Brent Colburn
Advisory Board Member
Biography
Brent Colburn, currently the Vice President for Global Public Affairs at Microsoft, has spent the past two decades working in impact driven organizations, including stints in higher education, philanthropy, government, and on numerous political campaigns.Before joining Microsoft, Mr. Colburn spent six years working in higher education, leading both communications and government affairs first at Princeton University and then at the University of California system.
Mr. Colburn served in a range of leadership roles across the Obama administration, ending his service in the executive branch as the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, the senior public affairs official for the Pentagon and the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense for communication strategy. He has also served as the Chief of Staff at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Director of External Affairs at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
He worked on each presidential election cycle between 2000 and 2012, most recently as the National Communications Director for President Obama’s successful re-election campaign and the Communications Director for the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee.
Mr. Colburn has served as an advisor and board member for a number of non-profits, including the McCarter Theater Center, the Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP), which brings together veterans, service members, and military families through the arts, and the aPolitical Academy, an organization aimed at developing young civic leaders throughout the world.
A two-time graduate of the College of William and Mary, he holds an undergraduate degree in government and a master’s in public policy. Following his government service, Mr. Colburn spent a semester at Harvard's Institute of Politics as a resident fellow. He has also written and spoken in numerous settings on the evolving nature of communications in a digital world, the state of our politics, and civilian and military affairs.
Mr. Colburn is a recipient of the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, as well as William & Mary's Baxter-Ward Fellowship for Distinguished Government Department Alumni.
