnson signed the following pledges. To send us additional pledges, click here.
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Britney Johnson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Johnson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
I am Britney Johnson, a parent of two elementary kids and small business owner in Olympia. I care about what's going on in our schools and in our community and there seems to be a disconnect. As an interior designer it's my job to listen to the goal of the project, the needs and wants and deliver a design that achieves that vision with the time, skill and budget available. I see the community as my client and they are asking for small schools in walkable neighborhoods where equality, diversity and compassion are celebrated.
I know I am! We moved specifically to Olympia from Iowa 3 years ago. I researched all across the U.S. to find the ideal community for us - good public schools in safe, walkable neighborhoods with affordable housing, a focus on equality and a deep sense of community. Olympia is it and I love living here.
I see the school board veering away from this shared community vision and I know I could help. That's why I am running for Olympia school board director. Creative problem solving is my specialty. Honing a vision down to it's true purpose so we can move forward faster is what I do best. I can hear many voices and find a way forward that works fiscally and culturally. I think we can solve this budget crisis in creative ways because Olympia is not afraid to do it differently. That’s why we moved here. That's why a lot of people move here. I am proud to be alternative in my approach because that’s exactly what we need.- Transparency and clear communication. I believe every family, teacher, and student deserves clear, honest communication from their school board—no exceptions. I will ask the tough questions and demand answers, and I promise to do the same for you. If you come to me with a question, I’ll give you the best answer I can - and if I don’t know, I’ll be honest and work to find out. You deserve transparency, accountability, and a voice you can trust.
- Building Consensus within the Board and the Olympia community. As your school board candidate, I believe in finding solutions that work for everyone - students, parents, teachers, and our community. I’m committed to bringing people together, listening to different perspectives, and solving problems creatively so we can make decisions that benefit all of us. We have too many important challenges to waste time stuck in disagreement. Let’s move forward together, with confidence and purpose, for the future of our schools.
- Keeping Schools Open. Olympia as a community centers itself around small walkable neighborhoods. Schools within those neighborhoods are vital. As your candidate I would look for alternative ways to solve the budget crisis that does not involve closing community schools.
I am especially concerned with policies ensuring equitable access to quality education for all students, regardless of background or circumstance. As an interior designer, accessibility in design has always been a focus for me. I could tell you most of the ADA guidelines off of the top of my head because they matter. Being able to experience life barrier free - from the building you are in to the opportunities you are offered - that's what we can give our kids. A chance to not be held back by poverty, race, ethnicity, language, or a disability. I would strive to create inclusive and welcoming learning environments for all students.
The book 'Essentialism' by Greg McKeown sums up my philosophy about everything, including politics. If it's not a complete yes, then it's a no. If it doesn't benefit everyone or if it comes at a disservice to someone else, then it's a no.
An elected official is someone who can understand the goals of their community and represent them as best they can. A person needs to be a good listener, intelligent and committed to shared direction. Willing to work through conflict and find a way forward that works for everyone.
I am obsessed with efficiency, with problem solving and creating just the right environment. These skills are usually perfect for interior design but I think I will lend an interesting perspective to the school board. I can bring a disparate team together to accomplish beautiful things and that's exactly what we need in Olympia right now.
I believe a school board director is there to represent the community, the students and the staff. To ensure that their needs are being met while moving forward in a shared direction. To watch over the system now and ensure it can continue into the future.
The legacy of a welcoming school where kids feel safe and celebrated, where they were encouraged to find there unique path and felt prepared to take on the world.
I remember practicing my choir solo and being late to English class the morning the world trade towers were struck. As a child in rural Iowa you don't think about the outside world very much and that was such an awakening.
My first job was power washing hog confinements, I am from Iowa after all, but it was the most effective use of my time for the money I made. I ran my own business and was one of the fastest washers around from high school until I graduated college and got a 'real' job.
Essentialism by Greg McKeown, I said it before and I will say it again, being able to get really clear about what you want and then saying no to everything else is the most essential life skill there is.
2 days into college by Aimee Carty. It's my daughter's latest favorite and it's an upbeat song about all the different feelings starting college. It makes her feel hopeful and brings back so many fond memories of my college days at Iowa State (go Cyclones!). School should be fun, if should be about exploring ideas, making friends, changing your mind and changing it again because that's life. And what is school if not preparing you for life?
I believe the school board members are responsible for watching the system and ensuring the shared goals are being met while setting the district up for success in the future so they can continue to meet those goals.
District 3, the community, people and kids of Southeast Olympia.
By listening. People know what they need, what's wrong and often what could be done to fix it, they just need someone to listen and act in their best interests.
I believe we should be teaching kids how to think, not what to think. It's presenting information from all sides, understanding what happened, where the solutions came from and how they got there. Teaching is about understanding the world we are in, how we got here, how we manage it now and how we make it better in the future.
I would look over the current staffing model to ensure that our system is running as efficiently as possible while also pursuing new revenue systems like preschool and daycare.
Safety in schools comes down to being able to manage behaviors. Having sufficient staff who are trained to handle kids that need more help - mentally, physically, socially and emotionally - is what we need to create safer schools. Acting out is a cry for help and the earlier we can acknowledge and handle it appropriately, the safer our schools will be.
An ideal learning environment is a place of stability where kids feel welcomed and appropriately challenged, where they can take risks and explore new ideas knowing they are supported freedom all sides.
As a parent myself, I know it's meeting them where they are. I could knock on doors all day long but I know you are sitting at soccer practice, hanging out at the park, in the bleachers and on the road. I will meet you there. We are in the trenches together and don't have time for campaign events and endless interviews, give me your concerns and know that I will work on it for you. We all just want to know that someone cares about our kids as much as we do and I do. Each and every one of them.
When people feel heard, respected and appreciated they glow and that light attracts others. It's about cultivating the right environment - a place where staff feel seen, where their skills and development matter, their concerns are heard and addressed and then celebrate it! I believe Olympia School district is an amazing place doing more than you can imagine and it's being overshadowed by mismanagement and alleged shortcomings. It's time to switch to a new focus.
I believe we should always know where our money is going and how it's being used. If something needs to be kept secretive, you probably shouldn't be doing it.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Other survey responses
Ballotpedia identified the following surveys, interviews, and questionnaires Johnson completed for other organizations. If you are aware of a link that should be added, email us.
See also
2025 Elections
External links
Footnotes
