Meet the Founder and President

Kari Cook is a nonprofit executive, social work professional, and child advocate with more than two decades of experience serving children, families, and communities impacted by trauma. As Founder and President of the Glorietta Klarich Foundation, Kari created Clinical Harmony™, an innovative, trauma-informed model that integrates professional music education with evidence-informed social work principles—transforming music from an extracurricular activity into a powerful pathway for healing, resilience, and lifelong opportunity. Clinical Harmony™ is currently undergoing the federal trademark registration process, reflecting Kari’s commitment to establishing a distinctive, evidence-informed model that can one day serve children and communities far beyond East Tennessee.

Kari holds a Master of Professional Studies with a concentration in Strategic Leadership and a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies in Psychology and Sociology. She is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with an Emphasis in Trauma at Grand Canyon University, further strengthening the clinical foundation of her work with children and families. Her advanced professional training includes trauma, post-traumatic stress, suicide intervention, anxiety, substance use, child advocacy, and nonprofit leadership, providing the interdisciplinary expertise necessary to design programs that address the complex realities facing vulnerable children and their families.

Throughout her career, Kari has supported children through crisis, loss, abuse, neglect, and significant life adversity. Her approach combines evidence-informed, trauma-informed practices with the transformative power of music to foster emotional regulation, healthy relationships, confidence, and long-term resilience. Every Glorietta Klarich Foundation initiative is intentionally designed to uphold the highest standards of child safety, clinical integrity, and measurable impact.

Kari has led nonprofit programs, strengthened community partnerships, secured philanthropic support, and advocated for children whose voices are too often overlooked. Her leadership is driven by the belief that every child deserves access to both compassionate advocacy and exceptional artistic opportunity, regardless of circumstance. Through the Glorietta Klarich Foundation, she is working to establish a new standard for trauma-informed music intervention—one that not only transforms lives in Knoxville but contributes to a growing body of evidence demonstrating the lasting role of the arts in childhood healing and development.

Kari was recently featured by multiple organizations, where she shares the story behind the Glorietta Klarich Foundation, the inspiration for creating Clinical Harmony™, and her vision for expanding trauma-informed opportunities for children through music. Click the buttons below to read the full features.