Speech and Debate may be suiting up for the last time.

If you didn’t see some of your peers on Friday, February 27th, they were all driving six hours to California… for a state tournament. Weird I know. During the long drive, the small team composed of five usually talks about any range of topics, creating bonds with their teammates. 

Spending the night for tournaments is the ultimate experience. Long nights with music, deep conversations with roommates, the “stale eggs” according to junior Nousha Aldhefery, or even the bonds you’ll create. Speech and debate has something that’ll appeal to you. All of this was in doubt for next year.

This was our last tournament. We suited up for one last time. We had to do our speeches one last time. Or so we thought. Winta Tekle, a senior, placed fifth in the state for her speech about the exploitation of the cruising industry. Nousha Aldhefery placed sixth in the state for her humorous interp about a journey through the airport and the many odd interactions you may encounter. Speech and Debate requires you to be unique and to find a way to stand out among the crowd. We’re a dedicated bunch, and we love what we do, even if we constantly talk about how much we hate our speeches. We like it so much that, Nousha, a junior, decided to take a leap of fate of speech and debate into her own hands. Despite the adversity, she decided to find a new sponsor – and was successful when Ms. Goode agreed to takeover.  Now the club has started to brainstorm new ways to fundraise for next year after securing that the legacy will continue next year.

So, if you’re looking for an outlet to express an opinion, want to improve your speaking ability, want to act, or even meet some pretty cool people, join next year. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.