Ken Brown, JD, MPA, PhD, FACHE, executive vice chancellor and chief operations officer of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, is the 2016 recipient of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition Memphis Health Care Executive of the Year Award in recognition of his leadership and excellence in the health care arena.
The award was presented on Monday, January 18, during the 47th annual Rainbow/Push Coalition Memphis Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at Monumental Baptist Church, 704 S. Parkway East.
Also honored were Memphis Police Director Toney Armstrong, who received the Rev. Samuel Billy Kyles Centurion Award, and Dr. LaSimba Gray, pastor of New Sardis Baptist Church, who was the recipient of the Rainbow/PUSH Living Legacy Award. Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland gave the keynote address.
Joseph B. Kyles, president of Rainbow/PUSH Memphis, called the award winners “the big three,” representing higher education, spiritual leadership, and the safety of our city.
He said UTHSC’s Dr. Brown has made “huge and transformative changes in the landscape of health care and education” in Memphis. Kyles cited Dr. Brown’s continued efforts to help young people learn about opportunities for careers in health care and to have access to the education that will help them achieve. “His efforts to ensure the highest quality of education for our young, aspiring professionals are rarely matched,” Kyles said.
In accepting the award, Dr. Brown expressed sincere appreciation for the honor and lauded the other two recipients for all they have done for the community.