Karen Ernst is a Professor in the Art Department at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, where she has been teaching all levels of Woodworking/Furniture Design since 2004. Originally from East Aurora, NY, she holds a BA in Studio Art from SUNY Geneseo and an MFA in Furniture Design from the Rhode Island School of Design. With over twenty years of woodworking and design experience, the furniture and sculptural objects she designs and builds have been exhibited across the US and are included in many private collections. Her work is featured in the Lark Books publications 500 Chairs, 500 Tables, and 500 Cabinets, as well as Schiffer Publishing’s The Maker’s Hand: Contemporary Studio Furniture.