The Commentator | On 13, Apr 2016

This past weekend, the halls of Hudson were alive with the sounds of spoken word.

Hudson Catholic hosted its 26th annual Forensic Speech Competition on Saturday, April 9, 2016. For local students in grades 5-8, articulation, elocution, and eloquence were the names of the game.

Participants had been rehearsing for weeks to deliver speeches that would impress the judges, a panel made up of Hudson Catholic students and adult volunteers. Competitors were split up by grade into varsity (grades 7 and 8) and junior varsity (grades 5 and 6) levels, in which each individual or duo presented a rehearsed piece from the categories of fiction, poetry, drama, declamation, and even original written work.

All student participants competed in two rounds in the morning, followed by a lunch break and then the final round and awards ceremony in the afternoon. During allotted down time for score tabulation, students were invited to participate in a haiku-form scavenger hunt, created by our own English teacher Mrs. Lisa Attina-Matrale, and to chat, snack, and color.

Student judges had a fun-filled Saturday they won’t soon forget.

“I competed in this event in middle school, and I have worked as a judge for the last two years,” sophomore Giovanni Marmora said. “This year was a lot more fun than usual. I’m really happy with the way the event ran. I think the kids liked it a lot.”

A hush punctuated by loud bursts of applause was heard as trophies were awarded for first, second, and third place in each speech category. The final trophy awarded was to overall school winners. St. Nicholas School, located in the heights, won third place overall. St. Francis Academy, Union City, won second place, being very narrowly bested by Woodrow Wilson School, Union City.

First-time judge Janine Gagliardi said, “This was my first time judging Forensics, and I had a great time. All the kids were extremely impressive today. I will definitely be coming back next year!”

The event was coordinated once again by Hudson alumnus Mr. Brian Slattery ’94 and Director of Campus Ministry Mrs. Michaela Vaccari. English teacher Mr. Anthony Bongiorno also helped in the planning this year.