Be Inspired
Village High School Speech & Debate
Welcome to The Village High School Speech and Debate Team! Our team is growing rapidly and composed of some of the most talented and driven students in the country. We are thrilled to have received the award for Schools of Excellence in Speech, placing us in the top 20 schools out of 1,320 schools in attendance, making it the first time in the history of the school to rank this high at the most recent 2023 National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) Tournament. Also noteworthy, is of approximately 120,000 students who participated in qualifying for the Nationals, only about 5% qualify to participate in the tournament. Village students were among the top 0.6% and one of the most successful in the country with six students representing The Village School. Our record of achieving multiple state and district championship awards and national finalists, are a testament to the level of excellence that we bring to every competition, and we are committed to continuously raising the bar. Join us today and experience the excitement of being a part of a successful and dynamic team of debaters and speakers!
As a 501(c)(3), all donations to the Village School Enrichment Organization are 100% tax-deductible. We are able to financially support the team with generous gifts from donors, allowing us to send our students to the highest caliber tournaments and build a reputation for excellence. Donations can be designated to benefit the Speech and Debate Team or to the Speech and Debate Scholarship Fund which will offer financial support to promising students who need it the most. Join us for our showcases and subscribe to our newsletter to receive updates about the team and follow these extraordinary and passionate speakers and debaters.
"words have incredible power. they can make people's hearts soar, or they can make people's hearts sore." - dr. mardy grothe
Our Team
2023-24 officers
Team Co-Captains
Caleb Anstee (11th)
Solemei Scamaroni (12th)
Adeline Mai (12th)
Debate Co-Captains
Tanmay Rai (Congress) (10th)
Selina Zhang (Lincoln Douglas) (10th)
Historian
Taylor Zhang (12th)
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team members
Abyaan Khwaja
Adeline Mai
Advika Sadasivan
Ailing Wu
Ananya Thondapu
Annabelle Junadi
Anthony Psyllos
Anthony Rodas-Camacho
Aufy Yasar Uno Mulyadi Huda
Bazil Lalani
Brooke Oyewole
Caleb Anstee
Chloe Moreno
Devon Stevenson
Dongha Kim
Eason Ren
Eddie Wang
Eman Syed
Emma Kay
Eshani Gale
Ethan Qian
Gabriel Le Floch
Gaurang Hissaria
Gayatri Khade
Haana Salemi
Hung Li
Jaidan Doshi
Janvi Natarajan
Jessica Luo
Kye Hall
Khalil Nazarali
Kolade Feyisitan
Kunal Pikle
Laila Alhussaini
Le Tri
Lily Zhang
Lucas Sanchez
Mariana Chapa
Marlen Gomez
Matthew Rovere
Matthew Itkins
Meixi Chen
Minh Tri
Nirav Mandhani
Oscar Sabillon
Ria Aggarwal
Roger Shen
Roza Muminova
Sameer Aggarwal
Sana Yakoob
Sarosh Britto
Selina Zhang
Serena Rajwani
Seunghye Baek
Shaniya Williams
Solemei Scamaroni
Sonya Li
Sophie Newman
Tanmay Rai
Taylor Zhang
Tristan Mai
Uzair Jinnah
Vivian Monteiro
Yining Zhao
Zareb Rajwani
Ziqiao Wang
Awards
Awards
NSDA National Championship Tournament in Phoenix, AZ - June 2023
Village received the award for School of Excellence in Speech (Village is top 20 schools in the nation)
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11th Place Finalist - Alex Ilacqua - Congressional Debate
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11th Place (Semifinals) - Caleb Anstee - Humorous Interpretation
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18th Place (Quarterfinals) - Solemei Scamaroni - Oratory
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22nd Place (Quarterfinals) - Adeline Mai - Programmed Oral Interpretation
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Tanmay Rai - Impromptu, Double Octofinals; Extemp Commentary, Octofinals
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Advika Sadasivan - World Schools Debate, Double Octofinals
National Competitors (Number of times these students qualified for the NSDA High School National Tournament)
Alex Ilacqua (3X)
Solemei Scamaroni (2X)
Adeline Mai (2X)
Advika Sadasivan (2X)
Caleb Anstee (1X)
Fun Facts:
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There were 1320 schools in attendance, and we were in the top 20 for speech events. This is the first year that Village has won this award. This award represents the top .7% of all the 2,863 member schools.
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We had the fewest students of those awarded School of Excellence. The average number of entries per school in the top 20 was 14.35. This means we had the highest success rate in the tournament.
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100% of our students (6) broke in 100% of their events (7). Village was the only team in the country with more than 3 entries that broke 100%. And 6/7 entries moved past the 1st break and 5/7 moved to the second break.
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About 120,000 students compete to try and qualify, and only about 5% qualify. Of those 120,000 students, only about 0.6% of all competitors break at the championship, representing the top students in the country. All of our students were in the top 0.6% and most are in the top 0.3%.
This is by far the most successful team showing from Village.
NIETOC (National Individual Events Tournament of Champions @ Chanhassen, MN - May 2023
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Solemei Scamaroni - Programmed Oral Interpretation - 6th Place Finalist, Duo Interpretation - 11th Place, Original Oratory - Quarterfinals
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Tanmay Rai - Impromptu - 10th Place
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Adeline Mai - Programmed Oral Interpretation - Octofinals, Duo Interpretation - 11th Place
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Caleb Anstee - Humorous Interp - Quarterfinals
Fun Facts:
1. NIETOC is the second-largest national tournament in the country. These students had to qualify for the tournament just to attend.
2. The Village School was ranked 6th in the sweepstakes within our division. All five of the schools ranked above us, had more students and more entries.
TOC (Tournament of Champions) @ University of Kentucky in Lexington, KY - Apr 2023
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Caleb Anstee - Humorous Interp - 2nd Place
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Adeline Mai - Dramatic Interp - Semifinals, POI - 5th place finalist, Duo Interp - 2nd Place
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Solemei Scamaroni - DUO Interp - 2nd Place, Oratory - Champion
TFA (Texas Forensic Association) State Tournament in Houston, TX - Mar. 2023
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World Schools Debate: Alex Ilacqua - 6th Top Speaker; Advika Sandasivan, Jay Natarajan, Aditi Iyer, Caroline Hsu, & Alex Ilacqua - (5th Overall) Quarterfinalists
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Selina Zhang - Lincoln Douglas Debate - Triples
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Solemei Scamaroni - Original Oratory - 2nd Place Finalist
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Tanmay Rai - Impromptu - 3rd Place Finalist -
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Adeline Mai - Program Oral Interp - Quarterfinalist
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Solemei Scamaroni & Adeline Mai - Duo Interp - Semifinalists
49th Harvard National Forensics Tournament in Cambridge, MA - Feb. 2023
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Caleb Anstee - Humorous Interp - Semifinalist (Top 12)
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Solemei Scamaroni - Program Oral Interp - Semifinalist (Top 12) Original Oratory
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Solemei Scamaroni - Quarterfinalist (Top 25 out of 298 competitors)
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Solemei Scamaroni/Adeline Mai - Duo Interp - Quarterfinalist (Top 24)
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Adeline Mai - Dramatic Interp - Octofinalist
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Tanmay Rai - Congress - Quarterfinalist (Top 1/3)
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Selina Zhang - Varsity Lincoln Douglas - Triple Octofinalist (Top 27%)
Barkley Forum for High School @ Emory University in Atlanta, GA - Feb. 2023
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Caleb Anstee - Impromptu 7th Place
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Solemei Scamaroni and Adeline Mai - Duo Interp 4th Place
University of Houston Cougar Classic - Jan. 2023
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Eddie Wang - Novice Lincoln Douglas - Champion
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Octofinalist - Selina Zhang - Varsity Lincoln Douglas - Octofinalis
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Tanmay Rai - Foreign Extemp - 5th
University of Texas Longhorn Classic in Austin, TX - Dec. 2022
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Solemei Scamaroni & Adeline Mai - Duo Interp - Champions
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Tanmay Rai - Foreign Extemp - Quarterfinalist
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Eddie Wang, Eric Li - Lincoln Douglas - Octofinalists
*Solemei Scamaroni & Adeline Mai both tied 10th place with the Speaker Sweepstakes Award for students who received the most points
*Over 1300 entries for Speech and Debate
GO VIKINGS!
2022/2023 Speech and Debate Season Stats
22 Tournaments Attended
55 Days of actual competition - 64 with travel days
200 Total Awards won
44 Champion Awards Won
Team Info
Team Meetings and practices are held every Wednesday, 2:30pm - 5:00pm
Meets in Champions Hall B207
There is no annual club fee.
You pay per tournament.
First tournament is free.
If you want to join the team or have questions about the team,
contact Mr. Gale at
Email: rob.gale@thevillageschool.com
Solemei Scamaroni
Speech and debate has taught me the importance of human connection and the value of patience and growth.
Jaidan Doshi
Speech has played an important role in teaching me how to manage the stress of competition, how to dig deep and find the right characterization and strengthen my confidence as a performer.
Eshani Gale
speech and debate has taught me to better organize my thinking and be more confident with myself and my capabilities which is something everyone can benefit from.
Annabelle Junadi
Speech and debate has taught me so much over the years such as my researching and speech writing skills and to build more confidence when performing in front of others. It also is such a great community to be a part of.