Student Accessibility Services

Biography

With over 12 years of higher education disability experience and more than 12 years of K-12 special education experience, Karen is a visionary leader in disability services. She has apassionate commitment to creating a culture of inclusion for everyone, recognizing the intersectionality of the disabled. She works to ensure equitable opportunities and compliance with federal laws, state regulations, best practices and University-wide and campus guidelines related to equal access, barrier elimination, and resources and services for disabled students. Karen’s work extends nationally as she serves on the Board of the Association for Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) as a Director-at-Large, is the current AHEAD Board liaison to the Knowledge and Practice Communities and is the former chair for the organization’s Race, Ethnicity, Diversity and Disability Special Interest Group. She is the 2022 awardee for the AHEAD Duraese Hall Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion Award. Every day, Karen and her service animal, Dooley, show up to serve the Brown community in advancing the cause of disability as diversity. Karen earned a BS in Elementary and Special Education from Northern Arizona University and an M. Ed. in Adult Education and Development from Strayer University.