The Speech and Debate Team at the Broward Campus of the American Heritage Schools has been crowned State Champions for the fourth consecutive year. The team recently participated in the Florida Forensic League (FFL) Varsity State Championship Tournament in Orlando.
“We are extremely proud of the Speech and Debate team and their collective efforts in achieving State Champions once again,” Ryan Leveque says, Director of Speech and Debate at American Heritage Schools’ Broward Campus. “The students have truly outdone themselves and to see them come together as a team has been inspiring. Winning is merely a byproduct of their passion for the activity and the joy of the experience together as a team.”
The team not only achieved the title of state champions, but several students earned individual state championships in their respective categories. Jaimee Canalejo won in Humorous Interpretation and Esther Oyetunji in Original Oratory. Sophie Simon and Kennedy Hack-Juman also achieved state champions in Duo Interpretation. Spencer Swickle, who received the top speaker award, and Mason Cheng, who won the fourth place speaker award, were named state champions in the Policy Debate category.
Sharvaa Selvan and Ethan Roytman, who also earned the third and fifth-place speaker awards, respectively, achieved second place in the Public Forum Debate category. Esther Oyetunji secured second place in Program Oral Interpretation, while Diane Li earned third place in Dramatic Interpretation. Laura Marberger and Jade Capella clinched third place in Duo Interpretation, while Jack Radosevich and Sasha-Kay London made it to the semifinals. Kennedy Hack-Juman earned third place in Humorous Interpretation, and Medha Balaji was a semifinalist.
Jaimee Canalejo took home third place in the After Dinner Speaking category, while Saanya Dham secured fourth place. In the Informative Speaking category, Jade Capella earned fifth place. Ronak Patel excelled in the International Extemp category, reaching sixth place, and Zoe Weissman impressed in Congressional Debate, earning seventh place.
Carly Aikens made it to the semifinals in Original Oratory, while Mary Abi-Karam and Evan Burkeen reached the semifinals in Public Forum Debate. Sophie Simon also made it to the semifinals in Dramatic Interpretation, while Suriya Gadh and Veer Roy made it to the semifinals in Informative Speaking. Quarterfinalists in World Schools Debate included Jake Zeng, Charlotte Wu, Rosa Wu, Taeyoung Kim, and Akanksha Patra.
American Heritage Schools is an independent and non-sectarian college preparatory school that serves students from Pre-K3 to 12th grade with Broward and Palm Beach campuses. It has gained recognition for being the top private school in Florida for producing nationally-recognized scholars in math competitions, science fairs, mock trials, moot courts, and speech and debate.
