Jason Johnson didn’t know anything about the Golden Guide Award. 

He was grabbing the mail like any other day and saw a letter from the University of Notre Dame. He isn’t an ND alum. His curiosity piqued, he opened it and read:

“Congratulations! On behalf of the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, it is an honor to present you with our Golden Guide Award for excellence in advising students in the college search and application process.”

But it was the quote that followed from a former student, his nominator, that made him smile:

“What makes Mr. Johnson truly deserving of this award is the genuine care he has for his students. He wants each of us to succeed not only during high school but also long after graduation by building lasting relationships that extend beyond the classroom.”

He knew right away who it was. Peter Vnak, a 2026 graduate of St. Anthony Village High School, a student with whom he had formed a special bond in and out of the classroom.

“What Peter wrote about me was just awesome to hear,” Johnson said. “A lot of the time you never know what students are thinking when they leave here.”

It’s fair to say Johnson’s path to teaching was unconventional. A born and raised Minnesotan, he graduated from Spring Lake Park High School in 1996 and earned his Bachelor of Science in International Business and his Master of Business Administration from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Like many with entrepreneurial aspirations, he started a company: Plaja Pets, which made toys with modular magnetic parts. He sold the company in 2008 and moved to Los Angeles with his wife, Lisa. His career in the private sector was a whirlwind, working for industries as varied as publishing, sporting goods, and even laser manufacturing for aerospace.

After moving back home to Minnesota and settling in St. Anthony, he and his wife enrolled their three children, Linnea (currently in 9th grade), Rhodes (5th), and Elin (2nd) in St. Anthony-New Brighton schools. One day, Johnson happened to be on the district website and came across a teaching opening that grabbed his attention.

“I saw a position for a business teacher and thought, ‘Huh, I’m a good fit for that job,’” he said. 

He applied on a whim and was hired as a Tier 2 teacher, teaching business, finance, and marketing classes at SAVHS. Now in his fourth year of teaching, he has attained full licensure after earning an undergraduate degree in business education from Winona State University. 

After working the daily grind of the business world for 20 years, Johnson says teaching has been the most rewarding experience of his professional journey.

“It’s been the most fulfilling job I’ve had. By far the most fulfilling,” he said.

For Peter Vnak, nominating Mr. Johnson for the Golden Guide Award was a meaningful way to acknowledge everything his former teacher had done for him.

“He has played a monumental role as a teacher, leader and mentor in helping me become the person and student I am today,” Vnak said. “I think it is important to recognize when you have really talented people who are willing to share their experiences with you, and Mr. Johnson is one of those people for me.”

Vnak always admired Mr. Johnson for bringing his real-world experiences to the classroom.

“He doesn’t just tell you what a businessperson should do from a textbook,” he said. “He had actually built his own toy company, experienced the challenges of running a business, and eventually sold it. I think it is really valuable to have someone who has actually lived those experiences teach you about them.”

He also appreciated how Mr. Johnson pushed him and believed in him, from encouraging him to become president of the Entrepreneurship Club, to giving him the confidence to take his ideas and run with them, like with his chicken coop business, Peter’s Egg-Cellent Eggs. 

It started as a hobby during the COVID-19 pandemic, after acquiring three chickens from Craigslist. “Probably not my best decision,” Vnak admitted. Yet his hobby grew into a passion as he acquired more chickens and built a chicken coop with his dad. Then his passion grew into a small enterprise, as he combined his interest in chickens with his interests in business and data.

He even produces an annual report, “State of the Chicken Coop.” The 2025 report consists of an official statement that tells the story of his flock’s 1,061 eggs produced, a pricing forecast for 2026, and charts and graphs that break down the data he collected (for example, a bar graph clearly illustrates which hen ruled the roost: Lily, with an egg-cellent yield of 206).

“I actually wrote my college application essay about my experience raising chickens and the parallels I saw between chickens and people,” he said. “I never expected chickens to become such a big part of my life.”

His college application included, as Vnak put it, “a great and heartfelt letter of recommendation” from Mr. Johnson.

The big news finally came while on a family vacation to Florida for spring break. After checking and checking his application status, there it was one night as the family gathered for dinner: a message welcoming him to Notre Dame.

“It was unbelievable!” Vnak said. “There were a lot of emotions, but more than anything, I was just incredibly proud and grateful!”

For his dad, Brian Vnak, the moment was full-circle. He and his wife, Katie (née McClanahan), graduated from SAVHS in 1999 and 1998, respectively. Brian went on to study accounting at Notre Dame, graduating with his bachelor’s degree in 2003 and master’s in 2004.

“My dad's reaction made the moment even more special,” Peter said. “Notre Dame was such an important part of his life, and he knows how special the next four years of my life will be because he experienced it himself. I know seeing his son have the opportunity to attend his alma mater, with all of its tradition, faith, and excellence, is incredibly meaningful to him.”

Now that his dream of attending Notre Dame has come true, Peter is looking forward to learning more about different areas of finance and business, perhaps even continuing to explore the intersection of agriculture and business as inspired by his chickens.

“I’m excited to see where those interests take me,” he said.

After visiting the Notre Dame campus on a family trip to see the Great Lakes this past summer, Johnson hopes to visit again during the school year to catch up with Peter and maybe attend a football game. 

In the meantime, receiving the Golden Guide Award has reassured Johnson that he made the right choice in taking a chance on teaching as a career later in life.

“I tell the students I want to be the teacher I wish I had in high school,” he said. “The whole reason I wanted to become a teacher is to make an impact in students’ lives.”

For Peter, he expects the impact Mr. Johnson has made on his life will reverberate for years to come.

“There has always been a special bond between the two of us,” he said. “We will stay in touch, which is something I am really grateful for.”