Emily Song, an active sophomore at North Atlanta, has been a part of  the school’s Debate team for two years. On Dec. 16, she competed in the American Legion Post 140 oratorical competition at North Atlanta in which she earned first place for the school, and third place in the district. These two very esteemed titles took hardwork and determination to receive.

The recent competition was a public speaking contest, which focused on the rights and responsibilities outlined in the Constitution, and specifically focused on seperate amendments in the Constitution. The first speech had to be 8 to 10 minutes, and the second speech (about the specific amendment) had to be 3 to 5 minutes. “I did my speech on the overall message of the Constitution,” Song said. “And I focused it on how citizens need to be more aware of politics, because a lot of times they don’t really know what’s going on.” She explained that political awareness is an important issue and that more Americans should focus in more on this problem.

Preparing the speeches required a significant amount of dedication and time. The speeches had to be fully memorized, polished, and ready to be presented. “I actually didn’t know I was gonna be doing it until a week before,” she said. “So I only had that week to prepare!” Although this could’ve been a setback for many, she worked through this struggle, staying motivated, and finished strong. But the speech writing and memorizing weren’t the only steps to get to the big competition. Song had to attend many other debate competitions, most of them oratorical contests, like the one she recently attended. She explained that these were important to helping her prepare for the main event that followed.

At the competition, Song presented her speech to military veterans, which definitely influenced her presentation. She commented on this, saying “I was honored knowing that they fought for our county, and it definitely made me feel more patriotic.” After she presented, she got to meet some of the veterans, and said that it was an inspiring opportunity.

After earning these esteemed titles in the debate meet, Emily expressed that she was very glad she got to be part of it all. “It was definitely really good for improving speaking skills, and it improved my confidence as well.” Overall, Song said she learned a lot from the competition, and was very proud to represent her school as she did it.