Karen has made a career of starting organizations that
promote youth development – including the Forum for Youth
Investment, which she co-founded with Merita Irby in 1998.
Karen stepped away from organizational management to
dedicate her time to galvanizing the growing interest in using
science informed strategies to truly change the odds that all
children and youth can be successful. In 2021, Karen became a
Partner in Knowledge to Power Catalysts, LLC; launched
Changing the Odds Remix, a platform for sharpening ideas
about how, where, when, why, with whom learning happens; and accepted senior
advisory positions at several national organizations.