EMU Today

YPSILANTI – No debating it: September was a month worth shouting about for the Eastern Michigan University forensics team.

First, the varsity team of upper-class students won the overall team sweepstakes and was crowned tournament champion Sept. 22 at the Forensics 500 Audrey Cunningham Speech and Debate Tournament at The University of Indianapolis.

Marissa Howard was tournament champion in informative speaking, and Kylar Chandler earned first place in rhetorical criticism.

Then, a week later, novice (first-year) students from Eastern took third in the Michigan Intercollegiate Speech League Mini-Tournament at Saginaw Valley State University. The first-year students were competing in their first collegiate tournament. Colton Blanton took first place in prose interpretation and Jocelyn Jones was first in impromptu speaking.

“This was a great start to the year and a reflection of the hard work the team is putting in now,” said Patrick Seick, director of forensics at Eastern. “It’s setting a good foundation for the rest of the season."

Forensics is the quest for truth, a term commonly associated with police and crime television dramas. Competitors in forensics also seek truth through communication and performance. Whether persuading an audience that legal reform is needed or exploring the emotional truths of the human experience, competitors seek to give an audience a greater understanding of the world and our place within it.

The recent honors extend the tradition of EMU Forensics, one of the most successful teams in the nation. EMU Forensics placed in the top 10 nationally for more than 40 years, and has won more than 40 Michigan state team championships.

EMU Forensics began its tradition of success with its first national championship in 1973 and it continues nearly every weekend (September-April) as team members hit the tournament trail and travel the country to compete.

Top placers for Eastern at the two September events included:

Forensics 500

Extemporaneous Speaking:

Marissa Howard – fourth place
Kylar Chandler – fifth place
Sarah Dolohanty – seventh place

Impromptu Speaking:

Sarah Dolohanty – second place
Kylar Chandler – fourth place

Informative Speaking:

Marissa Howard - tournament champion

Rhetorical Criticism:

Sarah Dolohanty – third place
Kylar Chandler - tournament champion

Overall Team Sweepstakes - tournament champion

The Michigan Intercollegiate Speech League Mini-Tournament

Prose interpretation

Colton Blanton - tournament champion
Gavin Allen – fourth place

Impromptu Speaking:
Jocelyn Jones - tournament champion

Team Sweepstakes: third place

Seick, a former standout in forensics at Eastern, graduated from EMU in 2014 and 2016 with bachelor’s and master’s degrees respectively, then began his doctorate work in communication at Southern Illinois University. He is currently working on his dissertation. Seick joined Eastern this summer to take over the forensics program from Nick Romerhausen, who is now director of the Equality Research Center at Eastern.

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest public university in Michigan. It currently serves more than 19,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Health and Human Services; Technology, and its graduate school. EMU is regularly recognized by national publications for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website.