After a long season, the Hastings College Forensics team qualified 40 events to the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament. However, due to COVID-19, the national tournament was canceled. To celebrate all the team’s success, Hastings College is airing an online showcase for everyone to enjoy from their own homes.
The showcase, which features six members of the team, will be live on the College’s Facebook page — facebook.com/hastings.edu — on Tuesday, April 7 at 7:00 p.m. Some performances may include adult language.
“After finding out nationals were canceled, my heart sank. I wanted students to have an opportunity to share their voices,” said Dr. Kittie Grace, professor of communication studies and director of forensics. “Having an online showcase allows even more people to hear their messages, and I hope everyone can appreciate our students’ voices, hard work and dedication.”
In addition to the online showcase video, the forensics team submitted their work to the National Speech Championship Online Experience (NSCOE), which was created for students around the country to submit videos to be viewed online in a competition style tournament.
The Hastings College team submitted 21 events to the online experience and will be competing against 25 schools from 19 states.
This event can be accessed through NSCOE’s YouTube page.
The preliminary rounds are Saturday, April 4, from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. The final rounds of the tournament will be on Sunday, April 5 from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., but the final rounds will be available on the YouTube channel past those times.
Hastings College students who submitted videos to the online experience are listed below.
- Nikki DeSeriere, a first-year student from Westminster, Colorado is competing in Poetry Interpretation and Program Oral Interpretation.
Chloe Carson, a sophomore from Eagan, Minnesota, is competing in Dramatic Interpretation and Prose Interpretation. - Courtney Hanson, a junior from Brookings, South Dakota, is competing in After Dinner Speaking, Communication Analysis, and Duo Interpretation with Alli Kennon, a senior from Spicer, Minnesota.
- Elizabeth Hansen, a senior from Fremont, Nebraska, is competing in Program Oral Interpretation.
- Alli Kennon, a senior from Spicer, Minnesota, is competing in Communication Analysis, Dramatic Interpretation, Prose Interpretation, Duo Interpretation with Courtney Hanson, a junior from Brookings, South Dakota, and Duo Interpretation with Nathan Navratil, a senior from Lino Lakes, Minnesota.
- Melissa Loney, a senior from Omaha, Nebraska, is competing in After Dinner Speaking and Communication Analysis.
- Jadah Morrison, a senior from Chaska, Minnesota, is competing in Dramatic Interpretation, Prose Interpretation, and Duo Interpretation with Nathan Navratil, a senior from Lino Lakes.
- Nathan Navratil, a senior from Lino Lakes, Minnesota, is competing in After Dinner Speaking, Poetry Interpretation, Program Oral Interpretation, Prose Interpretation, Duo Interpretation with Alli Kennon, a senior from Spicer, Minnesota, and Duo Interpretation with Jadah Morrison, a senior from Chaska, Minnesota.
The Hastings College forensics team continues a long-running tradition of national competitive success, placing in the top 20 at the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET) for many of the past ten years. Most recently, Hastings College placed 9th at AFA-NIET 2019.
Hastings College is Nebraska’s premier private college. A four-year residential college that focuses on student academic and extracurricular achievement, Hastings’ student-centered initiatives include providing books, an iPad and a two-week study away experience at no additional cost. A block-style semester schedule allows professors and students to focus on fewer classes at a time and promotes hands-on experiences. Discover more at hastings.edu.
