Lauren Brown attended McMinn County High School in her hometown of Athens. She then went on to Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina where she was a member and chapter President of Kappa Delta sorority and the recipient of sever honors and awards. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in English Writing, summa cum laude from Queens, Lauren went on to get her Master of Arts in Literary Studies, summa cum laude, from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Currently, Lauren is the Executive Director of the Athens Area Council for the Arts, which she calls her “dream job.” She is proud of development of youth programs including revitalization of Children's Choir, development of new programs such as mini camps and Saturday Artsplorations. She has also established student-led play productions, empowering and encouraging youth to learn the technical and production aspects of community theater. Under Lauren’s leadership, the Arts Council was recognized regionally, statewide, and even nationally as a pioneer in taking arts programs digital in the early days of the pandemic with speaking engagements and panel participation with organizations like the Tennessee Arts Commission, Thrive Regional Partnership, North American Association Presenters & Agents, and Tennessee Presenters Association.

“Community," Lauren said, “would likely be the largest word in her word cloud, but the significance of its meaning is not dampened by the frequency with which I use the word.” Lauren returned to Athens to raise her daughter, Sloane, because it was her community that taught her to be part of something greater than herself and, how to commit, show up, and contribute to making life more meaningful for all those around her. Lauren is a member of Kiwanis Club, WISE – Women Inspiring Success & Excellence, All McMinn Modern Professionals, Main Street Athens, Tennessee Presenters Association, and Thriving Communities 2.0. Lauren and her family are life-long members of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where she is active in the choir and has served on Vestry.