News
Newman Hosts State Speech and Debate Tournament
The members of Newman’s Speech and Debate team competed with more than 275 debaters from around the state at the 2019 Louisiana High School Speech League State Tournament last week. Newman hosted this year’s competition, which consisted of three days of events on March 28, 29, and 30. All members of Newman’s team competed, as all have qualified for the tournament in at least one event.
Here are the results from the event:
All State Team (must clear to the final round of speech and the elimination rounds of debate)
Sydney Gold '19
Kevin Qi '19
Griffin Descant '20
Lia Bu '21
Ana Finger '21
Jackson Haber '21
Serena Klebba '21
Team members earned individual awards in the following events:
Congressional Debate:
Sydney Gold - 1st place
Kevin Qi - 3rd place
Griffin Descant 4th place
Serena Klebba - 6th place
Extemporaneous Speaking (Newman had 5 of the 6 finalists - all of our semi-finalists made it to finals)
Sydney Gold - Tournament Runner-up
Serena Klebba - 3rd place
Kevin Qi - 4th place
Jackson Haber - 5th place
Lia Bu - 6th place
Impromptu Speaking
Sydney Gold - Tournament Runner-up
Serena Klebba - Semi-finalist
Advanced (Varsity) Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Lia Bu - Tournament Runner-up
Jackson Haber - 5th place
Advanced (Varsity) Policy Debate
Ana Finger and Serena Klebba - Tournament Runners-up
Forensics Award (for the competitor earning the most points for outstanding performance in debate and public speaking events)
Sydney Gold
Team Sweepstakes
2nd place (4th year in a row)
Debate Coach Alma Nicholson offered her analysis of the results:
“If the tournament were split based on school size, we would have earned a 1st place award. The school that won first (Ovey Comeaux) is a large high school in Lafayette, that brought 40 competitors to state. Comeaux earned 167 points with 40 competitors. We earned an amazing 130 points with 12 competitors!
Thank you for your support of Newman Speech and Debate! I am so excited for this team's success, especially this year. I look forward to continuing to watch them grow with their new head coach next year! Go Greenies!”
1903 Jefferson Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70115
Phone: 504.899.5641
Fax: 504.896.8597
Open 7:45 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday
New Orleans, LA 70115
Phone: 504.899.5641
Fax: 504.896.8597
Open 7:45 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday
An independent,
co-educational,
non-denominational day
school in New Orleans for
early childhood through 12th grade
co-educational,
non-denominational day
school in New Orleans for
early childhood through 12th grade
