University of Texas at Austin Speech Team Earns Third Consecutive National Title at Tournament

AUSTIN, Texas – April 18, 2007 – The University of Texas at Austin Speech Team earned a fifth national title in Impromptu Speaking at the 2007 American Forensic Association National Individual Events Tournament. The team placed second in the Team Sweepstakes category.

Senior Jill Collum was recognized as The University of Texas at Austin’s 25th American Forensic Association National Champion, winning Impromptu Speaking. This was the third consecutive year a University of Texas at Austin student has won the championship in that category. Additionally, two University of Texas students – Collum and senior Rina Shah – were recognized as American Forensic Association All-Americans, an honor bestowed on only 17 students this year.

Thirty-three entries advanced to the national quarter-final rounds with 16 of the team’s 21 students qualifying for individual awards. Individual awards are as follows:

COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION

Donald Collier National Quarter-finalist – Prose

National Semi-finalist – After Dinner Speaking

Eric Cullather National Finalist – Prose (6th Place)

National Semi-finalist – Program Oral Interpretation

Jesse Gall  15th Overall Speaker (Individual Sweepstakes)

National Finalist – Duo Interpretation (5th)

National Semi-finalist – Duo Interpretation

National Quarter-finalist – Prose

National Quarter-finalist – Dramatic Interpretation

National Quarter-finalist – After Dinner Speaking

Shivali Goudar  National Quarter-finalist – Dramatic Interpretation

National Quarter-finalist – Communication Analysis

Aviva Pinchas National Semi-finalist – Duo Interpretation

Merry Regan 14th Overall Speaker (Individual Sweepstakes)

National Finalist – Informative Speaking (6th)

National Finalist – Impromptu Speaking (4th)

National Semi-finalist – Extemporaneous Speaking

National Quarter-finalist – After Dinner Speaking

COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS

Theresa Downer National Quarter-finalist – Prose

National Quarter-finalist – Dramatic Interpretation

Nicole Kreisberg National Finalist – Duo Interpretation (5th)

Caetlin Mangan National Semi-finalist – Prose

National Semi-finalist – Poetry

Ashley Tinnell National Semi-finalist – Dramatic Interpretation

Austin Wright National Quarter-finalist – Extemporaneous Speaking

SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Jill Collum 13th Overall Speaker (Individual Sweepstakes)

National Champion – Impromptu Speaking

National Semi-finalist – Extemporaneous Speaking

National Semi-finalist – Communication Analysis

National Quarter-finalist – Persuasive Speaking

AFA All-American

Ashley Hatcher National Finalist – Extemporaneous Speaking (6th)

National Quarter-finalist – Impromptu Speaking

Sandip Gupta National Finalist – Impromptu Speaking (6th)

Rina Shah National Semi-finalist – Communication Analysis

AFA All-American

National Student Representative

COLLEGE OF NATURAL SCIENCES

Bimal Patel 16th Overall Speaker (Individual Sweepstakes)

National Semi-finalist – Prose

National Semi-finalist – Poetry

National Quarter-Finalist – Informative Speaking

National Quarter-finalist – Program Oral Interpretation

Other students invited to participate in the tournament but not advancing to elimination rounds include Angelica Davis, Ryan Castillo, Margaret Yancey and Mary Kate Raffetto from the College of Communication, and Tapashya Ghosh from the McCombs School of Business

Six of the top 10 schools recognized at the tournament were coached in part by alumni of The University of Texas at Austin Department of Communication Studies.

The tournament, sponsored by the American Forensic Association, was hosted at Minnesota State University at Mankato. The 2008 tournament will be hosted by The University of Texas at Austin next April.

Sponsored by the university’s College of Communication, and housed in the Department of Communication Studies, the Individual Events speech team has won 25 individual national titles since it was established 19 years ago, making it the second winningest program in the history of the American Forensic Association. For more information, visit: www.utspeech.net

###

Contacts:

Martin “Randy” Cox

(512) 471-1957

mrcox@mail.utexas.edu

Erin Geisler

(512) 475-8071

egeisler@mail.utexas.edu