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Boyle, Danville team up to host speech competitions

November 20, 2010|By BEN KLEPPINGER

Ben Kleppinger photo

If excitement and anticipation had specific smells, they might smell a whole lot like delivery pizza and teenage perspiration.

Those were the scents wafting through the Boyle County High School front entrance hallway Saturday morning as more than 400 students from across the state rushed from office to cafeteria to classroom, practicing their arguments, working on their lines and adjusting their suits and ties.

The students were participating in the first ever Danville/Boyle County joint event in competitive public speaking, also known as forensics. Danville has been on the forensics scene for a long time, hosting a tournament every year for the last 17 years.

This year, which is only the second for Boyle County’s own forensics team, the two schools combined forces to host the “Firsts and Foremosts Swing,” two forensics tournaments held on the same day. The event attracted 24 schools from every corner of the state.

“It’s exciting because usually, our two schools don’t do stuff like that. Usually, they’re rivals,” Danville Forensics Coach Steve Meadows said. “The speech team world is not like that; the speech team world is very friendly.”

Meadows, who has coached Danville’s Forensics Team every year since the high school’s annual tournaments began, mentored Boyle’s new Forensics Coach Mike Petkus last year. This year, Petkus said his team has nearly tripled in size, from seven to 19 members.

“Obviously, hosting a tournament is really going to help us make a name for ourselves,” Petkus said. “Once we got through the initial chaos of registration and got the first round of ballots out to the judges, it’s been pretty smooth since.”

High school forensics in Kentucky features 12 public speaking events including broadcasting, dramatic interpretation, impromptu speaking, poetry and storytelling, among others. Petkus described forensics in as few words as possible by calling it “competitive speech, drama and debate.”

“It’s not CSI, but it’s just as cool,” he said.

Meadows said being a teenager can be difficult, but participating in character-building activities like forensics can really give kids a step up.

“Speech and debate training is training for life. Plus it’s a huge boost to the kids’ confidence,” he said. “The ability to stand up and do this in front of people is life-changing. It opens up all kinds of other doors for you.”

Luke Voorhies, a junior who traveled from Paducah to participate in the tournaments, said being a part of forensics has vastly improved his work ethic.

“It actually has a huge effect on (my grades),” he said.

Voorhies competed in multiple events on Saturday, including humorous interpretation, where he performed his 9-minute rendition of “Young Frankenstein.” Humorous interpretation is one of his favorite events, he said.

“If you get someone who’s really good at H I — it’s so much fun to watch,” he said. “Nothing can beat it.”

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