Alumni bring competitive speech and debate contest to Cal U
CALIFORNIA – It has been decades since they competed themselves, but alumni of Pi Kappa Delta, the honors speech fraternity at California University, are inviting high school students to a public speaking contest at their alma mater. The inaugural Break-Out Speech and Debate Tournament will be held Saturday at Cal U. Registration begins at 8 a.m. in the Natali Student Center, followed by four rounds of competition and an awards assembly at 3:15 p.m.
Bill Lemonovich, a 1969 Cal U graduate who is now the speech and debate coach at Trinity High School in Washington, is organizing the contest.
His students compete in the National Forensic League (NFL), a nationwide organization devoted to competitive public speaking and debate.
Dr. Gregory Spicer, chairman of Cal U’s Department of Communication Studies, is helping to organize the event. The Vulcan Speech and Debate Union – Cal U’s forensics team – also will lend a hand. Lemonovich’s collegiate debate partner, 1968 graduate Lou Illar, will attend the tournament as both a judge and a speaker. He plans to address the competitors during the tournament’s closing awards assembly.
A former collegiate speech coach, Illar is the author of two books. His most recent work, “Believe Me or Your Lying Eyes: An Entertaining History of Casinos, Corruption and Charities in America,” has attracted media attention as the General Assembly debates the role of gaming revenue in the state budget.
Illar also is the writer and producer of the 1992 film “Sidekicks,” which featured Chuck Norris and Joe Piscopo.
“When I was in school, Cal U’s speech and debate team traveled to competitions all over the country,” Lemonovich said. “I want to see more students get involved with public speaking and debate. Even high schools that don’t have an NFL chapter are welcome to compete in this event.”
The tournament will feature Lincoln/Douglas and policy debates, plus prose and poetry reading, impromptu and extemporaneous speech, duo interpretation and original oratory. Awards will be given to the top three competitors in each event, and the three highest scoring schools will receive trophies.
Online registration and contest details are available at www.joyoftournaments.com. Competitors should look for “California University of Pa.”