Murray, Neb.- Conestoga’s speech students recently competed in the district speech meet which consisted of ten categories: Informative, Persuasive, Entertainment, EXtemp, Humorous, Serious, Poetry, Program of Oral Interpretation, and OID.

Coached by Jessica Schlichtemeier, several of the speech students placed in various categories after months of preparation. “There were a lot of kids doing new things this year”, explained Schlichtemeier. However, many of them placed very well, such as John placing second in entertainment, and Ella placing second in poetry, solidifying them both a place in the state competition.

“I worked with all of the students to try to locate materials, work through writing the speech, cutting the script down, and practicing multiple times a week.”, Mrs. Schlichtemeier explained. When asked what she was most proud of she answered, “The students’ resilience and willingness to take on new challenges.”

“There’s something for everybody on the speech team, you can always find something you’ll enjoy doing,” Schlichtemeier says.