Nominations Announced for 45th College Television Awards by Television Academy Foundation

The Television Academy Foundation today announced nominees for the 45th College Television Awards, which recognizes and rewards excellence in student-produced programs from colleges and universities nationwide, and revealed the recipients of the $10,000 Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students, the annual College Television Awards are regarded as one of the most distinguished and high-profile steppingstones for careers in television and media.

Twenty-four student-produced programs have been nominated, selected from 186 entries representing 44 colleges nationwide. Emulating the Emmy Awards selection process, College Television Awards entries are judged by Television Academy members. Criteria for the awards reflect industry standards of excellence, imagination and innovation.

“The College Television Awards celebrate the extraordinary creativity and talent emerging from campuses across the country,” said Tina Perry, chair of the Television Academy Foundation. “With nominees selected by Television Academy members, these honors not only recognize excellence in student-produced content but also offer aspiring professionals invaluable exposure and connections within the Hollywood creative community and a meaningful step toward building lasting careers in entertainment.”

New for the 2026 awards program is the “Chance Perdomo Legacy Scholarship,” a $10,000 award to the winning college team in the Comedy Series category. Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios created the scholarship as a tribute to the late Gen V actor Chance Perdomo who passed away in a motorcycle accident in 2024. In addition, a category solely for graduate students has been added to the competition with this year’s establishment of a Scripted Series award.

Trophies and over $45,000 in cash prizes will be presented to the winning teams by television stars at the red carpet awards ceremony on March 28, 2026, in North Hollywood, California, for Animation Series; Comedy Series; Commercial, PSA or Promo; Drama Series; News; Nonfiction Series; Scripted Series; Sports; and the Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award.

The nominees for the 45th College Television Awards are listed below:

ANIMATION SERIES:

Beautify - Ringling College of Art and Design

Blooky: The Book Who Wanted to be Read - University of Southern California

Love & Gold - Brigham Young University

COMEDY SERIES/CHANCE PERDOMO LEGACY SCHOLARSHIP:

Dandelion - American Film Institute

Rex - Florida State University

Thanksgiving - Brigham Young University

COMMERCIAL, PSA OR PROMO:

Gap: Wear With Care - Brigham Young University

Ink Up. Wash Out. - Brigham Young University

Never Leave Home - Brigham Young University

DRAMA SERIES:

Halfway - Biola University

Óménàlà - Savannah College of Art and Design (Atlanta)

Song of Silence - American Film Institute

NEWS:

FOCUS: Our Mental Health - Montclair State University

NewsVision (March 6, 2025) - University of Miami

San Francisco: On the Edge - Montclair State University

NONFICTION SERIES:

Cornellskop: Freedom From Fear - Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah)

Strangers on Our Land - University of California, Berkeley

Unbroken Spirits - New York University

SCRIPTED SERIES:

¡Que Suene La Banda! - University of California, Los Angeles

Patakha - American Film Institute

Trife - University of Southern California

SPORTS:

Cronkite Sports Live - Season 22 Finale - Arizona State University

SportsDesk - University of Miami

SportsDesk | The Magazine Edition | 2024 - University of Miami

For the complete list of student nominees, visit

TelevisionAcademy.com/cta/nominees.

The recipients of the $10,000 Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award, which rewards a student-produced project that best portrays disability issues or helps emerging artists with a disability gain recognition, are Savannah College of Art and Design students Danzheng Chen (producer) and Yangshiyi Liu (director and writer) for their project titled Step Forward. The animated piece tells the story of “Ollie” who falls into despair after losing his leg in a car accident. Everything changes when he discovers a mysterious book that opens the door to a magical dream world in which he can journey through his inner struggles and confront his deepest fears. In the end, Ollie realizes that he, alone, holds the power to change his situation and finds the strength to take a first brave step toward a new beginning.

Loreen Arbus is a two-time Emmy nominee who holds the trailblazing distinction of being the first woman to head programming for a U.S. network, both at Showtime and Cable Health Network/Lifetime, and is a leading advocate for people with disabilities. This is the 14th year for this award, provided by The Loreen Arbus Foundation, which has established and funds scholarships that enhance and elevate social consciousness around key societal issues.

Yet to be revealed is the Seymour Bricker Humanitarian Award, a $4,000 cash prize awarded to a College Television Award-winning project that best highlights a humanitarian concern, announced during the ceremony.

In addition, nominees attending will participate in three days of professional development events, March 26-28, with media-industry leaders prior to the awards show and a special screening of their projects for Television Academy members.

Winners in the competition will be announced by celebrity presenters at the awards ceremony Saturday, March 28, 2026, at the Television Academy’s North Hollywood campus. Tickets to the ceremony are $25 for students with ID and $50 for general admission. To purchase tickets, visit TelevisionAcademy.com/cta/tickets.

The Foundation has also established a College Television Awards Honorary Committee composed of industry talent who will serve as ambassadors for the program. Along with the Foundation’s board of directors, the Honorary Committee will serve as jury members for the Seymour Bricker Humanitarian Award. Members of the Honorary Committee for the 2026 ceremony include: Carlacia Grant (Outer Banks), Timothy Omundson (This Is Us), Chris Perfetti (Abbott Elementary), Melissa Peterman (Happy’s Place) and Rebecca Wisocky (Ghosts).