On the week of June 15, four Sudan High School Speech Team members competed in Des Moines, Iowa, at the National Speech and Debate Association Tournament.
These students included Jolie Dyck, Garicyn Bigham, Chase Caswell and Drew Lockhart.
Over 6,700 students and 1,500 schools competed in the national competition. Additionally, the National Speech and Debate Association invites an alumni member to judge finals. This year, it was Josh Gad, the famous actor and singer who voiced the character of Olaf in the Disney movie “Frozen.”
Lockhart advanced to the finals for Program Oral Interpretation.
During the finals portion of the competition, an incident involving an individual who wandered onto the stage and caused a panic in the auditorium. No injuries or additional incidents were reported and all members and sponsors remained safe.
Aside from competing, the students visited the Dutch community of Pella, Iowa, the John Wayne Museum, the Des Moines Zoo, a historic covered bridge, and Branson, Missouri, where they watched a show on the ship: The Branson Belle on Table Rock Lake.