Denise Meringolo

Denise Meringolo is a Professor in the Department of History at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), within the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. She currently serves as President of the National Council on Public History (2024-2026) and is recognized for pioneering community-centered public history practices that challenge traditional institutional narratives.

Education

• Ph.D. from George Washington University

Research Focus

Dr. Meringolo's work centers on democratizing historical practice through social justice frameworks. Her scholarship examines how museums and national parks construct collective memory while marginalizing community voices. She champions community ownership of historical narratives, particularly through digital preservation of protest movements and oral histories. Her research integrates material culture studies with critical race theory to expose systemic inequities in historical representation.

Scientific Recognition

• 2013 National Council on Public History Book Award for Museums, Monuments, and National Parks
• Whiting Public Engagement Fellowship (2018-2019) supporting the Baltimore Uprising project

Academic Leadership

She directs the Preserve the Baltimore Uprising digital archive containing 3,000+ community-submitted materials from the 2015 protests. Her $50,000 Whiting Fellowship enabled partnerships with Baltimore City educators to develop curriculum on racial injustice. Students collaborate with organizations like Baltimore Heritage and Maryland Center for History and Culture, with outputs featured on the Explore Baltimore Heritage app.

Collaborative Infrastructure

She co-leads a multidisciplinary team including the Maryland Historical Society (Joe Tropea), UMBC's Imaging Research Center (Lee Boot), Shriver Center Choice education programs (Frank Anderson), and community organizers (Denise Griffin Johnson). This network supports digital curation, oral history training, and youth engagement through Enoch Pratt Free Library presentations.