Fifteen Dartmouth students took to the lectern in Sanborn Library on Tuesday, May 19, to deliver original persuasive speeches in the College's historic public speaking contest.
With roots dating back to 1901, Dartmouth's speech contest ranks among the oldest collegiate oratory competitions in the United States, reflecting the College's longstanding dedication to speech as an original liberal art.
A panel of distinguished judges, Kristi Clemens, Executive Director of Dialogue Initiatives at Dartmouth College; Paul Klaas D’74, Principal of North Coast Arbitration Chambers in Minneapolis and Arbitrator Member at Maitland Chambers in London; and Jennifer Sargent, J.D., Retired Justice, New Hampshire District Court, will evaluate the speeches and award five prizes for oratory.
Special thank you to our judges and for the generous support from our sponsors, Benjamin F. Barge, Class of 1866, and the Gerald D. Kleinman '55 Memorial Fund.
Finalists, listed below, represented the Classes of 2029, 2028, 2027, and 2026.
- Seunghyeon (Karry) Kim '29 -- The Person America Helped Me Become
- Wyatt Horten '29 -- Our Perception of OCD Isn't Just Wrong; It's Deadly
- Neui Wadwalai '29 -- Four Hundred Bananas Later
- Taite Kirkpatrick '29 -- Not a Life Sentence
- Issa Allison '29 -- Political Hobbyism is the Death of Activism
- Talia R. Proshan '28 -- Don’t Eat Alone
- Dena G. Shao '28 -- Safety Not in Numbers: The Danger of Crowd Surges
- Amanda Hosseini '27 -- What We Say About Our Bodies Matters
- Sudiptha Paul I. '27 -- Veganism & Vegetarianism: Say No
- Andrew R. Serrano '27 -- Sugar, Needles, and the Politics of Being
- Human: Why My Pancreas Retired-But Policy Can’t
- Julia Abbott '26 -- Women, Life, Freedom, and Apathy
- Gideon M. Gruel '26 -- Religious Difference and the Ethics of Encounter
- Nirav Tomasi '26 -- In Defense of USAID: Dismantling the Myths of Foreign Aid
- Bo Kim '26 -- I am not homeless, but I have no home
- Lydia Jin '26 -- Love as an Engine of Meaning
Prize winners were as follows:
- Benjamin F. Barge Prize for Oratory (established 1901) was awarded to Julia Abbott '26, who received a bronze medal and cash prize.
- Class of 1866 Prizes for Oratory (established 1905) were awarded to Bo Kim '26 and Wyatt Horten '29, who each received a commemorative book and cash prize.
- Speech at Dartmouth Prizes for Oratory, supported by the Gerald D. Kleinman '55 Memorial Fund, were awarded to Sud Paul '27 and Dena Shao '28 each receiving a cash prize.
"These students stepped into a long tradition, but they made it their own," said Josh Compton, Professor of Speech and Chair of Speech at Dartmouth. "Their speeches reflected the concerns, hopes, and questions of this moment, and they demonstrated why student oratory continues to matter."
The contest was organized by Josh Compton, Professor of Speech and Chair of Speech at Dartmouth; Darlene Drummond, Associate Professor of Speech; and Yana Grushina, Senior Lecturer of Speech.
Speech at Dartmouth would like to thank Julie Kalish, Alison Martin, Doug Moody, Amanda Wetsel, and Julie Sandberg for their help with this year’s contest.