Chief Community Health and Social Impact Officer
Ian Lee Brown serves as Chief Community Health and Social Impact Officer for Duke University Health System, where he leads enterprise-wide strategies for community health, social impact, and cross-sector partnerships that advance care that is accessible, responsive, and grounded in community needs, population health, and whole-person care.
With more than two decades of leadership experience, Ian has held senior roles across academic medical centers, health systems, senior living, affordable housing, finance, and social-impact organizations. His career is grounded in early work in community health and development in the Washington, DC region, where he led community and political affairs, volunteer services, pastoral care, and nationally recognized violence-prevention initiatives.
At Duke Health, Ian has previously served as Chief Employee Experience Officer and Interim Associate Vice President for Community Health, overseeing employee experience, employee listening, change management, organizational culture, belonging, workforce well-being, professionalism, and workplace violence prevention, as well as community health assessments, community benefit portfolios, and multi-sector coalitions.
Ian holds a Doctor of Medical and Health Humanities and a Contemplative Professional Graduate Certificate from Drew University; a Master of Science in Applied Behavioral Science and Organizational Development and a Graduate Certificate in Senior Living and Healthcare from the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School; a Master of Liberal Studies from Lake Forest College; and completed his undergraduate education at Brooklyn College. He has additional training in Clinical Pastoral Education at St. Luke’s–Roosevelt Hospital in New York City. In recognition of his leadership and impact, Ian was named an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) Influential Leader in 2022 and a Distinguished Johns Hopkins University alumnus in 2025.
An immigrant from Jamaica, Ian brings a community-rooted, interdisciplinary approach to advancing equitable health outcomes.