Karlene Brown
Position: JROTC Military Property Specialist
School: Central Services South
School District: Clarksville Montgomery County School District
City, State: Clarksville, TN
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Music that Describes Karlene
Karlene Brown was nominated by her colleague, Walleon Bobo.
Master Sergeant Brown served over 20 years in the U.S. Army. Upon retirement, she became a JROTC employee. It did not take long before everyone could see her vast talent. She attended a logistics class and went from being a student to the teacher in that class. She was quickly acknowledged as a Subject Matter Expert, having performed many assignments that required Top Secret Clearance and by-name request.
Master Sergeant Brown brought additional skills into the JROTC world. She distinguished herself by becoming a subject matter expert on college scholarships and federal grants. She is often asked to review the contracts and procurement plans of individuals sitting in positions 2 to 3 levels above her position.
Master Sergeant Brown is very active in her school district, civic organizations, and the Girls Scouts of Tennessee. She is always giving her time, resources, and influence on behalf of those who are less fortunate.
"She is the one who is always behind the scenes, pushing students to develop from followers into leaders," said Bobo.
Ms. K Brown is most deserving of this award. Not only have she serve her country with over 20 years of outstanding service. Now she is giving back to the schools in her district as a military property specialist. A true professional who works hard towards improving all cadets in her district. Ms Brown is so gifted in her field, she is summoned to the United States Army Cadet Command to help write policies on government property. An expert who can be counted on to deliver a first class product. This product is used by future Army Enlisted and Officers in the United States Army. She is a True Life Changer and good person who deserves to be rewarded.
Colonel Jonathan Robinson
Senior Army Instructor
Batesburg-Leesville High School
I am happy to support and recommend Ms Brown for ghis award. I worked with her on a team that trained other JROTC instructors across the nation in logistics. She is not only an expert in the field but freely shares her knowledge with others. She often working tirelessly to make sure students gave what they need to be successful. I am honored to have worked with her.
I've worked for United States Army Cadet Command SROTC 7th Brigade with duty at Austin Peay State University, Clarksville, TN, as the Human Resource Assistant for over 20 years. While TDY at Ft Knox, I heard a great deal about the JROTC personnel and Ms Brown's name leads the way as a subject matter expert.
Karlene Brown stands out as an exceptional Clarksville Montgomery County School System (CMCSS) employee; knowledgeable, personable and a valuable member of Clarksville, TN community.
Ms Brown is the ultimate team player always willing to assist at every echelon for the team’s victory; the perfect team member. She developed and implemented a manual excel spreadsheet to facilitate providing the most accurate data for the 7 CMCSS high schools, 3 KY high schools, and 4 NDCC high schools. When her army’s higher headquarters, United States Army Cadet Command JROTC 7th Brigade, Ft Knox, KY, personnel arrived to inspect Ms Brown, they encountered logistic preeminence. In awe of Ms Brown’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) book, the inspecting team recognized the value of her hard work and the precision of her SOP and decided to distributed her SOP book throughout the 7th Brigade JROTC as “the” reference guide for all JROTC instructors. United States Army Cadet Command JROTC Logistics and Training, Mr. James Woods, requested her assistance to review and submit changes to the JROTC Common Table Authorization (CTA) 50-900/909. The 7th Brigade staff also wanted her to write the Conference Logistics curriculum for all instructors in the brigade.
Her best attribute is her ability to listen and care for all students that cross her path. She draws from her personal experience, military experiences and her professional experience to serve as a mentor for all students attending school whenever the opportunity present itself. For example, when 7th Brigade JROTC at Ft Knox, KY, elected to pursue VEX Robotics to ignite interest for STEM classes for JROTC Cadets in the school system, Ms Brown had to quickly learn the ins and outs of Robotics, regulations governing what constitutes a winning team and logistically provide her Cadets with the correct knowledge and equipment to assist them with the best chance to win the competition. Her goal is always building our future leaders by instilling confidence in our high school students of today.
Karlene Brown accepted my invitation to speak at an event I sponsored for the community on 28 Oct 2017. That day, I had several subjects on the agenda and the subject that was most popular that day was Ms Brown’s presentation on scholarships and grants. Parents wanted to have a one on one session with her for additional scholarships and grants information. As a result, she provided additional scholarships and grants seminars at other locations. I attended two of her seminars and the outcome was always the same; more parents seeking one on one information from her. She also received the 2017-2018 Educator of the Year by Clarksville Montgomery County Education Association (CMCEA).
I am delighted to write a testimony in support of Ms. Karlene Brown. I have known Ms. Karlene Brown for approximately seven years.
She is very active in in the community. Some of the highlights of her community involvement are delineated as follows:
1. She is a member of the Buffalo Solider organization. She severed as an elected Parliamentary for two years.
2. During a four (4) year period, Ms. Brown has donated 10 sets of gifts (TVs, printers, wireless JBL and Apple headphones, fire HD tablets,
fire and Roku streaming sticks) to the Memphis JROTC.
3. Ms. Brown has provided Logistics SME for CMCSS 7 high schools, logistical support to 5 stand alone schools and 3 National Defense
Startup schools.
4. She received Clarksville-Montgomery County Education Association's “Educator of the Year" (2017-2018).
5. Ms. Brown, performed dual duties of CMCSS Property Control Officer (PCO) and JROTC Military Property Specialist (MPS) for two and
half years (2010-2013). Her responsibilities during this timeframe included maintaining CMCSS PCO assets and JROTC MPS assets.
6. She served as a National USA Army Junior Reserve Office Corps (JROTC..
7. She served on the Disproportionate Minority Contact Task Force, assisted in the planning and implementation of the Annual Joint
Conference on Juvenile Justice and taught Reading in the Content Area/Science to at risk students in the Saturday School Program.
8. Ms. Brown taught the CMCSS Medal of Honor Character Building summer classes from 2015-2017.
9. She was selected to serve as as a Facilitator for all 1600 plus JROTC Leadership and Academic Bowl (JLAB) cadets; from the Army,
AirForce, Marines and Navy. The competition is held annually, in Washington DC.
10. Ms. Brown currently serves as a Girl Scout Troop Leader with another retiree. Their focus is on empowering young ladies to go after
their dreams and build self esteem.
Ms. Karlene Brown has spent numerous hours donating time to various organizations and events within and outside of Montgomery county and the state of Tennessee. She is highly intelligent, self motivated, diligent, kind hearted and firm as well as a person of high standards. She is an asset to the community, state and nation.
I highly recommend Ms. Brown for Lifechanger of the Year!
Ms. Karlene Brown
I am honored to have this opportunity to support and endorse the tremendously impressive account of a Veteran Soldier and team member, Ms. Karlene Brown.
I have known Ms. Karlene Brown for more than 10 years, and have served with her in several capacities. I first heard of her enthusiastic drive to help under-achieving youth, and to share her youth leadership knowledge, skills and experience with others who are committed to helping kids to achieve success. I was also aware of her expert knowledge and skills in the areas of property management and accountability and organizational supply procedures. As Chief, Army Junior ROTC Training and Operations, I asked her to serve as a member of our research and teaching team for Army JROTC Instructor Logistics & Supply classes. Because of her experience and willingness to share her knowledge and teaching techniques, she quickly became one of our lead facilitators. Her attention to detail and organizational skills enable our Logistics and Supply courses to be among the most requested and beneficial to our cadre of nearly 4,000 Instructors in our repertoire of educational and training courses. She has since become one of our most requested mentors and group facilitators at our annual JROTC Leadership & Academic Bowl in Washington, DC and for development of logistical and supply classes and emerging technology for JROTC technological advances in STEM and Cyber equipment.
Moreover, she is a noted leader in the areas of service learning and community service, Girl Scout mentoring, and group facilitation. These skills and her attitude of striving for success have noted her as a bridge builder who is dependable, accountable, and a team player in every facet.
I am honored to support and recommend Ms. Karlene Brown as Life Changer of the Year and for every honor she is nominated to receive.
Sometimes, God will place people in our paths to show us the way; for understanding and clarity of the mind, of clutter. That often comes with extraneous mental noise. She makes daily issues, easy to digest and comprehend. In the military, we call these leaders, "Quite Light!" Master Sergeant Karlene Brown, Ret; is one of those individuals' flowers, in the midst of the weeds! That stands-out! For the good of the whole,
Where do I begin? My cousin's initials from her birth name, Karlene E Palmore (KEP pronounced "Keep" ) explains it all for me. A Keep is a place of strength and protection. It is were you would go as a last resort when you are being attacked. In our youth, my cousin Karlene was my Keep. When I was being bullied or teased and I couldn't take it anymore, she was the one I sought out for protection. With her intelligence, gift for speaking and/or sometimes her one two punch, she persuaded the bully's to back down. She was a force. As we grew up, I realized she wasn't just a Keep for me, she was one for other family members and her friends as well. When she could, she protected, supported and helped others out of the kindness of her heart. When she joined the military, I thought it would take away what made her Karlene; but I was wrong. As she would say, "nothing changed about her". As she thrived in the Military, I realized the Military enhanced all of the good things about her; and opened doors for her to be herself and become the woman we know today. She is still a Keep, but not as a last resort; but as a front line in the battle for education and success. I thank God for my cousin, thank her mother (may she rest in peace) for having her and thank the Military for helping her become MSG Karlene E. (Palmore) Brown.
It is a pleasure and honor to know and work with Karlene. She has a heart of pure gold. She is always looking for ways to support students through direct support and/or scholarships. She has also encouraged her colleagues in more ways than one could imagine. There is no one more deserving of this award then our very own Karlene Brown!
As a former high school principal, I was blessed to have a large JROTC program. Nearly a quarter of my 1600+ students were enrolled in this program. As such, we had a very active program that would not have reached the level of success it has without the support of MSG Brown. MSG Brown would frequently visit our campus to check on our program and she never left without asking if there was anything, she could do to support us. This question was not just a polite gesture. MSG Brown could be called upon at any time and she would provide any support necessary to ensure that our students received the support they needed.
I have also had the opportunity to witness MSG Brown's personal interaction with students. Her 'call like it is' conversations were always filled with encouragement and support. Students wanted to be better because they knew that MSG Brown believed in them, even when they did not necessarily believe in themselves! I know that MSG Brown demonstrated this same servant leadership at all 7 of the high schools in our district and for the thousands of students she has served over the years.
As a school administrator, seeking support for students and their programs is important. With Karlene Brown, you don't have to seek her out, she provides it! Her energy and enthusiasm is contagious and her mission to provide the resources the JROTC teachers and students need in their march toward excellence is evident in her daily work. She also leaves you better, more encouraged, after every interaction! Karlene Brown is a defining difference for the students in the Clarksville Montgomery County School System!
I have known her for approximately 7 years. She is willing to improve and eager to accept feedback in order to meet the expectations while keeping the best interest of students at heart. She is able to advocate for students and collaborate with colleagues to ensure that students have a voice. She is willing to learn the knowledge of the current trends and methods practiced in Education today. She is willing to develop appropriate relationship with all stakeholders. She is willing to learn how to use consistent methods to work with students, parents, and teachers in developing high moral standards to accomplish the goals of effective communication. In my opinion, she views challenges as opportunities for growth and is willing to strive to find the positive in situations. I believe if given the opportunity she will gain and maintain a clear understanding of the expectations and work to meet and exceed the expectation. Therefore, She will be an outstanding asset and should be considered seriously for this honor!
I have worked with Karlene for 4 years now. Since coming on board, Karlene has been an amazing motivator and support for all I do. Her genuine compassion for students and their success shines a light on all aspects of her work. As a former JROTC cadet myself, I will never forget her presence in our program. Even as a student leader, she empowered me with the tools to ensure the operations of our JROTC program were successful.
Karlene not only serves the JROTC program with distinction she is the epitome of a team player for the entire Clarksville-Montgomery County School System. She genuinely cares about fulfilling our district's mission of educating and empowering students to reach their potential. She is such a positive and supportive role model for all students, parents and co-workers alike. She is continually searching to improve or evolve processes that will increase the benefit to our students' education and personal development as valued citizens of our community, state and nation. Karlene changes lives by setting and living the example of doing unto others.... and walking the walk! .
I have the pleasure of seeing Karlene Brown in action on a daily basis. She has boundless energy and enthusiasm with a can do attitude! She is always willing to go the extra mile. Karlene has a huge, caring heart for her community and students. She truly wants everyone to be equipped and given the opportunity to rise above their potential. To put it simply, Karlene would give the shirt off her back to help lift another up. I am blessed to witness her amazing example of stepping up to be the one to make a difference in the lives of others. The world would be a better place with more Karlene Browns.
