The Speech Team is a great institution here at Montrose, made up of over thirty members from eighth through twelfth grade, and we gather on several Saturdays throughout the year to compete at speech tournaments. We present great diversity at these tournaments. Students have participated in limited preparation events, who write and present a speech on the spot based on a randomly drawn topic; students in dramatic events, who adapt a piece of literature into a theatrical presentation complete with voices to indicate characters; and students in platform events, who deliver a memorized and previously prepared speech to share their or others’ opinions.

Throughout the year, we have received many accolades and awards at our competitions. Individual members have placed seventh up to first in their categories, and the team has won overall sweepstakes trophies due to the scores of all our members put together. Our year of great success culminated in States, a final tournament where only the best competitors qualify and are allowed to attend.

The Montrose Speech Team sent eight members to States: Molly Cahill ‘16, Katie Sidhu ‘16, Erin Golden ‘17, Aine Ford ‘18, Molly Bowman ‘18, Yvonne Niebuhr ‘18, Annie Miklus ‘18, and Vicki Driscoll ‘19.  Their categories ranged from Declamation to Impromptu Speaking to Dramatic Performance.  Molly Cahill placed 4th of all competitors in Declamation, and the entire team performed with perseverance and commitment.  

Everyone felt rewarded at the end of the day; however, for many of us, the work was not yet over.  Six of the team’s competitors came back to Montrose that night to put on the second performance of Fiddler on the Roof, making for an exhausting yet exciting day.  Speech Team members look back on this year with pride and look forward to next year with excitement.

Though the tournament season is over, there is still one more chance to see the speech team in action! The team is hosting a Speech Showcase at Montrose on May 17, at 7:00 p.m. Come to see inspiring, humorous, and dramatic speeches, and applaud the progress of all the team members.