This experimental practicum pairs three practitioners who together model the range of forms digital history is taking: a research historian who has integrated these platforms into his teaching; a digital humanities producer who shapes the curatorial and pedagogical architecture of Bunk and New American History; and a scholar-practitioner whose work with sound, space, and community history is redefining what historical evidence can look and sound like in the classroom.

Julian Hayter, Associate Professor of Leadership Studies at the University of Richmond, opens the session with a focused account of how he has built assignments around Bunk and New American History in undergraduate courses—and how those strategies translate to Advanced Placement and dual-enrollment contexts. Annie Evans, of NewAmericanHistory.org, follows with an inside look at Bunk’s editorial logic: how connections between documents are built, what distinguishes the platform from a conventional archive, and how that structure makes historiographical thinking visible to students. Ryan Donovan Purcell, Lecturer at Fordham University, creator of Soundscapes NYC, and curatorial advisor to the Hip Hop Museum and the New-York Historical Society, closes the presentation sequence by demonstrating how sound-based digital history expands the archive and opens new entry points for students whose relationship to the past is often sonic before it is textual.

Following the three presentations, the presenters invite audience members to explore the platforms directly. Working individually or in pairs on their own devices, participants are assigned to one of three thematic “exploration stations”—each built around curated content from Bunk and, where relevant, Soundscapes NYC. All three presenters will circulate to engage, answer questions, and model how they themselves navigate the materials.

The session closes with small groups sharing their reflections, and a facilitated whole-room discussion about curricular integration and accessibility, with a concise takeaway from each presenter. Participants leave with direct experience of multiple digital platforms, concrete assignment models, and a network of colleagues working at the intersection of digital humanities and history education.