Shelbyville Speech and Debate students place in 2023 U.I.L. State Tournament

On May 17th and 18th, Shelbyville Speech and Debate students Ava Silva and Aubree Camp competed in the 2023 U.I.L. State Tournament. Aubree Camp placed 2nd in persuasive speaking.

In persuasive speaking, students must speak extemporaneously about a topic related to current events. While this 7-minute speech is prepared in less than 30 minutes, hours of research and practice are involved. Ava Silva placed 6th in Poetry Interpretation and for the second year in a row, Ava was awarded state champion in Informative Speaking.

In poetry interpretation, students must perform a selection of their choosing that reflects their interests and heritage. In informative speaking, similar to persuasive speaking, students prepare a speech extemporaneously in 30 minutes and deliver it to a panel of judges on a topic of current events.

Ava and Aubree had to compete in preliminary rounds and a final round. After four years of successful competition and hard work, this was the final tournament for these talented speakers. Ava and Aubree also earned enough points throughout the year in state tournaments to earn second place speech team in division AA. Shelbyville Speech and Debate is coached by Emily Sowell and Crystal Harrison.