- Impact Report Introduction
- Letter from Dean Mason
- Facts and figures
- Preparing nurses. Statewide impact.
- Employee spotlights
- Community impact
- Healthy people + healthy pets
- Giving that changes lives
- A Lasting WIN & Smart Giving From Your IRA
- Partnerships that transform care
- WSU nursing students gain global health perspective in Zambia
- First-generation student spotlight: Called to care
- Alumni spotlights
- Building confidence through practice
- Empowered Coug nurses
- Lighting up the sky for National Nurses Week in 2026
A Legacy with Heart: the Impact of the Karen Johnson Doke Memorial Scholarship
For Glenn and Kathy Johnson, supporting the next generation of Coug Nurses is deeply personal. With deep ties to Washington State University (WSU)Glenn as a Murrow College of Communication professor emeritus and longtime “Voice of the Cougs,” and Kathy as a former WSU staff member—they have dedicated much of their lives to the WSU community.
After their daughter Karen graduated from the WSU College of Nursing (then ICNE) in 1996, she began her nursing career at Evergreen Community Health Care Center in Kirkland, WA working in the Cardiac Rehabilitation department. Later that year, Karen and her husband, Jeff Doke, tragically passed away in a car accident. In her memory, the Johnsons established an endowed scholarship to honor her life and her commitment to caring for others.
As Kathy shares,
“Karen’s nursing career was just beginning, but through this scholarship, her commitment to helping others continues in every student it supports.”
Kathy Johnson
For nearly 30 years, the Karen Johnson Doke Memorial Scholarship has supported College of Nursing students, with more than 35 recipients benefiting from its impact. Glenn and Kathy take great pride in these students and hope each recipient feels both supported and inspired.
That impact is perhaps best reflected in the words of alumna and scholarship recipient Katherine Reyna (Salazar-Noratto), BSN ’15, now a cardiac nurse at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue:
“Having the Karen Doke Johnson Memorial Scholarship during my time as a nursing student allowed me to concentrate on my studies, spend time volunteering in my community, and shape the nurse that I am today. It has been 10 years since I graduated nursing school, and I currently practice cardiac nursing… I am lucky to be able to do what I love and thank you for your support to help me get here.”
Katherine Reyna (Salazar-Noratto), BSN ’15.
Her story exemplifies the Johnsons’ belief that compassionate, well-prepared nurses are essential to strong communities, and that financial support can make all the difference in helping students persist and succeed.
Their story was featured during CougsGive 2026, offering a moving look at the generosity behind their support. Through their philanthropy, Glenn and Kathy are not only honoring Karen, they are helping shape a community of Coug Nurses who will carry her legacy forward.