Olentangy Liberty Middle School Student Ben Kurian won first prize in the C-SPAN Student Cam competition. He created a documentary on the impact opioids are having on people in the state of Ohio called, “Losing a Generation.”

Mike Kallmeyer talked with Kurian about what inspired him to choose this topic. His mother works as a nurse practitioner in addiction medicine.

Kurian said he got really inspired by her work. The prompt for the project asked: If you were a member of Congress which issue would you try to address?

“My main focus, a theme throughout the entire video, was to treat opioid addiction like a chronic disease and not a moral failing,” he said.