Karen DuBois-Walton was raised by parents who were public servants and who instilled in her the value of serving her community. She’s dedicated over 20 years toward public service in Connecticut. First serving the City of New Haven as Chief Administrative Officer and Chief of Staff to the Mayor. There she learned first-hand about public finance, bonding, debt management and pensions while managing large city departments. And for the past 15 years, Karen has led the Housing Authority in New Haven – a complex public sector organization of over 150 employees, union and non-union, a budget of over $140 million and assets in excess of $800 million.
Under Karen’s leadership, the housing authority portfolio has been rebuilt, using the bond authority of the agency. She is responsible for bond issuances, working with investors, bond counsel and financial analysts. She works with rating agencies and has consistently maintained a strong and stable bond rating. And most importantly, Karen has supported hard-working families to keep a roof over their heads, find work, save and achieve goals for themselves and their children.
Earlier this year, Karen was appointed Chair of the CT State Board of Education by Governor Ned Lamont. In appointing her, the Governor stated “Karen has been an incredibly active member of the New Haven community throughout her career, particularly focused on removing barriers to fair housing among marginalized communities, reversing housing segregation patterns and making improvements in under-resourced neighborhoods.”
Karen chairs the Board of local family philanthropy where she gained experience with impact investment working with investment advisors to ensure responsible growth while guiding the fund toward socially responsive investments. She has served in leadership roles on several CT non-profit boards. She is a long-time member of Bethel A.M.E. Church in New Haven.
Karen is a 37-year resident of CT and lives in New Haven with her husband Kevin and two sons, Kevin and Kaleb and their Portuguese Water Dog, Koleman.
Karen earned her BA from Yale University and her MA and Ph.D. from Boston University.
Her priorities as Treasurer of the State of Connecticut are:
- Ensure the responsible growth of CT’s investments and protection of the public pensions
- With a demonstrated track record in equitable and impactful public investment, guide the state’s investments in communities in ways that benefit the hard-working families of CT and stimulate equitable growth
- Create opportunities for CT families to save, build assets and enhance their financial literacy
- Provide fair and equitable leadership that enhances morale, productivity and results