Lia Pikus Email & Phone Number

Cambridge, Ma, Us

In 2021, I was awarded the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, a one-year independent international research grant. On my Watson year, I conducted research in India, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico and Chile to explore the intersection of arts and community building in the context of social justice movements around the world.

Freelance writer for The Recording Academy focused on issues of racial justice in the music industry. Wrote the premier feature piece on the Orchestra Is Racist national movement, which was featured on the website’s home page for two consecutive weeks.

Houston, Texas, United States

During my last two years of college, I was the senior Arts and Entertainment writer for The Rice Thresher, Rice University’s award-winning student newspaper. As a weekly columnist, I attended and reported on concerts around the Houston area, wrote album reviews and created public playlists for the Arts and Entertainment section.

New York, United States

For nearly a decade I ran my own cello studio of varying size, personally organizing and planning each lesson and supervising the individual progress of each student. This gave me excellent organizational and interpersonal skills, the ability to remain enthusiastic and patient in stressful situations and strong time management capabilities.

In the summer before my senior year, I interned with Paste Magazine as a music editorial intern. In this role I wrote 3-5 stories per day pertaining to music and culture, regularly interfacing with artists and PR teams throughout the story-writing process. I also wrote longer feature stories and assisted in managing and creating digital content for Paste’s Twitter and Instagram accounts, crafting daily posts that reached an audience of over 291k followers.

Organized and archived digital files for the Houston Hip Hop Research Collection including photos, audio recordings and videos. Assisted in the creation of an anthology documenting Houston’s “chopped and screwed” music scene in the 1980s and 1990s.

Houston, Texas, United States

As a researcher for the Texas Center for Justice and Equity, I researched alternative justice and prison abolition in both the European Union and the United States, culminating in a 42-page final paper. After presenting my findings for a board of international academics, lawyers and policy makers, the paper was selected for publication by the School for International Training in the spring of 2020. The paper was subsequently used as course material for “Alternatives to Incarceration,” a course taught at Rice University that same spring.

Washington D.C. Metro Area

In the summer of 2019, I worked in Washington D.C as a policy intern for the American Geosciences Institute. I wrote and edited policy positions and documents on behalf of AGI, including Interior appropriations requests for both the House and Senate Interior Appropriations Committees. In this position I also managed the shareholder and general public comment process for the creation of the Critical Needs in the Geosciences document for the 2020 election cycle. Through this role, I greatly honed my writing and communication abilities.

Houston, Texas

At the end of my freshman year of college, I became the part-time campaign and data manager for the Gulf Coast chapter of Planned Parenthood. In this position, I was responsible for collection and entry of student voter population data into the Voter Activation Network on a weekly basis, engaging with the Rice University student population to obtain new data and inform students about upcoming policy decisions and elections related to reproductive justice. I also was sent to the 2018 Planned Parenthood Women’s Convention in Detroit as the Gulf Coast representative.

Boston, Massachussets

In my senior year of high school, I was selected as a member of the 2017 class of the Center for Development of Arts Leaders (CDAL) in Boston, MA. Working with CDAL - a subsidiary of National Public Radio’s From The Top - I helped design and implement classical music concerts around the greater Boston area, researching and presenting on the needs of potential partner community organizations as well as actively performing as a musician myself.

Hanover, New Hampshire

Headed campaigns, raised and handled club funds, and organized educational initiatives that directly sponsored girls' education. Created, produced, and composed the score for the chapter’s 2015 video submission for Project for Awesome, run by John and Hank Green, which won $25,000 for She’s the First.

Incoming Master Of Theological Studies Candidate In Politics, Ethics & Religion

Bachelor Of Arts - Ba, Political Science And Government, Cum Laude

Activities and Societies: Academic Fellows Society; Co-President of Rice for Reproductive Justice; Secretary of Rice Environmental Club.

High School Diploma

Activities and Societies: Head Board Member of She's the First; Secretary of She's the First; Principal cellist of Hanover High School.