University Relations photo
Winner and runners-up of the speech competition pose with the judges.
Troy University’s Hall School of Journalism and Communication held its annual Intramural Speech Tournament and named Jameson Speece as winner last Wednesday.
The tournament consisted of two rounds.
The final round consisted of only the four finalists, who were responsible for composing a 3 to 5-minute speech on whatever topic they chose.
A $500 scholarship was awarded to the first-place winner, Jameson Speece, a sophomore communications major from Lowndes County, Alabama.
“I was not at all expecting to win, so I was surprised and overwhelmed,” Speece said. “I enjoyed it, and I'll definitely try to do it again next year.
“I thought it’d be a fun opportunity for practice because I know I am going to need to be able to talk to people with confidence and excellence.”
Speece shared that he recites tongue twisters before speaking to help him articulate his words and speak clearly.
“I get nervous before I speak so there were a lot of butterflies,” Speece said. “I learn a lot more when I'm pushing myself, so this was an excellent opportunity to do that.”
Dr. Stefanie East, assistant professor in the Hall School of Journalism and Communication, served as one of the three judges at the tournament.
“I was really impressed with all of the students,” East said. “Those students gave amazing speeches, and they were all so eloquent and well spoken.
“Each student put a lot of thought into each of the topics. I loved learning about the different topics that were all so unique and well rounded.”
Dr. Ava Tabb, lecturer in the Hall School of Journalism and Communication, served as coordinator of the speech tournament.
“I’m very pleased with the speeches,” Tabb said. “My favorite part is listening to students speak from different majors and backgrounds with a diversity of topics and interests.”
Tabb emphasized how beneficial this opportunity is for students to apply these public speaking tactics in the real world.
“It can be intimidating to speak in front of an unknown crowd of people staring at you,” Tabb said.
“I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for students to practice and sharpen their presentation skills.”
Even though every student can’t win, students still walk away having gained from the experience.
“Of course, every student wants to win, but even if a student doesn't win, this allows us to tackle those jitters and nervous symptoms,” Tabb said. “Of course, if you become a finalist, that's like icing on the cake.
“Not to say you’ll never be nervous but with this opportunity, you’re more confident about your abilities to speak in front of people even if they know nothing about what you’re talking about.”
After Jameson Speece placed first in the tournament, the remaining finalists consisted of first runner up Neela Cole, a multimedia journalism major; second runner up, Alejandro Vegas-Gutierrez, a global business major and third runner up Jamarion Willie-Hughes, an electronics engineering major.
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