My involvement in college forensics

While in college, I was actively involved in forensics - or speaking contests (Not the science of how people died, which is another definition of the word!). I participated in forensics during the first four years of college.

At first, my big events were prepared serious speeches, such as communication analysis, informative, and persuasive speaking. My speeches included an analysis of Carl Sagan's "Cosmos", toothpaste, and bilingual education.

But my biggest success came in making up speeeches off the top of my head, specifically extemporaneous speaking and impromptu speaking. In extemp, you're given a political question and have 30 minutes to write a speech about it; you can use one note card. In impromptu speaking, you're given a quotation and have up to 2 minutes to come up with a 5 minute speech about it. In both categories, I took second place in state during spring 1988 and went on to nationals.

I also was president of my campus' honorary forensics society, Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha.