Michelle L. Stefano

Prof. Michelle L. Stefano is a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of American Studies, University of Maryland. Her research focuses on intangible cultural heritage, combining anthropology and sociology to explore its safeguarding at local levels. She holds a PhD from Newcastle University's International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies, supported by the Higher Education Funding Council for England and Robinson Bequest Bursary. Her academic background includes an MA in International Museum Studies (Gothenburg University) and BAs in History of Art/Architecture and Visual Arts (Brown University).

Her work emphasizes community engagement with heritage, as seen in her co-directed film Mill Stories (2012), which examines the legacy of the Sparrows Point Steel Mill through worker narratives. She actively participates in Critical Heritage Studies initiatives, advocating for heritage's role in social change. She has contributed to museum projects in Europe and the U.S., and currently moderates sessions on heritage recontextualization and pedagogical practices in heritage studies.

Stefano's academic contributions bridge theory and practice, with a focus on deindustrialization's societal impacts. She collaborates with the Association of Critical Heritage Studies and teaches courses applying heritage studies to urban transformation contexts like Baltimore.