FSCJ Students Make FSCJ History with Sixth-Place Finish at National Forensic Association Tournament

FSCJ students competed against more than 80 colleges and universities from around the country in speech and debate categories.

“There are no words, no pun intended, to describe how proud we are at the success of our students this year as they advanced from one tournament to the next,” said FSCJ Professor of Speech and Director of Forensics Chad Kuyper. “The skills and techniques they have developed are exceptional, and it is a true honor to work with such talented, intelligent students.”

The students who competed at this tournament include: Adonis Lane, Julian Lopez, Nicki Ercolino, Saman Jaberi, Madeline Windsor, Jimmy Henson and CJ Andrews. Competing and excelling in categories such as After Dinner Speaking, Impromptu Speaking, Dramatic Interpretation, Poetry Interpretation, Rhetorical Criticism, Prose Interpretation, Informative Speaking and Persuasive Speaking, these students have made FSCJ history at a national competition.

The NFA is an academic association dedicated to providing leadership in intercollegiate speech and debate education in the United States. The NFA sponsors the annual collegiate national championship in Individual Events and Lincoln Douglas Debate.

To prepare for such tournaments, the Forensics team meets weekly for a three-hour team practice, in addition to individual training sessions throughout the week with Professors of Speech Chad Kuyper and Dr. Michael Chouinard, equaling almost 20 hours in one-on-one coaching. 

Earlier this season, the Forensics team became state champions, bringing home first place at the Florida College System Activities Association Forensics State Championship, followed by a second place finish at the Florida Intercollegiate Forensics Association State Championship.

About FSCJ
Florida State College at Jacksonville (FSCJ) is a public, nonprofit higher education institution that offers more than 150 degree and certificate programs to meet the education and training needs of more than 50,000 students per year.