Cristina Turdean

Cristina Turdean is an Associate Professor of Historic Preservation at the University of Mary Washington (UMW). She is affiliated with the Department of Historic Preservation within the College of Arts and Sciences. Her work bridges historic preservation with public history, community engagement, and cultural heritage.

• B.S., M.S., The Polytechnic Institute of Cluj-Napoca
• M.A., Cooperstown Graduate Program - State University of New York, College at Oneonta
• Ph.D., University of Delaware - Hagley Program

Turdean specializes in the intersection of historic preservation and social history, with a focus on desegregation, African American education, and memorialization. She has led student exhibitions, such as The Road to Desegregation in King George County, Virginia, which explored Black students' experiences during the Jim Crow era through oral histories and archival research.

Her honors include appointments to prominent historical boards, such as the James Monroe Law Office Museum and Memorial Library's Board of Regents by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. Additionally, she contributes to advisory committees like the Ralph Bunche High School project.

Turdean's teaching and research emphasize community collaboration, museum design, and interpretive practices to address historical inequities in education and preservation. She serves as a bridge between academia and public policy through her leadership roles.