New Director of Development: Karen Burns

We are so excited for each of you to get to know Karen Burns, Gould’s new Director of Development. She joins Gould with a terrific background in fundraising, nonprofit management, and teaching. In addition to her outstanding skill set, she is personable, thoughtful, and has an inspiring “can-do” attitude. 

Karen’s most recent position was Chief Leadership Officer at the Island Institute and she lived with her family on Vinalhaven. Karen and her husband Bruce have a son named Brandon in the 8th grade and a daughter named Natalie in the 5th grade - they will be relocating to Bethel at the end of the school year. Karen is a graduate of Amherst College and has a Master’s in Teaching from the University of Maine. She taught English for six years, served on several nonprofit boards, and has extensive experience managing a portfolio of major gifts prospects. 

Bethel, Gould, and Sunday River are not new to the Burns Family - they have a condo at the mountain. As avid skiers, her family, like so many, began to transition from “a ski family” to a “Sunday River Family” to a “Bethel Family” and we are absolutely thrilled they are now a “Gould Family”. 

Karen has so much to offer our community and we are so excited to have her on the team to help us grow the future of our school.