Seniors to commence debate

University High School valedictorian Chris Jackson won’t be giving his speech at his high school commencement next Sunday.

Instead, he’ll take his lingual prowess 3,000 miles away.

Jackson is among a group of 10 U-Hi students who will attend a national speech and debate tournament June 12 to June 17 in Philadelphia. In addition to Jackson, there are three other senior students in the group who qualified to compete at the National Forensics League competition.

All four seniors are missing out on the right of passage that most teenagers wait four years to share. Instead, they’ll compete with the best high school debaters in the country.

“It bothers my parents more than me,” Jackson said. “I’m just going to send a video of myself in my cap and gown.”

That will do little to appease his parents, who have waited years to watch their son walk across the stage and grab that coveted piece of paper.

“I think it’s very disappointing,” said Lisa Jackson, Chris Jackson’s stepmother. “Especially when I know it’s been a goal of Chris’ (to be valedictorian), and it just takes some of the joy out of it.”

U-Hi parents aren’t alone. One senior and three other students from Central Valley High School also qualified for the competition and will miss graduation ceremonies this year. Students from Lewis and Clark, Gonzaga Prep and Mead will also attend.

U-Hi senior MaryAnn Almeida is prepared to argue “the pursuit of scientific knowledge ought to be constrained by concern for societal good.” It’s her second year attending the event.

“But those couple of seconds on stage won’t compare to the people I’m going to meet, the experiences I will have,” Almeida said. “I think given the choice we’ll all look back and be glad that we missed it.”

U-Hi had the greatest number of students in school history qualify for the national tournament this year, and more than any other Greater Spokane League school.

In addition to Jackson and Almeida, other students attending the event are seniors Brandon Montang and Matt Holmes, and younger students Justin Kjolseth, Ashley McGowan, Beth Niggemyer, Ashley Warner, Patty Karle and Laura Drews. The younger students will also miss out on the last week of the school year.

“Debate has always been a part of U-Hi,” said David Smith, debate coach. “The school has a lot of pride in the team.”

He said the students talked seriously about whether missing the big day for the tournament was worth it.

Nobody argued for staying home.

“They all felt it was more important to represent their school for one last time this way instead,” Smith said.

The weeklong tournament is held at four high schools in Philadelphia and nearby Wilmington, Del.; two hotels are needed to accommodate all the participating students and chaperones.

The event, which has been held most years since 1931 – taking some time off during World War II – features the best of the best in debate. Tournament alumni include former President Lyndon Johnson, actors Kelsey Grammer and Robin Williams, and Oprah Winfrey.

Held in Salt Lake City last year and Atlanta the year before, the tournament has four types of debate events, including congressional debate and the Lincoln-Douglas debate on issues of values and morality. There are also two types of team policy debates and several other speech events.

The students have spent hours preparing. Some read 10 to 15 newspapers a day to keep up on current events.

They argue constantly and finish one another’s sentences.

“Our lives are consumed by debate. We spend a lot of time together,” said Montang. This is Montang’s third year at the national event, and he said he couldn’t think of a better to way to finish off his high school career.

Plus, his brother Jeremy is also graduating this year. So his parents will at least get to send off one son.

Montang, along with partner Justin Kjolseth, will compete in the duo interpretation – a speech event based on a novel, short story or a play, in which the performers are not permitted to move from their standing position, to touch, or to even look at each other.

“It’s amazing to see the talent of all those kids in person,” Montang said of the tournament competition. “Some of them are going to be huge later in life, and I can’t wait … for 20 years from now to be like, ‘I know that kid. I went to the debate tournament with him.’ “