Karen began her career as an investigator with the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division in 1987. She opened her consulting business in 1999 and has built a nation-wide practice.  She has testified before the U.S. Congress on the critically important regulation that defines the “white-collar” exemptions and has testified as an expert witness in federal court and in arbitration on various aspects of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Karen earned her Bachelor of Arts from Southwestern University in 1986, and later undertook post-graduate studies in development education.  She holds graduate degrees in labor economics from the University of Torino and the Paris Institute of Political Science.  During her graduate studies, Karen spent a semester in residence at the International Labor Organization where her colleagues were policy makers, economists, and statisticians from around the globe. 

Karen previously served as a publicly elected official.  She is interested in education and labor policy from the local to the global level.  Karen brings to her very practical consulting work a needed breadth and depth of knowledge based on experience, education, and a passion for her subject matter.