Speech and Debate

NSU Speech and Debate provides a platform for students passionate about the spoken word to compete in local and national speech and debate competitions. The organization recognizes student achievements, facilitates membership in national organizations like Pi Kappa Delta, and offers opportunities to participate in a variety of contests. Additionally, the club hosts high school speech contests, fostering a connection between NSU and the broader community. Open to all students in good academic standing, NSU Speech and Debate is dedicated to promoting excellence in communication, critical thinking, and performance.

The Northern State Speech and Debate team returned from Springfield, MO after competing at the Pi Kappa Delta National Tournament with multiple awards.

The Northern State team took seven students with 13 total entries to the tournament and returned with the following honors:

• Abiah George received excellence awards (top 20%) in extemporaneous speaking and student scholarship, as well as a superior award (top 10%) in interviewing. She was also the 10th place speaker in Open IPDA debate and earned an excellence award in IPDA.
• Haylee Bohnet received an excellence award in Dramatic Interpretation.
• Hannah Smith and Liv Ashley were national runners-up in Junior Varsity Public Forum debate. Hannah was also named the top JV Public Forum debate speaker, while Liv placed 8th in Open Public Forum debate speaking.
• Elana Bishop and Lauren Carpenter were national runners-up in Novice Public Forum debate.
• Jericho Jones was a quarterfinalist in Novice IPDA debate.

In addition to these awards, Haylee (Dramatic Interpretation) and Abiah (Extemporaneous Speaking) were selected to perform in the PKD Showcase events, highlighting some of the top performances of the tournament.

Overall, there were just over 1,900 total entries from 438 students representing 59 schools competing at PKD Nationals this year.