Forensics team moves to nationals
Tournament time — The Liberty forensics team from top left Josh Wade, Colin Dowd, Rachel Brown, Whitney Rutherford, Andre Craig, Rebecca Rudolph, Yemisi Egbewoli, Joseph Woods, Meagan Roper and Meridith Styer. Photo provided
The Liberty University forensics team will be competing at the national tournament, following recent victories in competition at George Mason University. The team, which began its work in 2009, is not about crime solving but has to do with public speaking.
“Forensic speech seeks to provide introduction, theory, training and instruction in public communication necessary to develop speech performance skills required for successful speaking in a variety of arenas,” Coach Meagan Roper said.
The team consists of 15 students who compete under the guidance and direction of their coaches Meridith Styer and Roper.
“Communication skills are often singled out as the most important aspects of success in arenas from business and teaching to evangelism and preaching. With this in mind, the forensics speech team seeks to build not simply successful competitors but great Christian communicators,” Roper said.
The team is a member of the Southern and Northern Atlantic Forensics Union, also known as District Seven (D7), the American Forensics Association (AFA), the National Forensics Association (NFA) and the National Christian College Forensics Association. Each of these associations holds a national tournament in the spring semester of each year.
“Each of these events cover presentations from limited preparation events like impromptu and extemporaneous speaking to prepared, memorized pieces in the interpretive and platform categories,” Roper said.
“Our principle is the power of individuals to participate with others in shaping their world through the human capacity of language,” the AFA website stated.
Liberty’s forensics team recently traveled to compete in the Virginia is for Lovers Swing at George Mason University. Liberty freshman Whitney Rutherford and juniors Josh Wade and Colin Dowd each earned one of three top placings needed to win a place to present at the American Forensics Association’s national tournament in April in San Marcos, Texas.
On a previous competition hosted by Liberty, Rutherford qualified to present her persuasive piece on DDT at the National Forensics Association national competition in April in Athens, Ohio. Wade and Dowd also get to take their duo piece, a compilation on teachers, to nationals as well. Wade placed for his prose piece on greed and will take the piece to NFA nationals.
“In these competitions you talk about what you are most passionate about,” Dowd said.
Dowd also made it to the final round with his Communication Analysis (where competitors are given a few minutes to prepare a five to 10-minute speech based on prior research) on collective conscious. Almost all the students from Liberty who participated in the competitions made it to the final rounds of the tournament each day.
“The Liberty University Forensics Speech Team, its coaching staff, leadership and students seek to demonstrate the principle that ‘if it is Christian it should be better’ through excellence in ethical and Christ-like behavior, interpersonal relationships, academics and competition,” Roper said.