If there’s one thing to be said about Prague senior Harley Johnson, it’s that she likes to be involved.
Not only does she run track and cross-country, but she’s also the treasurer of her school’s National Honor Society chapter, in mock trial, captain of the cheer team, in FFA, the chapter president of Business Professionals of America (BPA) and the Oklahoma State vice-president of BPA. She said she knew from her freshman year that she wanted to join a bunch of groups.
“I’m not a person who likes to say no. I like to say yes to everything, because I’m a firm believer that you never know what could happen just by saying yes to every opportunity you get,” she said. “I like being involved. I like being kept busy by those things. I like being a leader and working with other people.”
Leading is one of the things she loves most about her many opportunities. They give her chances to work with teams and other people. Specifically with holding a state office in BPA, she’s spoken at the fall leadership conference, and will have another chance to be involved in the spring state leadership conference.
“Being the state vice president has probably been the coolest thing that I’ve got to do just because I get to interact with all of Oklahoma and travel to different chapters,” she said.
It was a long road to get to vice president. Harley said it started with an extensive application process and then she went through a screening day. Once she passed that, she had three hours to campaign at the state leadership conference through a booth and a speech, hoping to convince enough of the participants present to vote for her. Which they did.
At first, she wasn’t even sure if she could do it, but the former BPA advisor at Prague, Ms. Greenlee, encouraged her to keep at it.
“She really inspired me to just say yes, because you never know what could happen and she was right,” she said.
According to Susan McLaughlin, the current BPA advisor at Prague, Harley stands out because she works hard and leads by example.
“She is reliable, motivated, and approachable, and she balances her responsibilities effectively. Her positive attitude and strong work ethic inspire others to stay engaged and strive for excellence,” she said. “As a BPA offi cer, she consistently demonstrates responsibility and dedication to the organization. She takes initiative, works well with others, and is always willing to support her peers, making her a strong and dependable leader.”
Even though Harley said she loves being so involved, it can get overwhelming. There’s a lot of time management involved and it can get hard to keep up with track meets, cheer, school work, and everything. However, she is determined not to fall behind.
“I feel like my biggest accomplishment is just managing all of my activities as well as sports even if some of them don’t go the way I want them to or I don’t place as well as I want. I think it’s an accomplishment being involved in all of that and managing things,” she said.
Learning to juggle everything doesn’t seem to have affected her performance in cross-country and track, as she’s placed at the state level in both. Harley admitted that when she first started running in sixth grade, she wasn’t sure she’d continue after she couldn’t make it half a mile. But she stuck with it, and the work has paid off.
She loves training on her own, but she also loves the team aspect -- where they’re all striving for one goal together. Harley is hoping to continue running cross-country and track at university (and has already received a few offers), where she plans to become a physician’s assistant and work in sports medicine. Her sports background pushed her in that direction.
“All throughout my years of high school, I’ve suffered many injuries, so I’ve been in many sports medicine clinics, and it really was those doctors that were there that were uplifting,” she said. “I want to make sure every athlete feels seen and heard because I know what it feels like to be in their shoes, and I’ve always loved medicine. I think healthcare professionals are awesome.”
Being involved extends beyond school. Harley teaches the pre-K kids at her church once a month and enjoys being able to serve there. However, even with all her activities and sports, she said she hopes people understand that she’s more than that.
“There’s a part of me that just loves people and loves doing things other than all the activities. I work super hard for all the things that I do, like sports and organizations, but that’s not all there is to me,” she said. “I wouldn’t be anywhere without Jesus.”
Editor’s Note: This is the 10th in the Senior Spotlight series that will feature graduating seniors from all of the high schools in The Lincoln County News’ coverage area.