Two students from Davis County are members of the Weber State University Speech team that was recently crowned National Online Forensics Champions, beating out 49 other universities for the title.

Rae Alder of Centerville and Bex Baggett of Farmington will join their teammates for the Comprehensive Finals to be held April 14-20 in Chicago. 

“This is a huge feather in our cap for a new and upcoming team,” Mark Galaviz, the team’s head coach, said. “The dedication it takes for a team to compete against the likes of Cal State, Bowling Green, Texas State and the University of California is immense, and our students exemplify that work.”

This year has seen Weber State maintain its Gold Medal program status in the region (only two schools qualify for this honor in the Pacific Northwest, northern California and Utah.) At every tournament the team has attended this year, it has placed in the top four. 

In addition to the team title, Alder was named national champion of After Dinner Speaking and placed third overall in poetry. Baggett took second place overall in Individual Sweeps, gold in Extemporaneous Speaking, gold in Duo Interpretation, bronze in IPDA debate and bronze in Program Oral Interpretation

“Speech and Debate gives me the opportunity to work on my advocacy and interpersonal communication skills,” said Jazmyne Olson of Clinton, a team member. “I love being able to engage in discourse with other college students across the country on different issues from job outsourcing to representation in the media.”

On April 23 at 6 p.m. in the Elizabeth Hall Auditorium in Ogden, the team will celebrate its yearlong success with an event for students to showcase their best presentations. The event will be free and open to the public.

“A trophy is nice to have at the end of a tournament,” Olson said. “However, it's the interactions with my team and competitors that makes the work worth it to me.” λ