Zach Brown

Zach Brown's leadership as a student-athlete at the University of North Georgia (UNG) extends far beyond the basketball court.

He was named to the NCAA Committee to Promote Cultural Diversity and Equity. The committee reviews, endorses and makes recommendations regarding diversity and inclusion matters. The committee reports to the NCAA Board of Governors, which is the highest NCAA committee level. Brown considers that position to be one of his greatest accomplishments thus far.

"That shows me that people are seeing my leadership abilities and how intertwined I am with the community," he said.

Brown also is serving a three-year term on the NCAA Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). The national role has been a major growth opportunity for the Princeton, New Jersey, native who was treasurer of the university's SAAC in 2020-21.

"It was good for me because you're forced to connect with people you don't really know and have to find solutions for a wide variety of issues," Brown said.

Brown graduated in May 2021 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in marketing and plans to begin work on an MBA through UNG during his final season on the court.

He said the best leaders are selfless as they focus on how to serve those around them.

"You can't lead everybody the same way," Brown said. "You have to try to step in their shoes, and that's going to give you the platform to lead them and make sure they're the best that they can be."

Setbacks are inevitable, particularly in competitive endeavors, but he credits UNG men's basketball head coach Dan Evans with helping him develop a more future-oriented approach.

"When you're a leader, you really have to be conscious of how people are looking at you. If they see I'm down, then other people might get down, too," Brown said. "I have to show people it's OK. We can move on from this and get better from this."