C-SPAN StudentCam Documentary Competition
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. PACE students participate in this competition in their Accelerated Government Class and are some of the most successful students in the nation winning over $30,000 in prize money over the years and every award possible.
In 2021, Poly PACE Students won 9 awards and over $3,000 in prize money. They were recognized by the Long Beach Post, Mayor Robert Garcia, and Congressman Lowenthal for their hard work and dedication — even during a pandemic. This is just one of the many ways that PACE students are able to add to their educational experience. Read the story here.
$750 3rd Prize to Natalie Canalis & Estele Laguerre for their documentary “It’s Time to Change the 13th Amendment.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Maya Randolph for her documentary “To Protect and Serve.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Eva Kisska, Lauren Villaverde & Lana MIssios for their documentary, “The Period Problem.”
$750 3rd Prize to Theany Heng, Victoria Heng & Molly Flynn for their documentary “A Balanced Separation.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Taylor Johnson for her documentary “Student Athlete Compensation.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Corryn D'Attaray & Isabella Willett for their documentary, “Equality for Black Women’s Health.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Sasha Johnson for her documentary, “Conspiracy Theories and Their Affect on Democracy.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Tiare Ho-Ching, Kassandra Villegas & Karyss Satele-Pinkney for their documentary “Failures In The Foster Care System.”
$250 Honorable Mention to Josephine Gore, Sofia Brys & Jocelyn Hebish for their documentary, “Controlling Forest Fires, Controlling Our Future.”
2020 Poly PACE Winners
Above is our $3,000 1st prize winning team and their documentary:
"Vision 2020: Restoring the Integrity of American Democracy"
2020 Was one of our most successful years in the StudentCam Competition. We made over 70 documentaries and had six winning teams totaling $6,000 in prize money for our students and national recognition for their work. For over 8 years PACE students have been creating stories about issues that matter to them.
Alexa Bryson & Kyra Kawamura win $1,500 2nd Prize for their video, “Opportunity for All.”
$250 Honorable Mention for Diana Michaelson & Visud Chang for their video, “More Than Meets the Eye: A Look at the Affordable Housing Crisis”
Maya Randolph wins $750 3rd Prize for her video, "Justice for All"
President Morgan-Barnes wins $250 Honorable Mention for, "Robots vs. Our Future"
Solene Milsap & Lilian Daily win honorable mention for their documentary, “The Homeless Epidemic.”
In 2019 PACE Students won $5,000 in prize money for their documentaries!
Hamid Torabzadeh, Katherine Padilla & Pia Hao from Long Beach Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, CA won 2nd Prize for their video on the Ninth Amendment and citizens' "unenumerated" rights. “Retained by the People: The Promise of America.”
Grant Atwood, Justin Rosu and Jacob Jacoub win honorable mention for their video, “We Didn’t All Come on the Mayflower.”
Samantha Williams and Inanna Khansa win honorable mention for their video, “The Press and The People.”
Audrey Song wins honorable mention for her video, “ One Person, One Vote.”
2018 PACE Winners!
Audrey Moor wins honorable mention for her video, “A Forgotten Amendment.”
Angelica Gonzalez & Karen Ferrer win honorable mention for their video, “Online Paradox.”
Alli Cain, Jane Acuff & Monica Grubbs win honorable mention for their video, “The Power to Protect.”
2017 Winners!
3rd Prize winners Lucy Nottonson & Heather Davis- “Our video discusses the importance of estuaries in the United States and what the government needs to do to help protect and restore them while they are being destroyed every day.”
Peter Donovan, Zane Witter, Olivia Campos win honorable mention for their video, “Atmosphere of Denial.”
Jude McCarthy wins honorable mention for his video, “Plastic Ocean Pollution.”
Eric Hatch & Theo Lee win honorable mention for their video, “Affordable Housing: The Solution to the Housing Crisis.”
Morgan King, Sophia Callan & Sydney Matas win honorable mention for their video, “What’s the Catch.”
2016 Winners
Destin Bigsby wins $750 3rd Prize
“The Great Divide” is video about bridging the gap between Democrats and Republicans on the issue of gun control. Featuring interviews from Newtown residents and Texans."
Cassidy Powers, Chloe Jun & Carlos Necoechea win honorable for their documentary, “Human Trafficking: The End to Modern Day Slavery.”
2015 Winners
Destin Bigsby wins $3,000 Second Prize for his video, “Guns in America.”
Guns in America was one of the second place high school west winners in C-SPAN Classroom's StudentCam documentary contest. The video was produced by Destin Bigby, a junior at Long Beach Polytechnic High School, in Long Beach, California.
Thomas Flemming wins $750 3rd Prize award for his video, “Big Money; Big Problems.”
Corporate spending is an integral part of the political process, but the dangers it poses to the average citizen cannot be ignored.
Bennett McCarthy, Max Mosack & Samuel Leonard win $750 3rd Prize for their video, “Domestic Drones.”
Jacqueline Toyama, Chelsea Mai & Katie Pream win $750 3rd Prize for their video, “GMOs Help the World Grow.”
Eric Hatch, Theo Lee & Stanly Chung win Honorable Mention for their video, “The Gang Solves the Water Crisis.”
Special shout out to the kids for using a reference from one of Mr. Montooth’s favorite TV shows in their title 😂
Evan Pickell & Joanna Stringer win Honorable Mention for their video, “Breaking the Wall- Restoring the Shore.”
$5,000 Grand Prize Winners!!
In 2014 PACE Students Emma Larson, Michaela Capps and Sara Highducheck won the grand prize for their video, “Earth First, Fracking Second.”
