2026 Grand Prize – “The Pursuit of Fair Pay” by Erynna Holbrook

Erynna Holbrook from Troy Athens High School in Troy, Michigan won Grand Prize in the C-SPAN 2026 StudentCam documentary competition for her video titled, “The Pursuit of Fair Pay,” about the impact of NIL on college sports.. As our Grand Prize winner, Erynna receives $5,000 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 Troy, C-SPAN is available locally through Comcast.

Press:

• Press Release: Detroit Area Students Win Prizes in C-SPAN’s National Documentary Competition (Google Doc)
  
  
• Article: Troy student wins CSPAN documentary top prize (The Oakland Press)
  
  
• Article: Metro-Detroit students win prizes in national C-SPAN competition (Social House News)