2026 1st Prize Middle School Division – “This Is What Democracy Looks Like” by Harper Haden & Helena de la Houssaye

8th grade students Harper Haden & Helena de la Houssaye from Correia Middle School in San Diego, California who won 1st Prize in the Middle School Division for their video titled, “This Is What Democracy Looks Like,” about the influence of the Declaration of Independence on the No Kings Movement. As 1st Prize winners, the duo will receive $3,000 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 San Diego, C-SPAN is available locally through Cox Communications.

Press:

• Press Release: San Diego and Escondido Students Win Prizes in C-SPAN’s National Video Documentary Competition (Google Doc)

• Article: San Diego area students win national documentary competition (The San Diego Union Tribune)

•  Article: San Diego middle school students win national documentary competition (KPBS)