Lia Schifitto

Manager of Research Initiatives

Lia is originally from Rochester, New York, home of the North Star Newspaper. As the daughter of immigrants, she developed a fascination with the malleability of space in creating belonging. Lia has worked within both academic and public networks. Most recently, she led outreach for public programming at the Los Angeles Conservancy, focusing on developing relationships and programs highlighting immigrant and diasporic enclaves in L.A. Previously, Lia was the Mellon Community-Engaged Learning Fellow at Grinnell College, where she helped design public humanities curriculum with faculty and community partners in rural Iowa. Other notable experiences include community outreach for the public history and art collective, Art Force 5 (Alfred University), and ethnographic and geo-spatial research at Joshua Tree National Park.

Lia holds a Master's in Sustainable Cultural Heritage from The American University of Rome and a Bachelor's in History from the University of Toronto. Her research centers on ways of knowing, collective memory, and regional vernacular landscapes in the heritage interpretation field.