StudentCam Stars
C-SPAN has announced that local Bronx students are among the winners in C-SPAN’s national 2015 StudentCam competition.
Yeaasen Mooktadeer, Destiny López and Kenrick Alfred, seniors at the Bronx Center for Science and Mathematics in Bronx, will receive $250 for their Honorable Mention documentary To Ban or Not To Ban about affirmative action.
The national competition, now in its 11th year, invites middle school (grades 6-8) and high school students (grades 9-12) to produce a five- to- seven minute documentary on a national policy issue.
Among other winners were students from Flushing, Hackensack, Hoboken, New Milford and Jersey City.
Participating students were asked to answer the question, “The Three Branches and You: tell a story that demonstrates how a policy, law, or action by either the executive, legislative, or judicial branch has affected you or your community.” In response, C-SPAN received 2,280 video submissions from almost 5,000 students in 45 states and Washington.
“This year, the competition saw its greatest number of participants ever,” says Craig McAndrew, C-SPAN Manager of Education Relations. “All aspects of these student video productions, including the research, planning, and diverse range of expert interviews, demonstrate the highest levels of critical thought and initiative.”
“StudentCam affords our nation’s youth a platform to express their opinions on national issues, and we’re confident these documentaries will prove eye-opening and inspire viewers across the country.”
Documentaries were judged by a panel of C-SPAN education representatives and evaluated 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.
For the 2015 competition, the top three most popular documentary topics were:
Education
Healthcare
Economy
C-SPAN is funded by America’s cable television companies, which support StudentCam. In the Bronx, C-SPAN is available locally through Cablevision.
“Cablevision is excited to congratulate all of our students on their winning 2015 StudentCam documentary,” said Jennifer Ostrager, Cablevision Vice President of Public Affairs. “This competition encourages students to use the media to help them make sense of difficult concepts and topics the federal government works on day to day. Optimum Community is pleased to support these efforts and congratulate the students on their hard work and national accomplishment.”
These winners are among 347 students from across the country winning a total of $100,000, including one Grand Prize winner, four First Prize winners, 16 Second Prize winners, 32 Third Prize winners and 97 Honorable Mentions.
