By De Equitibus Staff
Though Tempe Prep’s speech and debate team may be small, we are still fierce competitors. With five tournaments in the first semester, Tempe Prep managed to show that we can still compete with the best, despite having only seven team members. Tempe Prep Speech and Debate competes in Division I, alongside huge schools like Desert Vista and Hamilton High who have teams with hundreds of kids.
In only the second tournament of the year, held at McClintock High School, sophomore David Smith, new to the team, placed first in Novice Impromptu – an event in which you are given two minutes to prepare a five-minute speech on an unfamiliar topic. He was also the champion Novice Lincoln-Douglas Debate – a one-on-one philosophical debate. Junior Lindsay Newfeld was a finalist in Varsity Impromptu, placing fifth. Junior Harish Ilango was a finalist in Congressional Debate, placing fourth in the tournament.
At the Mesquite Water Tower Invitational, Lindsay Newfeld was a finalist in Original Oratory – an event in which the competitor writes and memorizes a ten-minute persuasive speech on the topic of their choice. She placed sixth in the tournament. Harish Ilango was a finalist in Congressional Debate, placing fourth for the second time in the year. At all of our tournaments, we have competitors consistently breaking to quarterfinal rounds and semifinals in both speech events and debate.
It has been a great first semester for Tempe Prep Speech and Debate but we still need more members. No matter how amazing our team does, we are still competing with Desert Vista High School whose team boasts at least a hundred members. Speech and Debate is an amazing extra-curricular activity and while it does take time and dedication, it is extremely rewarding and teaches you skills that you can continue to use for the rest of your life.
The team meets Tuesdays and Thursdays after school in Room 404. If you are interested in joining the team for second semester just stop in one day and see what speech and debate is all about.