The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Speech and Debate team finished its 145th season on a high note with strong performances at national tournaments.
Students placed ninth in the nation and first among all teams from the Big Ten competing at the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET) on April 2-4. A total of 74 schools and 500 students competed at the tournament. With this win, the speech team placed in the top ten for the ninth straight year and in the top 20 teams for the 21st straight year.
The highlight of the national tournament was the performance of Omaha native and senior Grace Solem-Pfeifer placed 4th in the nation in After Dinner Speaking, 12th overall in individual sweepstakes, and 10th in Communication Analysis. Solem-Pfeifer also was named to the AFA-NEIT All-American Team, which is composed of a dozen students from around the country who have demonstrated excellence in classroom, in their communities, and in competitive speech.
“Grace is a dedicated, talented, intelligent student and the numerous awards she one at the tournament demonstrates all the hard work she puts into the activity,” said Aaron Duncan, program director. “We have wonderful students and dedicated coaches here at UNL and I am proud of all of them.”
Only the top 10 percent of student speakers nationally qualify to compete at the AFA-NIET tournament, and only the top 15 percent of those select students advance to elimination rounds.
19 students qualified for the tournament in 63 events and seven students advanced to elimination rounds. Four students placed among the top 10 in the nation in their event. Sophomore Erin Sheehan of Omaha placed 9th in Communication Analysis.
On April 14-18th, representatives from UNL’s debate team competed at the National Forensics Association’s Tournament of Champions on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, and captured 14th place.
“We have a wonderful group of young debaters on the team committed to the ideals of argumentation and advocacy,” Duncan said. “If they continue to work hard and stay committed, there are no limits to what they can achieve.”
On April 23-24th, senior Kendra Nebel, of Raymond, represented the team and the state of Nebraska at the National Interstate Oratory Competition, where she placed 10th. Each year the top two persuasive speakers from each state are selected to compete at the tournament. The Interstate Oratory Competition is the oldest public speaking competition in North America and this year celebrated its 142nd anniversary.
The team also won at the Conference Challenge Tournament at Northwestern University, where it claimed UNL’s fifth Big Ten Tournament victory.
“The accomplishments and achievements of the team would not be possible without the tremendous support we receive from the Department of Communication Studies, the College of Arts and Sciences, special donors, and the University’s commitment to recruiting the best and brightest student speakers from across the state and nation,” Duncan said.
“It is impossible not to be moved by the dedication and excellence of these UNL student speakers and their coaches," Dawn O. Braithwaite, chair of the Department of Communication Studies, commented. "This program is the oldest student activity at UNL and these students remind us that the future is indeed bright.”
The Speech and Debate team is part of UNL’s Department of Communication Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. The department explores human communication as it shapes and is shaped by relationships, institutions and societies. Its main areas of expertise are interpersonal and family communication, organizational communication, and rhetoric and public culture.
