UTEP Forensics Team--Speech and Debate Competition for The University of Texas at El Paso

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Travel Schedule Spring 2009 Competitive Highlights Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association State Championship Richard Flores and Carlos Tarin – State Champions in NPDA Debate Carlos Tarin – State Champion in Extemporaneous Speaking State Champion in Impromptu Speaking Elected Member of the TIFA All-State Team Jesus Valles – State Champion in Dramatic Interpretation Elected Member of the TIFA All-State Team Pi Kappa Delta National Tournament Jesus Valles – National Champion in Programmed Oral Interpretation "Excellent" Rating in Dramatic Interpretation "Superior" Rating in Poetry Interpretation Jesus Valles and Luzmarina Garcia – "Excellent" Rating in Duo Interpretation Carlos Tarin – 2^nd Place in Extemporaneous Speaking "Excellent" Rating in Persuasive Speaking AFA-National Individual Events Tournament Jesus Valles – 2^nd Place in Poetry Interpretation 6^th Place in Programmed Oral Interpretation Semifinalist in Dramatic Interpretation 15^th Place in the Nation Individual Sweepstakes Carlos Tarin – 6^th Place in Impromptu Speaking Quarterfinalist in Informative Speaking Quarterfinalist in Communication Analysis Quarterfinalist in Persuasive Speaking UTEP – 20^th Place in the Nation Team Sweepstakes Spring 2008: UTEP Speech Team Wins High Honors at Two National Competitions Topping off a championship year which brought multiple successes in high numbers of trophies and sweepstakes won at speech tournaments across the nation, the UTEP Forensics Team has completed its competitive calendar this Spring with big sweepstakes victories at two prestigious national speech tournaments, the American Forensic Association-National Individual Events Tournament, considered the toughest national tournament of the year for Individual Events competition, and the Pi Kappa Delta National Comprehensive Tournament, a highly regarded tournament offering national level competition in both Individual Events and Debate. In April, the team triumphed by winning 14^th Place in the Nation Team Sweepstakes against several hundred collegiate speakers in competition at the AFA-NIET (American Forensic Association-National Individual Events Tournament) held April 4-7, 2008 on the campus of The University of Texas at Austin. Attended by 88 colleges and universities from across the nation, the AFA-NIET tournament brought UTEP speakers into a contest against top speakers from all over the country. Contributing to UTEP’s 14^th Place in the Nation award were the following high honors: Team Interpretation Captain Jesus Valles took 2^nd Place in the Nation out of 77 competitors in Dramatic Interpretation, and 2^nd Place in the Nation out of 140 persons entered in Poetry Interpretation; in addition, Valles advanced to Quarterfinals (top 24 in the nation) in Prose Interpretation. These outstanding rankings won Valles the title of 12^th Top Speaker in the nation in Individual Sweepstakes tabulation! Fellow teammate and Public Speaking Captain Carlos Tarin advanced to Quarterfinals in Communication Analysis and Impromptu Speaking. A UTEP squad of six team members qualified to compete in 19 slots in this prestigious contest, considered by many to be the most challenging tournament of the year. At this year’s AFA-NIET, the top three winning colleges were: 1^st, Western Kentucky University; 2^nd, Bradley University; and 3^rd, The University of Texas at Austin. In March, a small squad of four UTEP Forensics Team Varsity Squad members traveled to St. Louis, Missouri to compete in the Pi Kappa Delta National Comprehensive Tournament against 47 other colleges and universities. Battling against competitors from across the nation, UTEP won 19 trophies and honors in both Individual Events and Debate, earning 2 National Sweepstakes titles, 5^th Place in the Nation in Team Individual Events Sweepstakes, and 6^th Place in the Nation in Team Combined (Debate + Individual Events) Sweepstakes. Junior English major Jesus Valles made team history by winning 4 National 1^st Place Trophies, in Dramatic Interpretation, Poetry Interpretation, Prose Interpretation and Program Oral Interpretation, as well as taking 6^th Place in Duo Interpretation with partner Eddie Gamboa. Teammate Carlos Tarin took 5 national rankings: 3^rd Top IPDA Debate Speaker, 3^rd Place, Informative Speaking, 4^th Place, Impromptu Speaking, 4^th Place, Extemporaneous Speaking, and 6^th Place, Communication Analysis. Adrian Villalobos won 4^th Place in Program Oral Interpretation, and advanced to Semifinal honors in Dramatic Interpretation Eddie Gamboa won 5^th Place in Communication Analysis. The Open NPDA (National Parliamentary Debate Association) team of Eddie Gamboa and Adrian Villalobos took Quarterfinals honors ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fall 2009- Spring 2010 Proposed Schedule: UNDER CONSTRUCTION Fall 2009- Spring 2010 Proposed Schedule: UNDER CONSTRUCTION Fall 2009- Spring 2010 Proposed Schedule: UNDER CONSTRUCTION	You've found the Home Page of the UTEP Forensics Program! UTEP Forensics Team 2008-2009 Welcome to the home page of the University of Texas at El Paso Forensics Program. We are constantly engaged in the process of discovery; consequently, this page is perpetually under construction! What is forensics? There's a bit of confusion about what we do in the forensic activity. Nowadays, people hear the word forensics and they automatically think of scientists processing crime scenes or matching fingerprints. Our process of discovery doesn't involve making incisions to get at the truth--we use our sharp wits and incisive logic instead. The UTEP Forensics Program houses the competitive speech and debate team of the University of Texas at El Paso. The UTEP Forensics Team travels to intercollegiate speech tournaments nationwide to compete in debate, public speaking and oral interpretation of literature. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Everyone's Invited! The UTEP Forensics Program is always looking for new talent... So--Come on down and join UTEP's State, Regional and National Speech Champions Learn how to excel in Public Speaking~Interpretation of Literature~Debate Speech Team Opportunities & Scholarship Information Available You really don't need any experience; we will train you. You do need to be willing to encounter new ideas, learn effective communication techniques, work with talented people, and travel to new places. You are always welcome to drop by our classes-- come visit us!	Announcements Spring 2009: UTEP Forensics Team ranks in AFA-NIET top 20 teams! Team Captain Jesus Valles named to AFA-NIET All American Team! Jesus Valles ranks 15th in AFA-NIET Individual Sweeps! Team Captain Carlos Tarin awarded multiple full ride graduate scholarships! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Enrollment now open for Fall 2009 UTEP Forensics classes: Class Schedule Debate: CRN 16948 COMM 2201, Forensic Practicum-Debate, MW 6:00-7:20 PM, Cotton 103 Individual Events: CRN 13125 COMM 2202, Forensic Practicum-Individual Events, MW 4:30-5:50 PM, Cotton 103 Any UTEP student is eligible to enroll; no prerequisites, no signature necessary! See details in "How to Join" tab CONTACT DR. MARY TREJO Director, UTEP Forensics Program Email: mtrejo@utep.edu. trejome@gmail.com Office: 915-747-5431; Cell: 915-479-5608 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2008-2009 TEAM CAPTAINS: CARLOS TARIN--Public Speaking Captain JESUS VALLES--Interpretation Captain ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MARY TREJO--THREE TOP EDUCATOR TITLES Mary C. Trejo, Director of the UTEP Forensics Program, holds three top educator titles. Most recently, she was selected 2007-08 Educator of the Year by the Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association; previously, she was chosen 2005-06 University Educator of the Year by the Texas Speech Communication Association. No stranger to top educator awards, Dr. Trejo was named UTEP's top teacher in 1998 when she was awarded the El Paso Energy Corporation Distinguished Achievement Award for Teaching Excellence. http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/mary_trejo/contact.html http://academics.utep.edu/Default.aspx?alias=academics.utep.edu/comm FORENSICS=COMMUNICATION To reach and truly communicate with someone, it is necessary to engage the attention, to push aside barriers of boredom or monotony or even civility, and actually get that person to focus on what is being communicated. In literature or drama as well as in the other arts we can see moments of epiphany, of lightning bolts of realization and clarity; so too it is with the verbal communication of ideas. Lightning-like shocks of clarity may not come around often enough, but they do occur, and are events to be sought after and treasured. Such is the case with the best forensic training. Debaters, public speakers and interpreters of literature are urged to think, to create, and to excel. Originality is prized and rewarded. This atmosphere of attentive and engaged minds is greatly fostered in the exhausting but exhilarating phenomenon of the forensics tournament. The lifetime legacy of training in Debate, Public Speaking and Oral Interpretation of Literature is the ability to conceptualize and communicate ideas clearly, effectively, and with lasting resonance.