On March 3, South High hosted the National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) Tournament for 22 active schools within the Illinois District. Students compete within three categories including speech, debate, and congress. South High’s speech team earned first place in the speech category.
In addition, ten South High Speech students qualified for the National Tournament in Dallas, Texas, June 16-21. Students qualify for nationals by placing in the top three in each category.
South High National qualifiers include:
- Kevin Tate and Kate Riley in Duo
- Peter Burrows in Humorous Interp
- Janella Guzman in Info
- Alaina Vergara in Info
- Zoe Boyd in Oratory
- Emily Leatherwood in International Extemp
- David Arlt in United States Extemp
- Kaej Spears in Dramatic Interp
- Kira Matheson in Dramatic Interp
Senior Janella Guzman was named District Student of the Year after being nominated by a coach and selected by the Illinois District Committee.
“This is the 40th straight year South High has qualified a student to the national speech tournament,” English and Communications Teacher and Speech Team Coach Justin Matkovich said. “This tournament is always a great opportunity for younger competitors to learn and grow to prepare for the next year, and it is also a great end to the speech career for the seniors who qualify.”
For more information, contact English and Communications Teacher and Speech Team Coach Justin Matkovich at jmatkovich@csd99.org. To learn more about the National Speech & Debate Association, visit their website.