The Lab is grateful and humbled by the support of the Erica Pincus Arabesque Foundation for our work in Performing Arts and Diplomacy at Georgetown University. These funds will directly support our Student Fellows Program – a student-founded program that supports the creativity of students working at the intersection of politics and performance. It is a space for discussion, workshopping, and collaboration among students who align with The Lab’s mission of humanizing politics through performance.
Erica Pincus was born and raised on Long Island, New York. Her journey from New York to Washington DC, from Boston, to San Francisco and around the globe was one of remarkable achievement and great impact. She graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in 2013, which ignited her passion for effecting positive change in society. Erica’s insatiable thirst for knowledge and desire to make a difference in the lives of others led her to pursue a dual master’s degree, earning a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, where she was chosen as a Zuckerman Fellow by the Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership.
Erica’s career was a testament to her ethos of leveraging technology, data, and user-centered solutions to tackle humanity’s most pressing challenges. She served as a product marketing manager and public policy advisor at the Everyday Robot Product within X, formerly known as Google X, pioneering socially responsible approaches to technology development. Her tenure as a Policy Advisor and Special Assistant for the Obama White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation further underscored her commitment to evidence-based policy solutions that advance economic opportunity, equity, and justice.
Beyond her professional endeavors, Erica was beloved for her strength, kindness, and diverse passions, which ranged from dance to government, civic tech, and social innovation. Her spirit of inclusivity and collaboration left an indelible mark on all who knew her.
The Erica Pincus Arabesque Foundation carries forward Erica’s legacy by promoting civic engagement, social justice, innovation, and the arts. The arabesque, a symbol of elegance and balance found in music, ballet, art, and language, serves as the inspiration behind the foundation’s name. Erica’s affinity for striking the arabesque pose wherever she went embodied her ability to intertwine people, interests, and talents into an intricate pattern of kindness and innovation.
