The Revere Speech and Debate team will compete both in and out of state this fall and winter, and some of these competitions will include the National Circuits tournaments.

The competitions will take place on Saturdays, beginning October 29th and continuing through the end of February. The Speech and Debate team will also compete in three or four National Circuit competitions. These competitions will take place out of state in Washington DC, Chicago, Northern Virginia and at Harvard University.

John Kerezy, who coaches the Speech and Debate team, explained the reasons for choosing to participate in National Circuits.

“In order to challenge and further strengthen our returning speakers and debaters’ skills, we are choosing to go on the National Circuit and do [3 to 4] of these tournaments this year. The Circuit brings the best speakers and debaters from different regions of the country together to oppose each other,” Kerezy said.

Senior Joel Niemi described how this year’s speech and debate season differs from last year’s season.

“We had more camps this summer, and we are more prepared,” Niemi said.

Junior Megan Warburton, who participates in Public Forum debate, commented on the unique dynamic of this year’s Speech and Debate team.

“We have new coaches and over 40 kids this year,” Warburton said.

Junior Grace Cao, a third year speaker, elaborated on the strengths of the Speech and Debate team.

“[The team is] able to communicate really well and discuss,” Cao said.

Sophomore Emily Albert offered her perspective on the upcoming season.

“[We will] be really successful this season,” Albert said.

Kerezy noted his hopes for improvement for the Speech and Debate team’s next season.

“We need to learn to overcome the butterflies, gain confidence in our speaking and debating abilities, and then keep on getting better as the year progresses,” Kerezy said.

The Revere Speech and Debate Team will face competitors such as Wooster, Perry, and Highland in competitions beginning this fall. Other members of the team include seniors Anthony Pignataro, Joel Niemi, Kathryn Mason, and Ben Webster, juniors Leah Espinal and Harsha Jayaraman and sophomore Melise Williams.