2026 3rd Prize Middle School Division – “The Limits of Difference: From the Declaration of Independence to United States v. Virginia” by Celeste Stout

Celeste Stout from Correia Middle School in San Diego, California won 3rd Prize in the Middle School Division of the 2026 C-SPAN StudentCam documentary competition for their video titled, “The Limits of Difference: From the Declaration of Independence to United States v. Virginia.” As a 3rd Prize winner, Celeste will receive $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 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)