Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) Secretary Laura Howard announced today she has appointed Andrew Brown to serve as Commissioner for the agency’s Behavioral Health Services (BHS) Commission. 

Brown, who has more than 20 years of experience in human services program management, has served in the role of interim commissioner since October 2018 after starting his career at KDADS as the BHS Prevention Program Manager. He came to KDADS from Headquarters, Inc. in Lawrence, Kan., where he served as executive director. Brown also holds a volunteer position on the City of Lawrence Affordable Housing Advisory Board and previously held several prominent volunteer positions in the industry, including the Governor’s Behavioral Health Services Planning Council Prevention Subcommittee and the Kansas Mental Health Coalition.

“Naming Andy commissioner to lead our behavioral health services programs aligns seamlessly with this agency’s strategic vision of developing a culture of continuous improvement,” said Secretary Howard. “Since being named interim commissioner last year, he has proven time and again his commitment to finding solutions that improve the lives of some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens.”

Brown earned a Bachelor of Applied Sciences in Human Services degree from Washburn University in 2010 and a Master of Social Work, Concentration in Administration, Advocacy and Policy, from the University of Kansas in 2012.  He is a 2016 Washburn University Alumni Fellow and a 2015 Leadership Lawrence Alumni.