PB Forensics Shines in County Competition

Fanta Dabo Co-Editor-in-Chief

On Thursday, March 9, the county held their Forensics awards ceremony at PB where they honored topscoring teams and presented individual awards. During the event, PB Forensics team members Charis Foster, Melody Segal, Gladis Padilla, and Brenden Bernard all walked away with hardware celebrating their hard work; and the team celebrated their county-wide, third place finish.

According to Forensics team coordinator Ms. Perkins, “Forensics is the art of public speaking. We have started calling it the Forensics Public Speaking team to differentiate it from forensic science. Forensic science got its name because it is the science argued in court.”

For this year’s team, while acknowledgement is great, it is important to note the work that was done behind the scenes that made it all possible. A vital part of their success stems from practice, which prepares them for qualifying tournaments. This year’s tournaments took place in October, December, and January. There students performed pieces to orally interpret from books, poems, and stories, or write pieces of their own. Being a part of the team comes with numerous benefits for the students, ranging from general experience, to exposure in the field.

According to Ms. Perkins, “Learning to be a strong public speaker can benefit everyone. Some of the kids come to meetings just to watch, some just to get feedback. The competitions are county wide, so they get the opportunity to see other students from all over the county presenting different things.” Students take away skills that they can carry with them beyond the classroom and into their everyday lives.

When asked about the overall goal of the team, Ms. Perkins states, “The only goal ever is for the students to learn something and have fun. Winning has been great, but I think our members who do not qualify for the Honors Tournament get just as much out of it as the students who compete in the Honors Tournament. There were definitely years where nobody on the team qualified, and it was still great!”

A full list of team members and achievements is available online at pbmainstream.com