Karen Zielke de Picado joined our team as a Speech-Language Pathologist in 2025.
She earned her undergraduate degrees in Special Education and Spanish from UW–Whitewater, completed a post-baccalaureate program in Communication Sciences and Disorders through UW–Eau Claire, and received her Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology from Marquette University.
Karen is passionate about supporting children’s communication and was inspired to pursue this field after recognizing a need for speech-language services while living abroad. She’s especially excited about the mentorship opportunities and continuing to grow as a clinician.
During the school year, Karen lives in Nicaragua with her husband and their three boys, returning to Wisconsin each summer. In her free time, she enjoys reading, relaxing in a hammock, drinking coffee, playing NYT games, camping, and cheering on the Brewers and Packers. She also shares her home with two dogs and two cats.
Originally from West Allis, Wisconsin, her favorite food is nachos.