Kara Hooks, CTP, joined Chandler Asset Management in 2012 as an administrative assistant and has had a front row seat to the firm’s growth ever since. Within a year of joining the team, she was tapped to help build and grow the firm’s client service function, instilling the values of proactive communication, fiduciary responsibility, and doing right by every client into the company’s core values.

When she moved from the Client Service Director role to the investment side of the business to become a Portfolio Strategist in 2022, she took those client-centric fundamentals with her. Today, she serves as a primary contact for public agency finance staff across the Western region of the U.S., helping clients understand current market dynamics, choose appropriate investment strategies, update investment policies in line with government code, and build investment programs that benefit their communities.

Kara graduated with her B.A. in communication, emphasis in public relations, from University of the Pacific and earned her M.A. in communication from San Diego State University. Kara was awarded the CFA Institute’s Investment Foundations Certificate (formerly Claritas® Investment Certificate) in 2013 and earned her Certified Treasury Professional designation in 2024. She is a frequent speaker for various local and national organizations.