Speech and Debate students recently placed in the Regional competition, thus allowing them to progress further into more competitions.
Senior Reese Merritt broke a school record for the number of National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) points she received during her debate. The previous record was 600 points, but she broke it with 800 points.
“Honestly, seeing my entire team come together to contribute to the whole team placing 4th meant more than seeing myself get 4th in impromptu in the region,” Merritt said. “We’ve truly had to build this team from the ground up, and regionals was just the start.”
Speech and Debate members compete in small tournaments throughout the semester to prepare for tournaments like Regionals. This allows them to better prepare themselves for future tournaments.
“[Speech and Debate] is a fun thing that I do for school that allows me to express myself, but it allows me to speak up; something that allows me to explore my skills and grow as a person,” sophomore Madeline Spencer said.
Spencer prefers the speech side of Speech and Debate. She has been doing speech since freshman year, and plans on continuing to partake in the club for the rest of high school.
“You just read something dramatically,” Spencer said. “It’s like theater, but instead of performing in front of a whole bunch of people, you’re doing it in front of a smaller group of people who are doing the same thing, so it’s not as embarrassing.”
Opposite of this, Merritt prefers debating. She is the team’s debate captain and has been since her sophomore year, making her the team captain for three years. Her biggest motivation for continuing debate is her found ability to advocate for others.
“Being a female in the debate world is rough,” Merrit said. “You get judged more and people never take you seriously when you walk in wearing high heels and makeup. I debate for the little girls that want to be politicians but are too scared of the political world.”
