A native of Texas, Brown joined the Foreign Service in 1980. Her earlier overseas postings included Indonesia, France, Liberia, Kenya, Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire. 

 

She has served as deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassies in Asmara, Eritrea and, from 2006 to 2009, in Accra, Ghana. She also served in Ghana as chargé d’affaires. In a cable released by WikiLeaks, she criticized the Ghanaian government’s anti-drug efforts, implying that it concentrated on small-time dealers while lacking “the political will to go after the barons.”

 

In 2009, Brown became office director for southern African affairs in the Bureau of African Affairs at the State Department. She held this post until receiving her ambassador assignment.

 

Brown has five children.

 

Official Biography (State Department)