Colorado Springs, CO

Besty Brown is a co-founder of The Classical Academy (TCA), a public classically-oriented school in Colorado Springs with a mission to develop exemplary citizens. She later served as TCA’s director of character and culture. Launched in 1997 with 400 students, TCA is now the largest charter school in Colorado with over 3,800 K-12 students and is widely recognized for its academic excellence and commitment to character education.

Ms. Brown is a graduate of Wake Forest and a parent of a Wake Forest graduate. She earned an M.Ed. in counseling from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and worked in private practice where she specialized in developing character education curriculum, overseeing mentoring programs, and creating healthy learning and professional development environments grounded in a positive psychology framework. Most recently, she has mentored entrepreneurs through her roles at THRIVERS Leadership Institute and Exponential Impact, a technology startup accelerator, where she also sits on the board of directors. She is also the current vice president of the board of Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region, a Colorado-based nonprofit arts agency.