The Educational Access Awareness Awards honor original student video productions that have been broadcast during the school year on Altice’s Educational Access Channel 78. The Area 9 Cable Council (A9CC) and Altice sponsor this contest yearly to encourage students to develop video production and storytelling skills by creating video content relevant to their school and community.
To encourage students to produce programming for Ch. 78 while developing video production & storytelling skills by creating educational access programming relevant to their schools, communities and/or curriculum.
Students in grades K-12 attending school in any of the ten cities and towns that comprise the Area 9 Cable Council: Greenwich, Stamford, New Canaan, Darien, Norwalk, Westport, Weston, Wilton, Easton or Redding.
Video submission: Friday, May 2, 2025
Each project entered must have been completed and cablecast in its final form at least once on a Cablevision of Connecticut Public, Educational or Governmental (PEG) Access Channel between 4/21/2025 and 5/2/25.
Each district can submit up to a maximum of three entries per category.
Entry Categories:
Adult Assisted (AA) – a video of any category where significant adult assistance was provided in camera work, script writing, managing inputs/switching or editing (excludes post-edits to meet time limits)(10 minutes or less)
Animation / Stop Motion (ASM) – a video giving life to inanimate objects, e.g., claymation (3 minutes or less)
Experimental (EXP) – videos that do not fit the structure of any of the other categories (3 minutes or less)
Documentary (DOC) – an in depth, informational film, includes A and B roll ( 10 minutes or less)
General Interest Story (GIS) – informational video about topics not related directly to school events, could be from class or club projects, topical with no PSA call to action (3 minutes or less)
Narrative/Fiction (NF) – a short fictional scripted story/film (3 minutes or less)
News Program (NS) – a full news program that you consider the best (10 minutes or less)
Public Service Announcements (PSA) – a video about a non-profit organization or an educational message or call to action (60 seconds or less)
School News Story (SNS) – an informational video about school events, activities, or issues (3 minutes or less)
Each district can submit up to a maximum of three entries per category.
Entry Categories:
Adult Assisted (AA) – a video of any category where significant adult assistance was provided in camera work, script writing, managing inputs/switching or editing (excludes post-edits to meet time limits) (4 minutes or less)
Animation / Stop Motion (ASM) – a video giving life to inanimate objects, e.g., claymation (3 minutes or less)
Experimental (EXP) – videos that do not fit the structure of any of the other categories (4 minutes or less), e.g., music video, travelog, visual poem, etc. (4 minutes or less)
Documentary (DOC) – an in depth, informational film, includes A and B roll (10 minutes or less)
General Interest Story (GIS) – informational video about topics could be from class or club projects, topical with no PSA message or call to action (3 minutes or less)
Narrative/Fiction (NF) – a short film / scripted story (4 minutes or less)
News Program (NS) – ONE news program that you consider the best (15 minutes or less)
Public Service Announcements (PSA) – a video about a non-profit organization or an educational message or call to action (60 seconds or less)
School News Story (SNS) – an informational video about school events, activities, or issues (3 minutes or less)
Sports Highlight Reel (SHR) – A fast-paced video showcasing key moments from a sporting event or season. This could include standout plays, game-changing moments, or impressive athletic performances. The video should be well-edited, using engaging visuals and narration/sound. (90 seconds or less)
Sports Play-by-Play (SPP) – A video featuring student live play-by-play commentary for a school sporting event. The announcer should describe the action in real-time, demonstrate knowledge of the game, and offer clear, energetic, and informative narration. (3 minutes or less)
Trophies and certificates will be given to winning projects. John Repicky Awards will be awarded to the top project at each level (Elementary, Middle, and High School). The Repicky Awards come with an equipment package grant for the winning schools.
Awards will be given per project.
Judges reserve the right to reallocate awards based on the quantity and quality of submissions.
The decision of the judges is final.
Winners of the Annual Access Awareness Awards (AAA) will be announced by the Educational Access Area Nine Cable Council by the beginning of June.
Students will receive recognition for their entries.