Brittany Richmond strives to live her dash.

Inspired by a Linda Ellis poem about the symbol seen between birth and death dates, Richmond said it is important to make that dash have significance. To do that, Richmond works to strengthen her understanding of the world around her and make it a better place for others.

“I try on a day to day basis to spread the knowledge I have learned, to give others opportunities that they may not have had before, while also learning and speaking to every person that I can, learning about their lives, experiences and the most meaningful things to them throughout their own journeys,” she said.

Richmond is active in organizations such as Women in Learning and Leadership and the Association of Women Veterans; she also serves as a College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters ambassador, where she guides and advises students. She’s done public speaking and event organizing through her involvement with Take Back the Night and the Female Veteran Stand Down; she also was a Relay for Life team captain and volunteers with Vista Maria in a mentoring role.

Learning from others and giving a voice is also present in Richmond’s research work, which she presented at the Meeting of Minds undergraduate conference and the Celebration of Donors event. Her work focused on African American women who were active in the Women’s Suffrage Movement, but relatively unknown. Her findings were published in the Online Biographical Dictionary of the Woman Suffrage Movement in the United States.