Karen has served New Yorkers for over 35 years across numerous areas in the social service sector, including supportive and transitional housing, health care, veterans, domestic and intimate partner violence, addiction services, welfare reform, school-based early intervention services, and maternal and infant health.
Having previously worked at CAMBA over ten years ago, Karen returned as the Executive Vice President for Homeless and Support Services. Her role at CAMBA came after receiving a Mayoral appointment in the Adams administration as the inaugural Executive Director for the Mayor’s Office for Nonprofit Services. This office was created through legislation to support and amplify the voices of the city’s nonprofit partners. In this position, Karen served as the liaison between City agencies, the Mayor’s Office of Contracts, and the nonprofit community. She oversaw the establishment of the office and implementation of the recommendations of the Joint Task Force to Get Nonprofits Paid on Time. Karen worked collaboratively with City Hall to establish the Nonprofit Advisory Council and support the COLA approval for nonprofit staff.
Prior to working at City Hall, Karen was Chief Operating Officer at HELPUSA, a national homeless service and housing organization where she oversaw daily operations that supported over 1200 staff and thousands of housing-insecure individuals and families. Karen’s work in this arena began as a residential aide with the New York City Department of Homeless Services (“DHS”) Street Outreach Team. Two decades later, Karen returned to DHS as Deputy Commissioner for Family Services. There, she managed the teams who oversaw DHS’s Family Intake Center (PATH) and the Family Transitional Service Unit.
Karen has held other leadership roles, including Assistant Vice President of Real Estate and Housing at Samaritan Daytop Village, Brooklyn Borough Administrator for the New York City Housing Authority and Program Administrator at the New York State AIDS Institute. This experience has given Karen an intricate understanding of the complexities and interdependencies between government and nonprofit partnerships.
Politics NY recognized Karen as a 2023 Nonprofit Power Player and a Political Power Rising. Karen was previously honored by the National Association of Social Workers and has been officially recognized by elected officials. She is a HUD Community Builder Fellow and a New York Leadership Fellow at Baruch College and the City University Center for Nonprofit Strategy and Management. Karen recently completed a fellowship in the Real Estate Associates Program Diversity in Commercial Real Estate. Karen graduated with honors from Adelphi University and Fordham University Schools of Social Work. She is a proud member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated.
She is a lifelong Brooklynite and is immensely proud of her Brooklyn accent. She has three beautiful children and three wonderful grandchildren who are her pride and source of joy.
