The Rev. Jan Brown is the Founder and Executive Director of SpiritWorks Foundation Center for the Soul. An ordained Deacon in the Episcopal Church, she served as Archdeacon of the Diocese of Southern Virginia and is currently a postulant for holy orders in the priesthood. Jan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the College of William and Mary and is certified as a Peer Recovery Support Specialist and Recovery Coach Professional. She earned her Master of Science in Addiction Studies through the International Programme at King’s College London, the University of Adelaide, and Virginia Commonwealth University.
A woman in long-term recovery, Jan has served as Board Chair of Faces and Voices of Recovery and as an Advisory Council Member for Sesame Street in Communities: Parental Addiction. She has contributed as a Recovery Consultant on the SAMHSA States Targeted Response (STR) Technical Assistance Center Team and as a Consensus Panel Member for the SAMHSA Treatment Improvement Protocol on Peer Recovery Support Specialists. She also serves as a consultant for the Opioid Response Network (ORN) and co-chairs the Addictions and Recovery Commission for the Diocese of Southern Virginia.
Jan was featured as a subject-matter expert in the documentary Together: Family Recovery, which follows families navigating a loved one's addiction. Through SpiritWorks Foundation, she leads Camp SpiritSong for children and youth affected by parental addiction, the Youth Rising Strong program for at-risk families, and the Moms on a Mission 2 Recover (MOMs) initiative. She serves on the boards of the Center for Motivation and Change Foundation for Change and the Williamsburg Community Foundation. In 2014, she was appointed by the Governor of Virginia to the Governor's Task Force on Prescription Drug and Heroin Abuse, and in 2015, by the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church to the Commission on Impairment and Leadership.
Jan remains deeply engaged in appointed roles within The Episcopal Church and the broader addiction and recovery community. Her contributions were recognized with induction into the Hall of Fame, Class of 2022, at the Museum of African American Addictions, Treatment, and Recovery.