Speech and Debate makes their mark
March 3, 2022
On February 19th, our Speech and Debate team competed in the Shenandoah Virginia Forensics League at James Madison University(JMU).
The Speech and Debate team is made up of students who want to enhance their public speaking skills and compete in tournaments. Speech and Debate is one program broken into two parts. Speech is more performance based and is divided into several events which include Prose, Poetry, Storytelling, Dramatic interpretation, Duo interpretation, Impromptu, Extemporaneous Speaking, Declamation and Original Orator. Debate requires students to research and prepare to argue both sides of a topic. The winner of a debate is determined by which side is more convincing.
Similar to many sports, competitors can feel nervous before performing.
“I was extremely nervous about the competition, but once I got in the room and performed, all those emotions went away,” junior Makiah Holcomb said. “The only thing I could think about was performing my speech to the best of my abilities, regardless of what the outcome would be.”
At JMU, the results lead to senior Bethany Racette placing 1st in Dramatic Interpretation and junior Makiah Holcomb placing 1st in Original Oratory. Along with Bethany Racette and Makiah Holcomb, junior Michael Shea placed 2nd in Humorous Interpretation, senior Olivia Thompson placed 2nd in Prose, junior Sarah Schulte placed 3rd in Prose, and sophomore Brayden Jones placed 3rd in Original Oratory at JMU.
“It felt shocking to win first place in Dramatic Interpretation at the JMU competition,” senior Bethany Racette said. “I have been working on my piece all year and to see my work being recognized feels really fulfilling.” senior Bethany Racette said.
The team has had a successful year, earning five trophies for overall performance from October through February, from the Shenandoah Virginia Forensics League, with over half of them being championships.
“I think the students have worked hard and done an awesome job all year. I am happy to see them being rewarded for their hard work,” Speech and Debate coach Mrs.Donna Love said.
