C-SPAN has announced that Hadley Frey and Jack Epstein, students at Alice B. Landrum Middle School in Ponte Vedra Beach, are honorable mention prize winners in C-SPAN’s national 2022 StudentCam competition.
They will receive $250 for the documentary, "The Endangered Species Act."
The competition, now in its 18th year, invited all middle and high school students to enter by producing a short documentary. C-SPAN, in cooperation with its cable television partners, asked students to explore a federal policy or program and address the theme: "How does the federal government impact your life?"
In response, more than 3,000 students across the country participated in the contest. C-SPAN received more than 1,400 entries from 41 states, the District of Columbia, Morocco and South Korea.
The most popular topics addressed were: environment and pollution (10%), health care and mental health (9%), COVID-19 and recovery (7%), immigration (5%) and Second Amendment and firearm legislation (4%).
"This year, we asked students to reflect on how a federal program or policy is relevant to their lives and communities," said Craig McAndrew, director of C-SPAN education relations. "The winners showcased exceptional research and production values as they wove personal stories with historical or contemporary issues. These middle and high school students far exceeded our expectations, and we are elated to share their hard work with the country."
C-SPAN is funded by America’s cable television companies, who also support StudentCam. In Ponte Vedra Beach, C-SPAN is available locally through Comcast.
"Comcast is pleased to honor our local winners on this outstanding achievement in the 2022 StudentCam competition," said Bill Ferry, senior director of external affairs and community impact for Comcast in North Florida. "We applaud Hadley and Jack for the creative and thoughtful analysis of the government programs and policies that affect our communities."
More than 300 students from across the country are winning a total of $100,000. C-SPAN is awarding one grand prize, four first prizes, 16 second prizes, 32 third prizes and 97 honorable mention prizes. These winning videos will receive cash awards of $5,000, $3,000, $1,500, $750 and $250, respectively.
High school students competed on a regional level, with the United States divided into three regions: West, Central and East. Middle school students were judged on a national basis. The grand prize winner was selected nationally among all regions and grade levels.
The 150 winning videos can be viewed at studentcam.org.
Videos were evaluated by a panel of educators and C-SPAN representatives based on the thoughtful examination of the competition’s theme, quality of expression, inclusion of varying sides of the documentary’s topic, and effective incorporation of C-SPAN programming.
