North Bend High School senior Alyssa Crook has seen members of the Speech and Debate Club come and go
over the four years she has been in high school. But even when she was the only
member of the club, she didn’t quit.
Her perseverance with speech and debate has paid off with recognition. Alyssa has won the honor of being the Southern Oregon District Student of the Year.
“This award is given to students who have been nominated by their coaches and are determined the winner by the voting of coaches in the Southern Oregon District,” said North Bend Speech and Debate coach Quinn Earle.
“Alyssa beat some of the top speakers in the state for this award and I feel she deserves some recognition for her successes,” her coach said.
Alyssa said she was surprised to receive the honor.
“I’m very happy that I got chosen for it. I didn’t even think of it as a possibility until it happened,” Alyssa said.
Not only did Alyssa receive Student of the Year but she also qualified to the National Speech and Debate Championships for the second year in a row – being the sole representative for North Bend both years.
She was voted, by coaches, to be a member of the World Schools Debate team. This team is composed of students from the Southern Oregon District to represent Southern Oregon at a national tournament.
Alyssa said she kept going with speech and debate in spite of changes in coaches and the loss of team members because it is something she is passionate about.
“I really enjoy it and I want to see it continue,” she said.
“I think that all of these experiences will help me later on with being able to just stick by something, and of course, the experiences through speech debate with public speaking will be very helpful,” she said.
Her coach said she hopes Alyssa’s success with speech and debate will inspire more high school students in North Bend to join the club.
“She has worked really hard, and we hope that we can keep the club going after she graduates,” Quinn said.
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