History MA alumna Todi Carnes wins Fairfax County History Commission's Mayo Stuntz Prize

Still images from Todi Carnes

Still images from Todi Carnes's award-winning video, "Huntley Cultural Landscape" (2020)


On November 4, 2020, the Fairfax County History Commission announced Todi Carnes, a graduate of Mason’s History Masters program, as the winner of the 2020 Mayo Stuntz Prize for a short video documentary on a topic in Fairfax County History. Carnes’ video, Huntley Cultural Landscape, developed in Prof. Kelly Schrum’s Digital Storytelling course, interprets the cultural landscape of Historic Huntley, a federal-period historic site owned by the Fairfax County Park Authority. Preserving the viewshed from adverse visual impacts is part of the work of the Friends of Historic Huntley, a non-profit organization of which Carnes has served as president since 2014.

Before turning to preserving local history, Carnes served as an attorney with the United States Air Force. Returning to study after twenty-five years in the work force, she initially worried she was not qualified for the Digital Storytelling course, but Prof. Schrum reassured her that all she needed was a willingness to try new tools and learn new skills. Carnes found making a scholarly digital video a valuable learning experience that complemented her reading of scholarship by requiring her to film on location and talk with historic site managers and local history experts. Since graduating, Carnes has focused on her work with the Friends of Historic Huntley. As a former attorney, she was thrilled that as well as the prize money, the award resulted in her name appearing in the Congressional Record, as U.S. House Representative Gerald Connolly has all Fairfax County History Commission award winners’ names entered into the Record. 

Still images from Todi Carnes

Still images from Todi Carnes's award-winning video, "Huntley Cultural Landscape" (2020)