Cardinal Gibbons Speech & Debate Excels at District Tournament
The Speech & Debate Team competes at one of the annual district tournaments to secure their spot for the state tournament
SFCFL or The South Florida Catholic Schools Forensic League, held one of their annual qualifiers this week, February 1st. At this tournament the team participated in multiple events from, Extemporaneous Speaking, Informative Speaking, Impromptu, Public Forum Debate, Lincoln-Douglas Debate, and World Schools Debate. Multiple students from Cardinal Gibbons were able to successfully advance in their event. As a result many of them qualified to participate in the SFCFL Grand Finals held in Chicago. Weeks of practice and hours of memorization have finally paid off for these students.
Members preparing in between rounds. CGHS Speech and Debate
Representing Cardinal Gibbons was a dozen students who spent hours preparing for their event. They included, Leslie Umana (Impromptu), Sofia Terrier (Informative), Bjorn Forsman (Extemporaneous & Impromptu), Max Fuchs (Impromptu), Ariana Jackson (Lincoln Douglas), Nathan Himawan (Informative), Ariana Cady & Lilly Zinn (Public Forum), Lucas Himawan, Maria Villarreal-Rojas, Brandan Avril-Joseph, Veronica Silva & Henry Silva* (World Schools Debate). The team had qualifications in 3 events. Nathan Himawan placed 5th in Informative Speaking which is a 10 minute speech written by the student with the intent to inform/educate the audience on a topic of significance usually with the use of visual aid. This year Nathan’ presentation focused on how music affects the brain and the importance of music education. Sofia Terrier also ranked in Informative Speaking at 6th place with her presentation on school shootings and the effect it has on the victims.
Sofia Terrier & Nathan Himawan posing with their awards after the tournament. CGHS Speech and Debate
In debate, Ariana Jackson placed 5th in Lincoln-Douglas Debate on the topic; The United States ought to become, party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and/or the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Lucas Himawan, Maria Villarreal-Rojas, Brandan Avril-Joseph, Veronica Silva & Henry Silva* competed as a team in World Schools Debate ranking 2nd overall.
The World Schools Team celebrating their victory with a group photo. CGHS Speech and Debate
L>R Henry Silva, Veronica Silva, Maria Villarreal-Rojas, Brandan Avril-Joseph, & Lucas Himawan
The entire CGHS Speech & Debate Team is extremely proud of their accomplishments and wish them luck at FFL Varsity States in March. All the competitors were proud to see hours of preparation and practice pay off and send out a special thanks to their coach Luiz Bravim. Anyone interested in joining Speech & Debate and becoming the next NSDA Champion should contact Mr. Bravim (bravim@cghsfl.org) for more information and details about tournaments. The team is very welcoming and is always looking for new members.
The World Schools Team coming out of an incredibly successful round. CGHS Speech and Debate
