Kenneth Oscar Johnson

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NAPLES — The man behind Hodges University’s School of Business has died.

Kenneth Oscar Johnson, a chemical engineer, petroleum industry executive and venture capitalist, died Wednesday. He was 88.

Johnson, the namesake of the Kenneth Oscar Johnson School of Business at Hodges University and a founding director of the Hodges University Foundation Board, had been instrumental to the university for more than five years.

“It’s a tragic loss for all of us at Hodges University. He was a friend, a colleague and a mentor and he was so actively involved in offering better opportunities in the business arena,” university president Terry McMahan said. “He will be sorely missed.”

Johnson, a part-time resident of Naples, never missed a university foundation board meeting and was in Naples for a meeting Tuesday.

Through the years, the university has benefited from Johnson’s generosity.

In 2006, Hodges University honored Johnson’s legacy of professional excellence, ingenuity and generous support of the school’s educational mission by naming its School of Business after the entrepreneur.

After earning a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering at the University of Minnesota, Johnson, a Minnesota native, started his career with ESSO, today known as Exxon Mobil, in 1942.

He immediately worked to develop new high-octane fuels to power America’s fleet of fighter planes which emerged during World War II.

Apart from having several U.S. patents to his credit, Johnson’s 32-year career culminated with his rise to manager of wholesale sales for Exxon.

In 1974, he became CEO of Florida-based Belcher Oil, where company earnings annually doubled under his leadership.

Three years later, he negotiated the sale of Belcher to Coastal Corp., where in addition to maintaining executive responsibilities, he served as a member of the parent board of directors.

Johnson also has served on the following boards of directors: Southeast Bank, New World Symphony, Florida State Chamber of Commerce and Citizens Board of the University of Miami.

Beyond his endowment, the university named the computer rooms to honor his deceased wife of 58 years, Margery Johnson.

Johnson was a part-time resident of Naples, Durango, Colo., and Houston, Texas, where his son, Eric, daughter-in-law, Robin, and two grandchildren also live.