Karen Cuenca is a senior community development specialist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Prior to joining the Federal Reserve, Cuenca worked at RW Ventures, a consulting firm based in Chicago, IL that specializes in regional economic development analysis. As part of her role, Cuenca also served as a part-time contractor for the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, helping develop economic development strategies for the Greater Phoenix region. Cuenca previously worked at Abt Associates, a public policy research and evaluation firm in Cambridge, MA.

Cuenca earned a dual Master’s in Public Policy and Urban & Regional Planning from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor’s in Political Science from Yale University.