BROWNWOOD – February 14, 2018 – Howard Payne University’s Student Speaker Bureau speech and debate team placed fifth overall at the Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association Spring Championship tournament, held recently at Blinn College in Bryan.
Christopher Freeland, junior theatre major from Bangs, was named to the prestigious Texas All-State Forensics Squad. The honor is bestowed on students who have excelled in competitive forensics and academics and who demonstrate leadership and character. Freeland advanced to finals in poetry and parliamentary debate.
The debate team of Freeland and Tyler Olin, junior social science jurisprudence and Guy D. Newman Honors Academy major from Howe, were semifinalists in parliamentary debate. Olin earned ninth place top speaker at the tournament. These debaters were in the top four teams from Texas, earning their semifinalist ranking by defeating institutions such as Texas A&M University, Rice University, Texas State University and the University of North Texas. The team competed against a total of 17 universities from Texas.
“Advancing to semifinals is a great accomplishment at this tournament,” said Dr. Julie Welker, head of HPU’s communication department and SSB coach. “We are competing against some of the top teams in the state.”
Additionally, Esmeralda Maldonado, communication, social science jurisprudence and Guy D. Newman Honors Academy major from Whitney, and Lucy Manning, communication, public policy and Guy D. Newman Honors Academy major from Fort Worth, were named top novice team at the tournament.
“These two freshmen have been honing their debate skills this season and it paid off at the tournament,” said Dr. Welker.
Madison Neal, sophomore communication major from Chandler, also competed at the tournament. Student Speaker Bureau will next travel to the National Christian College Forensics Association tournament in March.
Applications for admission are being accepted for the fall 2018 semester at Howard Payne University. HPU offers a variety of financial aid options, including scholarships for students from Brown County and surrounding counties. For more information about HPU, contact HPU’s Office of Admission at 325-649-8020 or by e-mail at enroll@hputx.edu.
###
Cutline: HPU’s Student Speaker Bureau placed fifth overall at the Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association Spring Championship tournament. Left to right: Christopher Freeland, Madison Neal, Lucy Manning, Esmeralda Maldonado and Tyler Olin.