Karen Burgess was born and raised in Pasadena, Karen is a proud PUSD alumna – having attended Allendale, Jackson, McKinley, and John Muir. She went on to earn a BA in Psychology and German from Smith College, a MA in Communications from University of Pennsylvania and is a recent graduate of the 2022 Leadership Pasadena Program.
As a product/program management executive, she began her career working for Caltech start-ups here in Pasadena. Most recently, she spent 20 years leading Business Solutions for The Walt Disney Company’s Brand Management team. Karen was an active PUSD parent volunteer throughout the school years of her daughters, Hayley and Kinsey, who both graduated from Pasadena High School.
Along with her husband, Tim, Karen has been a long-time supporter of PEF. Excited to roll up her sleeves and help the PEF Board with key initiatives; Karen feels strongly that strong public schools are critical to the wellbeing of the community.
