Johnna Crossland's role as a mental health educator began in 2018. She began her educational career at a local community college teaching a course in Mental Health and received the distinguished award of "Instructor of the Year" in 2020. She continued teaching Mental Health courses when she came to TTUHSC SON in 2020. Her service to TTUHSC School of Nursing evolved organically to include the role of Student Wellness Liaison for the Odessa Campus.

In this capacity, Johnna ensures she is following up with students when they are overwhelmed, stressed, or have suffered negative life events (such as the death of a family member, divorce, or financial instabilities). Johnna ensures the students understand that "faculty and staff are invested in their success as a future nurse, but also in them as a person." In the last two years (2022-2023), Johnna has received the Outstanding Faculty Award from the Student Governance. She strives to provide compassion and empathy to student nurses; she truly cares about their well-being and mental health... and they know this. Johnna is motivated to help others with the knowledge that she would not be a registered nurse if others had not invested in her well-being; she is "determined to do the same for the upcoming generations of nurses."

As a coworker, Johnna is selfless in offering to help other faculty members when needed. When her campus was successful on an exam, she contacted other campus faculty to see if she could assist with the remediation of their students. She has also offered to assist other faculty with exam building and assignments. She is a calming and kind person who displays caring and compassion in her communication and actions.