Speech and Debate Team Improves on Past Record

SPRINGFIELD, IL (March 1, 2021) – The UIS Speech and Debate Team took part in the second asynchronous competition of the semester. This competition was the sixth iteration of the OATS (Online Asynchronous Tournament Series) Tournament Series and was hosted by Ball State University.

Sophomores Lisette Cortes-Benitez and Erol Ikiz represented UIS at this competition. Both team members recorded videos of their speeches and submitted them to the tournament to compete against students from 33 other colleges and universities. This was Erol’s first ever competition and Lisette achieved some of her best scores yet in informative speaking. Both students will use these scores and comments to continue refining their events for the next competition.

University of Illinois Springfield Speech and Debate Team is committed to training the next generation of civic leaders, public speakers, and communicators who are passionate about effecting change in their communities. Students who are interested in joining the team should reach out to the coach Timothy Bill (tbill2@uis.edu) or check out the team website at Speech and Debate site.