Have you ever heard of a club and a class in one? Speech and Debate is a 5.5 class — for half credits and for fun. 

In Speech and Debate, students go to tournaments and compete against other schools in Southern California. In the 5.5, it’s required for a student to attend one tournament. 

“We play a bunch of speech and debate games related to how they are in tournaments and the different events that you can compete in, so everyone is prepared,” president and junior Sophie Schultz said.

On a normal day, the club debates about topics like movies, snacks and music. This makes sure no students have any hard feelings toward each other. The club meets up every Tuesday and Thursday after school from 2:30 to 3:30. 

The speech part of the class consists of a couple different categories. There is Extemporaneous Speaking, Original Oratory, Dramatic Interpretation, Duo Interpretation, Congressional Debate, Lincoln – Douglas Debate, Policy Debate, and Public Forum Debate.

“I wanted to join Speech and Debate because I loved, and still love, public speaking, and I wanted to get better at it.” Vice President junior Emma Sweeney said. 

COVID did not stop speech and debate. Over quarantine, they learned, performed, and played games. This was challenging though. They had to pre record their performances, then submit it to judges. 

From ZOOM to in person wasn’t hard for speech and debate. Many students were eager to join and are              very passionate about trying new things. 

“I like to think that we are giving students real life skills.” Advisor and English Teacher Katherine McMillan said.