Katelyn Chang, Nour-Eldin Elshahawi, & Jayden Kim from the Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana, California and the U.S. Senate Page School in Washington, DC won 3rd Prize in the High School Western Division of the 2026 C-SPAN StudentCam documentary competition for their video titled, “The Key to a Healthy Democracy,” about how the legacy of the Declaration of Independence inspires youth community service, and how that service, in turn, strengthens our communities in a uniquely American way through civic engagement. As 3rd Prize winners, they will split $750 in prize money.
StudentCam is C-SPAN’s annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think critically about issues that affect our communities and our nation. 2026 marked the 22nd year of the competition and in this semiquincentennial year celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we asked students in grades 6-12 to create a short (5:00-6:00 minute) video documentary on either a historical or contemporary topic that related to the competition theme, “America’s 250th Anniversary”
Exploring the American Story through the Declaration of Independence.
C-SPAN is funded by America’s cable, satellite television and streaming companies, who also support StudentCam. In Santa Ana, C-SPAN is available locally through Comcast.
Press:
- Press Release: Santa Ana Students Win Prizes in C-SPAN’s National Documentary Competition (Google Doc)
StudentCam 2026 3rd Prize: "The Key to a Healthy Democracy"
Congratulatory Messages and Recognition
Irvine, CA Mayor Larry Agran
