Laura Kellams joined Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families as its first Northwest Arkansas director in 2008. In this role, she works to call attention to challenges facing children in the region and to build support for policy solutions that can help all children thrive. Before joining Advocates, she was a newspaper reporter for 15 years, mostly covering politics and government for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. During that time, she served as a journalism fellow on the staff of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee as part of the American Political Science Association’s Congressional Fellowship Program.

She is a past recipient of the Georgetown Center for Children and Families’ national “Bulldog of the Year” award for her advocacy to extend health coverage to immigrant children in Arkansas. She is a longtime board member of the Economic Opportunity Agency of Washington County as well as the League of Women Voters. Laura has a journalism degree from the University of Arkansas, and she and her husband Kyle have lived in Fayetteville for more than 35 years.

Lauren Marquette has twenty years’ experience working in the nonprofit field. In her 15 years at Susan G Komen, Lauren has served in various roles in the organization all dedicated to helping patients have access to quality healthcare, specifically breast health. Lauren is a licensed Master Social Worker and started at the local Komen affiliate managing grants and community programs and then served as the Executive Director in charge of signature events such as Race for the Cure, More than Pink Walk and Pink Ribbon Luncheon.

Lauren is a past recipient of the “Advocacy Champion” award from Susan G. Komen and a NWA Business Journal’s 40 under 40. She has served on the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board for two terms as well as on the board of Arts Live Theatre and Arkansas United organizations. She caught the political bug early in life, going to speeches, campaign stops, rallies and meetings and even wrote her first advocacy letter to President H.W. Bush when she was in Elementary School. Lauren is a native of Van Buren, Arkansas and currently resides with her husband, Daniel Balls, her spunky 5-year-old Gwyndolyn and her dog, Dolly Parton.

Stephanie Brown serves as an Associate at Milestone Leadership, serving as an Executive Coach and Facilitator. She first joined the organization in 2010 as a Graduate Fellow, earning a Master of Science in Leadership and Ethics. Following graduation, Stephanie worked in the nonprofit sector before rejoining Milestone Leadership.

She is passionate about developing future leaders and fulfilling Milestone’s mission to build leaders worth following. Stephanie holds certifications in The Birkman Method and CCL’s Benchmarks 360 Degree Feedback tools. Stephanie is married to Andrew Brown, and is mother to Ellis.