C. W. Bright Pixel Prize for Best History and New Media Project History and Art History

Anne Champlin is a PhD student in Global History at George Mason University. She is focused on the inter-imperial Atlantic between 1730 and 1850 and has a particular interest in the Danish West Indies. Her work explores how entangled empires shaped sovereignty, mobility, and resistance in the early modern Atlantic world. She currently serves as a Graduate Research Assistant at the Center for Mason Legacies and has been a Graduate Teaching Assistant for Global History and Western Civilization.

Having graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and Classics from the University of Richmond in 2025, Ally is currently a first year student in the history PhD program at George Mason University. Originally from Virginia, Ally studies the early history of the state with a particular focus on the Tidewater region, as well as material culture studies, religion, Jewish studies, women's history, and public history. Upon successful completion of her dissertation, Ally intends to join the museum world with the goal of curating meaningful exhibits that engage with diverse audiences while showcasing the multi-layered stories of the past.

Chapman “Chappy” Hall is a first-year history PhD student and a Graduate Affiliate at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. He was born and raised in Maine and earned his Bachelor of Arts in history at the University of Maine. Chappy’s research is focused on French colonialism and empire during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. In addition, he is interested in digital history and studies how history video games communicate historical ideas. Outside of his research Chappy is a musician and enjoys playing trombone and jazz music. As he works towards completing his PhD, Chappy intends to continue incorporating video game research into the historical discipline and hopes to inspire others to do so as well.

Paige Magoto is a first-year PhD student in History at George Mason University. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in History with a minor in Political Science from Georgia College and State University in 2022 and her Master of Arts from Clemson University in 2025. Her master's thesis examined the complexities of race, sexuality, and labor in the United States through the lens of the famous vice district, Storyville, in New Orleans. This project uses digital history methods to catalog and map over 8,000 workers and locations within the district. In the future, she plans to continue researching vice districts from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, aiming to complete her dissertation and pursue a career in academia.