Dedicated to the Commonwealth
And the Common Good

John Y. Brown III - Biography

John Y. Brown III was born into a family dedicated to serving Kentucky in many ways, including the arena of public service. John’s grandfather served in U. S. Congress under FDR and as Kentucky’s Speaker of the House. His father served as Governor of Kentucky from 1979-1983. So it almost seemed inevitable that John would serve the Commonwealth: in 1995 he was elected as Kentucky’s Secretary of State at the age of 32, the second youngest in the nation and one of Kentucky’s youngest ever statewide elected officials. John was re-elected without opposition in 1999 and his administration received numerous national awards and recognitions for being a leader in e-government, assisting businesses and election reform.

Before entering politics, John headed up franchising for Roaster’s Inc., developing fast food venues in 37 states and several foreign countries. More recently, John served as vice-president of ResCare, working in government relations for the Louisville based human services company with over 40,000 employees in over 40 states and several foreign countries. He loves sharing his enthusiasm for business and law and served as an adjunct professor at Bellarmine University in Louisville. In 2007, John ran unsuccessfully as the lieutenant governor running mate on a ticket with gubernatorial candidate Jody Richards (Kentucky’s Speaker of the House) in a spirited seven slate Democratic primary.

This combination of business, government, legal and academic experience prepared John perfectly for the birth of the JYB3 Group in 2008, a firm dedicated to bringing the best of commerce and government together for the common wealth of all Kentuckians. The JYB3 Group instantly became Kentucky’s fastest growing public affairs consulting firm and in 2015 was named Best Very Small Business in the entire Greater Louisville region and is the Kentucky member for The Advocacy Group, comprised of the nations leading public affairs firms.

John also serves as “Of Counsel” for the law firm Kaplan & Partners where he heads the law firm’s government relations practice.

Education

• Bellarmine University, MBA 2003
• University of Kentucky College of Law, JD, (With Distinction) 1992
• Bellarmine University, BA History (Magna Cum Laude) 1988

Honors & Awards

• Kentucky’s “Power Elite”, Lane Report magazine
• Business First Top 40 Under 40
• Distinguished Graduate, Bellarmine University
• Leadership Louisville’s Connector Project –Selected one of Metro Louisville’s 128 Most Trusted Leaders
• American Council of Young Political Leaders
• Author of two books, Musings from the Middle I & II and Co-author The Recovering Politicians Twelve Step Program to Survive Crisis
• Political and public policy commentator: Appearances on CNN Inside Politics, C-Span, NPR’s All Things Considered, The Diane Rehm Show, Bill Bryant’s Newsmakers, The Sue Wiley Show, Bill Goodman’s Kentucky Tonight show and other television and radio talk

Laura Emberton Owens - Biography

Laura Emberton Owens is a partner with the JYB3 Group and assists clients working to improve Kentucky in a range of areas, but focusing especially in the areas of workforce development, education, and technology solutions that allow government to operate more effectively and efficiently.

Laura has spent the last 30 years involved in workforce training, education, and government. Before founding Advancement Strategies, Laura served as the Secretary of Education for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and before that as Commissioner for Workforce Investment, a position responsible for the oversight of 2,300 employees and a budget of nearly 1 billion dollars.

Her commitment has been noted at both the state and national levels where she has received appointments from both governors Paul Patton and Ernie Fletcher, as well as serving on a White House commission at the invitation of two presidents, President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama.

Laura received both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Western Kentucky University.

Elizabeth Owens - Biography

Elizabeth Owens joins the JYB3 team as a recent graduate of Transylvania University where she received her undergraduate degree in political science. In addition to her educational background, Elizabeth brings experience from several valuable political internships, including one with Congressman Andy Barr’s office in Central Kentucky and another working with our current House minority leadership in the Kentucky general assembly. We are excited to welcome Elizabeth to our team!