Annie Johnson holds the distinction of being the first woman principal of the State Normal School. At the time, the Board of Visitors ran the school and was made up entirely of men, and her predecessors had been men. According to the Massachusetts Board of Education report from 1867, which included remarks made by Governor Bullock at her inauguration, the Board’s decision to appoint a woman was reached after much deliberation. Governor Bullock in particular stressed the merits of women in these positions of power, given that the school specialized in educating female teachers. The Board had decided that it made good sense to ‘experiment’ and place a woman in the leadership role: “We need not doubt that the experiment, if it can be called an experiment, will result in complete and triumphant success.” Bullock’s closing remarks included: “And thus we have it before us, as a great fact of social progress and public administration, that the best instructors, they who best develop the faculties which afterwards ostensibly prevail and rule in our affairs, are women, whom we have so long acknowledged rather as subjects for our protection than as moving powers of control and government.” Massachusetts was surely on the forefront of progressive social reform, for at the time, even what seems like a temporary experiment was a huge step forward for gender equality and women in the workplace. Johnson certainly had the qualifications. Educated at Bowdoin College and a full teacher since the age of fifteen, she had experience teaching every level from primary school through high school. She assumed the administration position at the State Normal School in 1866. Johnson excelled in her position. During her term, she oversaw the remodeling of the school, the implementation of a more advanced course of study, and the purchase of additional land for the construction of the first living quarters for students and faculty. Johnson also revived the model school program at the Normal School, despite ridicule from her colleagues. The program was first implemented by Cyrus Peirce, first principal of the Normal School, but discontinued in 1854 when the school moved to its present-day Framingham location. It was felt by many educators that student teachers could learn just as much by having their classmates pretend to be students in a mock classroom, instead of practicing on actual children. Annie Johnson disagreed, and in 1870 a model classroom was constructed in Normal Hall, so that teaching students could practice lesson plans upon pupils from the surrounding community. The program was successful, and Johnson’s successor, Ellen Hyde, continued and expanded the program during her term. Practice teaching is still required to this day, and has been an essential tool in training future educators at Framingham State. Upon her resignation in 1875, Johnson had proven any skeptics wrong and led the school into a new stage of excellence.