Joel K. Johnson is President and CEO of TASC, Inc. (Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities), a nonprofit organization headquartered in Illinois. Committed to building a healthier, safer, and more just society, TASC combines direct service experience, public policy and systems expertise, and innovative thought-leadership to help individuals, families, and communities dealing with trauma, substance use and mental health disorders, and the economic and environmental hardships which often accompany them. 

TASC specializes in solutions at the intersection of health and justice; works primarily with individuals involved in criminal justice, corrections, and youth and family service systems; reaches nearly 30,000 people annually through its direct services; and offers public policy, training, and consulting services across the U.S. and internationally. 

From the front lines of clinical care to nonprofit executive leadership, Mr. Johnson has previously served as executive vice president of Friend Health (FH), a federally qualified health center, and concurrently as president of Human Resources Development Institute (HRDI), a large behavioral health service provider and subsidiary of FH. He was also chief operating officer of SOS Children’s Villages Illinois, a boutique foster care/child enrichment organization focusing on keeping sibling groups intact while in the foster care system; Midwest region director for the Child Welfare League of America; assistant child welfare director for Chicago Commons; outpatient therapist for the Drug Intervention Service Center (D.I.S.C.) Village of Tallahassee, Florida; and health educator for the Chicago Department of Health School-Based Initiative.

As TASC CEO, Mr. Johnson leads organizational strategy, service operations, and the TTA (training and technical assistance) and consulting offered through TASC’s Center for Health and Justice (CHJ). Under his leadership, TASC brings care coordination and specialized case management to individuals navigating complex and confusing services and systems, fills critical service gaps, and improves results for systems and community service providers. A nationally respected expert in behavioral health, Mr. Johnson is a member of the board of directors of the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP). He has been appointed to key state and local boards and bodies including: the Illinois Remediation Fund Advisory Board, which guides the prioritization and equitable allocation of resources and abatement programming connected to opioid manufacturer settlement money; the Cook County Equity Fund Taskforce, which advises the county board president's administration on strategic investments to address historical disparities and disinvestment in Black and Latinx communities; and the City of Chicago Board of Health, a nine-member body that advises the mayor on public health matters.

Mr. Johnson is a member of The Economic Club of Chicago, and a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., serving on several local, regional, and national committees. A native of Chicago, he earned the Chicago Defender’s Men of Excellence award in 2014. Mr. Johnson is a graduate of Florida A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in business administration and Master of Education in counseling.