Thanks Dr. Tom
It was last semester that Dr. Tom Worthen, who I was then taking an argumentation and debate class from at USU told me he was going to start a debate team for the university. I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of that, but it’s Dr. Tom who’s made everything possible. In about two months he took seven students and turned us into a competitive team. Other organizations at this university with less encouraging results have five times the amount of funding we could ever hope to get. A lot of our funding comes right out of Dr. Tom’s own pocket. At this tournament last weekend, Dr. Tom had about two weeks prior to get an almost brand new group of students ready to compete, some without any experience. Once again our success is a direct reflection of his amazing coaching skills. In addition to his monetary support, he also gives up time away from his family and time away from other things he loves, such as watching USU basketball – all so we can have debate practice every Thursday night. He has continued to work with us despite various setbacks, from not being able to get funding, to students he worked with for weeks quitting on him. With other coaches in the nation being paid around fifty thousand dollars, you have to wonder what other coach would do this for free, or even even be the van driver like Tom does. And he’s not just any coach, he comes with a lot of winning experience from coaching at various schools across the nation, as well as in Canada. USU is getting quite the deal. Dr. Tom gets emails or phone calls weekly from high school students who are interested in debating on the college level and this is their determining factor on what school they will go to. He has nothing to offer, no incentives, except that you’ll find him every Thursday night at eight o’clock on the fourth floor of the Merrill Library holding practice and that he is still working hard to get enough funding to go to more tournaments. He is planning to have USU host a high school tournament this fall, which will bring in money to local stores and businesses, as well as give those students an opportunity to check out USU campus. On behalf of the debate team, we want to thank you Dr. Tom for your time, your support, and for giving us an opportunity to do what we love.
Heather Hancock, president, Speech & Debate563-3346heatherh@cc.usu.edu