The Richmond Cemetery Collaboratory: Reflections on Cultivating Longterm University and Community Partnerships

The Division of Community Engagement has launched a Community Engaged Research Series. The professional development sessions are designed for faculty and staff looking to enhance their skills in community engagement, focusing on building stronger, more inclusive relationships between institutions and the communities they serve. Participants will explore key strategies and best practices for effective outreach, partnerships, and community-engaged research.

Webinar Details:
Date: March 20, 2025
Time: 12:00-1:00pm
Topic: The Richmond Cemetery Collaboratory: Reflections on Cultivating Long-term University and Community Partnerships Speakers: Dr. Meghan Gough, Dr. Bernard Means, & Loretta Tillman
Learning Outcomes:

• Recognize the roles of institutions such as higher education in supporting community-identified opportunities and concerns.
• Understand the processes and adjustments necessary to foster long-term partnerships.
• Discuss how the Richmond Cemetery Collaboratory may inform other partnerships in the building and growing stages.

Speaker Bio

Meghan Z. Gough, Ph.D.

Dr. Meghan Z. Gough is an associate professor of urban planning at Virginia Commonwealth University’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. Meghan’s scholarship emphasizes the importance of local knowledge, power and place history in planning processes and outcomes. She frequently works with community partners to co-produce research and pedagogy practices focused on opportunities to advance paradigmatic change that serves local and educational communities and advances systems thinking within the planning discipline. Meghan’s contributions to teaching, research and community service elevate the importance of community-based decision-making in the development of more just plans, policies and practices.

Loretta Tillman

Loretta Tillman is a teacher and social justice advocate from Richmond, Virginia. A retired Henrico County Public Schools educator, she continues to share her experiences growing up in Richmond during the Civil Rights Movement, the implications for public education, and the ongoing fight for racial justice. She serves as co-chair of the Descendants Council of Greater Richmond, working to protect historic Black cemeteries and other culturally significant sites. As a member of the Richmond Cemetery Collaboratory, she collaborates with descendants and allies to preserve these spaces. Loretta also works in Archives and Surveys at the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, supporting the documentation and maintenance of Virginia’s historic resources.

Bernard K. Means, Ph.D.

Dr. Bernard K. Means is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. His scholarly pursuits include reconstructing American Indian village spatial and social organizations, the research potential of archaeological collections, the history of archaeology across the Americas, especially during the Great Depression, and the founding fathers’ obsession with prehistoric megafauna. Dr. Means directs the Virtual Curation Laboratory, where he and his students create 3-D digital models of archaeological, historical, and paleontological objects used for teaching, research, exhibitions, and public outreach. He has co-authored five comic books with VCU almuna Maggie Colangelo, including two on the founding fathers’ obsession with Pleistocene megafauna, especially the American mastodon. Their most recent collaboration provides a perspective of America’s first successful public museum from the point of view of a mouse.