Marcel W. Foster is an American public‑health professional, arts evaluator, choreographer, and interdisciplinary researcher who specializes in the integration of performing arts with health interventions. He is a co‑founder and director of Performance Hypothesis, LLC, serves as a Research & Evaluation Associate at New York University’s Jameel Arts & Health Lab, and holds an adjunct faculty position with the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine. Foster’s work focuses on developing evaluation methodologies to assess the impact of arts‑based programs on health outcomes, including vaccine‑confidence initiatives, hospital mural projects, and community‑based healing arts interventions.
Early life and education
Born in 1984 in the United States, Foster attended Interlochen Arts Academy, graduating in 2002 with a focus on theater. He earned dual bachelor’s degrees—a B.A. in anthropology (summa cum laude) and a B.F.A. in theater—from the University of Minnesota in 2008. He later completed a Master of Public Health (MPH) with a concentration in Global Health at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health in 2017.
Career
Foster’s early professional experience included research on chimpanzee behavior at the Jane Goodall Institute Research Center (2005‑2008), resulting in a first‑author article in The American Journal of Primatology. He subsequently pursued choreography and performance work with Deeply Rooted Dance Theater and Headlong Performance Institute. From 2010 to 2015, he held arts‑administration roles in Philadelphia, including positions at Dance/USA Philadelphia and Pasion y Arte Flamenco Dance Company.
After obtaining his MPH, Foster shifted toward public‑health evaluation. He worked as a Public Health Analyst at RTI International (2019‑2023), where she contributed to CDC global‑health security contracts and co‑presided over the organization’s Bridging & Belonging Employee Resource Group. In 2021, he founded Performance Hypothesis, LLC, an organization that applies rigorous evaluation methods to arts‑health projects. Notable initiatives include a $3 million grant from the Georgia Department of Public Health for arts‑based vaccine‑confidence programs and the Healing Arts Atlanta series, which addressed racism as a public‑health crisis.
Since 2022, Foster has taught graduate and undergraduate courses on arts‑based research and evaluation at the University of Florida. In 2023, he joined NYU’s Jameel Arts & Health Lab, co‑leading the Hospital Mural Evaluation, a multi‑country study of how visual art in health‑care settings influences well‑being.
Research and contributions
Foster’s interdisciplinary research combines qualitative health methods with arts practice. His publications address topics such as:
- Arts‑based strategies to improve vaccine confidence among Black residents in rural Georgia.
- The effects of gender non‑conformity on health‑care access in urban Ghana.
- Human‑centered design of digital decision‑support tools for research participation among LGBTQIA+ communities.
He has also contributed to scholarly work on primate social behavior, theatre education, and the financialization of education.
Awards and recognition
- Nominee, Emory University “40 Under 40” (2019)
- Chestnut Person of the Year, Emory University (2017)
- Atlanta Regional Commission Culture and Community Design Leader (2023)
Professional service
- Chair, American Evaluation Association Arts, Culture, and Museum Topical Interest Group (2022–present)
- Board member, Citizens Advocacy of Dekalb County (2021–present)
References
(Information derived from the Wikipedia article “Marcel W. Foster” and associated public sources.)