Dr. Hamilton earned her B.A. and M.A. from Ohio State University in Romance Languages and her doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania in Comparative and International Education. As Director of Minority Affairs and an Assistant Dean, Karen devised a faculty-first year student advising system and developed a strategic plan to improve the scores of second year students on the National Board Licensure Examination, Part I. Moreover, she initiated the "Interviewing Techniques for Residency Positions Seminar" for fourth year students and co-edited Getting Into Medical School: A Planning Guide for Minority Students, the first book of its kind written by minority medical students. Karen was also the administrator of the "Project 3000 By 2000 Educational Pipelines which assisted minority high school students originally from two Philadelphia inner-city public schools and minority undergraduates at the University of Pennsylvania to prepare for medical school. She has served as National GSA- MAS Chair, Northeast Regional Chair and Chairperson for the AAMC Task Force for the Underrepresented Minority Male Initiative. Karen has also been a member of the Career in Medicine Advisory Council and remains a Careers in Medicine Liaison. She was a co - author of a AAMC publication, "A Review of the Research Literature on Non-cognitive Variables: What Have We Learned?" and co-authored an article, "Minorities in Medicine: Nurturing Interest and Enhancing Opportunities to Pursue a Medical Degree" which appeared in The Advisor, June 2003.