West Des Moines, IA, June 15, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Speech & Debate Association is proud to be holding the largest academic competition in the world, the 2018 National Speech & Debate Tournament, in Fort Lauderdale, June 17-22, 2018. The tournament is being hosted by Broward County Public Schools. “ This is the capstone event in the speech and debate community for our students and coaches,” said J. Scott Wunn, Executive Director of the National Speech & Debate Association. “We are thrilled to have more than 4,000 of the brightest students from across the world in Fort Lauderdale next week.” The National Speech & Debate Association has hosted the National Tournament in various cities since 1931. To qualify for this premier event, students across the country compete during the spring in 110 District Tournaments. The winners of these District Tournament qualify for the annual National Tournament. From more than 150,000 student members, less than 3% qualify to compete in this prestigious for the right to be called National Champions. “The students competing at the National Tournament are truly the best of the best,” said Wunn. “These students have outstanding talents, and go on to be successful college graduates and future leaders in their local communities as well on a national level too.” The week-long 2018 National Tournament will bring in more than 7,000 students, coaches, educators, and parents to the Fort Lauderdale area. The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau estimates that the economic impact of the National Tournament will be almost $11 million dollars for the Broward County/Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area. Competition begins in 22 categories on Monday, June 17 with 600 events. Top performing students are then selected Tuesday night to continue into the semifinals rounds held on Wednesday. Final round performances beginning Thursday afternoon and concluding late Friday afternoon. Winners are then awarded their placement in front of an audience of over 4,000 at the National Awards Assembly. Student winners will take home over $100,000 in scholarships from the event. In addition, many of them will receive additional scholarships from the various colleges and universities across the country. For more in-depth information in the tournament program, and a complete schedule of the National Speech & Debate Tournament, visit www.speechanddebate.org/nationals . To view past performances from the National Speech & Debate Tournament, visit: https://www.youtube.com/user/natlforensicleague/playlists The 2018 National Speech & Debate Tournament final round performances and the awards assembly will be broadcast live via Livestream available at https://www.speechanddebate.org/live/ About the National Speech & Debate Association The National Speech & Debate Association is the largest interscholastic speech and debate organization serving middle school, high school, and collegiate students in the United States. The Association provides competitive speech and debate activities, high-quality resources, comprehensive training, scholarship opportunities, and advanced recognition to more than 150,000 students and coaches every year. For 90 years, the National Speech & Debate Association has empowered more than 1.5 million members to become engaged citizens, skilled professionals, and honorable leaders in our society. For more information, visit www.speechanddebate.org . Follow the 2018 National Speech & Debate Tournament on social media for ongoing updates throughout the week: @speechanddebate #Nats18 Twitter.com/speechanddebate, Facebook.com/speechanddebate, and Instagram at Speech and Debate
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Mike Rieker National Speech & Debate Association 5154478884 mike.rieker@speechanddebate.org
