Speech and debate team returns, but lacks funding
Twenty years ago, Utah State University’s speech and debate team was going strong. In 1983, however, it hit a speed bump.
Tom Worthen, a graduate student who was the coach of the last team, left USU to finish his master’s degree and work toward his doctorate. No one volunteered to take charge of the program, according to Worthen, and budget constraints prohibited the department of languages and philosophy from funding it. USU speech and debate was no more.
Worthen spent 15 years coaching speech and debate teams at the university level at Pacific University and Eastern Illinois University before he returned to USU. He and his family, had the option of living anywhere due to a business opportunity, and as Worthen puts it, “If you could live anywhere in the United States, you’d pick Cache Valley.”
Worthen returned to USU and felt it was time for a revival of the speech and debate team. Interest is high; more than 30 students are involved in the team, and Worthen says he is already receiving phone calls from high school students interested in the club.
“Unfortunately, at this point I have to refer them to other schools,” Worthen said.
USU’s team isn’t strong enough for students who are serious about speech and debate yet.
The team is headed in the right direction; they placed fourth out of 17 teams overall in its first tournament. What makes this feat even more impressive is the fact that this was their first tournament this year, let alone the past 20 years. Most of the other schools there have competed in at least two or three other tournaments this year alone.
The team suffers from a lack of funding, however. In fact, except for a van donated by the university to transport them, the entire trip to Northwest College in Powell, Wyo., was paid for out of Worthen’s pocket.
“It just shows how much I love [speech and debate],” Worthen said.
They were only able to take seven team members due to the low budget, which made them the smallest team at the tournament.
Because of this lack of funding, the team may not be able to compete again until next year. Worthen says they are looking elsewhere for funding. Currently, they are trying to work with foundations on and around the campus as well as with university departments.
Kim Wilson, a freshman who competed at Northwest and placed seventh in poetic interpretation, is particularly disappointed about the lack of funding.
“It is hard, because we were able to compete and we saw how well we did, and it’s frustrating to know that we can’t go any further because people just aren’t aware of [the program],” Wilson said.
Wilson has been involved in speech and debate teams since high school, and can attest to the benefits of the program. She says it has helped greatly with her communication skills, her confidence, and her ability to work under pressure.
“It doesn’t just teach you how to talk, it teaches you how to talk to certain groups of people,” she said.
Wilson believes people judge others largely on their communication skills, and that the speech and debate team is the perfect place to hone these skills.
The team meets regularly on Thursday nights at 8 p.m. in Room 460 at the Merrill Library. All who are interested in participating or observing may attend; Worthen says these meetings are a great way to catch up on current events.
For any information about the speech and debate team, contact Tom Worthen at (435) 994-0023 or e-mail him at editor@poeticpower.com.
-sophisan@cc.usu.edu