By Claire Lareau

In fall 2021, two Collegiate Juniors, Lila Rogers (‘23) and Hudson Neese (‘23), banded together with then-new Upper School history teacher Shannon Castelo and Upper School French teacher Laurel Maughan to create Collegiate School’s first-ever Speech and Debate Team. 

Castelo and team members at the Mid-Atlantic National Qualifier, hosted by Collegiate. Photo credit: Instagram @collegiateva.

Before joining the History department in 2021, Castelo worked at James River High School. There, her colleague Jessica Sanchez asked her to become a debate coach, and Castelo dove in. Castelo became a passionate and experienced coach: “I do everything all in. If I’m going to do it, I am going to do it 100%.” During her time as a coach at James River, Castelo learned everything she could possibly learn about debate: “I went to every workshop, I looked at everything on YouTube, I talked to everyone I could find that was willing to speak with me, and I figured out how it worked.” Her James River Debate Team started with only ten kids who were “ready to experiment” and grew into a “really competitive program.” 

When she was in high school, Castelo never participated in debate, but she was part of the Forensics Team and participated in Original Oratory. Joining this team was a “game-changer” for her. She says, “I was a kid that was sort of untethered. I was an athlete, but wasn’t setting the world on fire. Speech and Debate was a family; it was a home. It was a place where I could learn how to use my voice and have people listen, captivate an audience, and bring people into a conversation. Those are just essential life skills.”

Her speech and debate experience at James River and as a high schooler drove Castelo to create a team with Maughan in her first year at Collegiate. During one of her first conversations with Upper School Head Patrick Loach, Castelo expressed her interest in forming a team here: “Public speaking was certainly valuable; civil discourse and dialogue are important to us.” She felt it was vital to build a strong program at Collegiate. Neese and Rogers had expressed interest in starting a debate team before Castelo had even talked to Loach, and Castelo felt their overlapping drive to create this team “was destiny, in a way.” 

Many challenges arose when starting the Speech and Debate Team. Castelo and Maughan encountered the age-old problem at Collegiate: time. Castelo says, “These kids have a million things going on. There are so many opportunities here on campus that it is almost like death from too many opportunities.”

The new team had to find ways to communicate “what the program was.” Students needed to understand that “it was more than just some kids getting together to argue about stuff in a classroom. It wasn’t just a club; it was a competitive team experience. We learn our skills. We practice our skills. We go to competitions. We win trophies.” 

Team members at the Ronald Reagan Foundation Virtual Field Trip with the Discovery Channel. Photo credit: Shannon Castelo.

Maughan and Castelo knew that once they found students to join the team, these students would be hooked. Castelo says, “As soon as you go to a competition, you’re like, ‘Wow, this is awesome. I am in.’” The program now has over 50 participants, with about 20 to 25 students attending each competition. 

“The debate commitment is significant,” Castelo says, “Students are dedicated to this sport.” Each competition requires a weighty amount of preparation on both the coaches’ and participants’ sides. For debate, a resolution drops monthly, and the students begin researching the pros and cons of their arguments. A recent resolution was whether the government should cover all federal student loan debt; the previous resolution concerned The United States substantially increasing military presence in the Arctic. Students spend hours researching their topic both in and out of the classroom. They brainstorm possible arguments, create cases, debate against each other, and work together to pick apart cases and find holes in the arguments.

There are two subcategories in the speech category: Interpretation events and Public Address events. Interpretation events include Prose and Dramatic Interpretation. These events allow students to interpret and recite published material, and they often attract students who are interested in acting and theater. Public Address events include Original Oratory, Commentary, and others. These events allow students to prepare in advance and write an original speech.

At competitions, students compete in several preliminary rounds in an attempt to advance to the elimination rounds, or the outrounds. Debate students are judged on their ability to construct compelling arguments, use credible evidence, and refute opponent’s points effectively. Speech students are judged on their content, organization, delivery, and overall impact.

Castelo and Maughan coach each student one-on-one. Castelo noted that the teams have as many students, if not more, than Collegiate’s sports teams: “Imagine if your coach had to prep every single player individually before a competition. Think about how challenging that would be.”

The team has pushed through the challenges and encountered great success throughout the past three years. Last year, they placed as Overall Sweepstakes Champions. Many participants have placed first in their events. Speech team member Jai Spicer (’25) placed first in many of his impromptu speaking categories and was selected as a Richmond Forum Scholar. 

At George Mason University last year, Jewel Yarney (‘24) broke to the outrounds with a ten-minute speech on psychological and emotional stress in schools. She explained how teachers are burnt out, and how that affects students’ learning experience. 

Speech and Debate team members at the Cosby Seventh Annual Clash of the Titans tournament. Photo credit: Shannon Castelo.

Debate team member Rhett Anderson (‘25) shared her love for debate with me: “My favorite part is learning about topics that I wouldn’t otherwise know anything about.” In a competition at Collegiate against St. Christopher’s School last year, she debated for the legalization of all illicit drugs. Her team won.

At the Cosby Seventh Annual Clash of the Titans tournament last fall, Maytal Zasler (‘25) delivered a speech in the prose category from Gloria Steinem’s memoir My Life of the Road. Zasler shares, “I love being on Speech and Debate, because it gives me the chance to express an idea through a mix of original and borrowed spoken and written word. It is an amazing way to get out of your comfort zone and try something new.”

The team recently took six students to an online, high-level competition at Yale University, and the relatively young team held their own. None of the students broke to the outrounds, but every Collegiate student won at least one round of debate: “Everybody felt like they were in the fight. We’re only in our third year, and for us to be able to be in the fight at a competition as high level as that is a good sign that Collegiate has a lot to bring to the table.”

Many Collegiate students are truly passionate about the Speech and Debate team. The students’ passion and the passion of the coaches will undeniably lead to continued success for this team.

Castelo shares that in the future, the team wants “people to see the team as being a welcome experience where they can come in and learn. Even if they never go to a competition, if they want to do it then Come on. Join the bus. Let’s get in and do it.” She often calls Speech and Debate “The hop-on-hop-off bus tour.” She says, “You can come in; you can prep out; you can compete with the resolution, and then if you’re super busy the next month and can’t compete, it’s fine. Debate is flexible in that way.”

Through all of the preparation and competition, the team’s first and foremost goal is to “teach students to be competitive speakers who lead with kindness first.” Castelo states, “Winning is important to us, but it is not all we are about. We want to first train students on how to be clear, effective, and persuasive communicators. We want to empower students to be heard.”

The team’s ultimate goal is “to be something that people recognize on campus the way they recognize the Robotics or Tennis team.” Castelo would love to gather more student support for the team: “Our goal is to be The Game of the Week.”

Featured image credit: Shannon Castelo.