Last year, St. Thomas Aquinas reestablished their Speech & Debate Team. They didn’t just start a program, it has flourished, reaching great heights in their inaugural year and it’s clear this year will be another banner year for them. Again this year, the team started their competitive season by accepting an invitation to compete at the prestigious Yale University Tournament in New Haven, Connecticut. 

Graceyn Dowd, a junior at Aquinas, make it all the way to the semi-final round in Dramatic Interpretation. She placed 12th overall, earning Aquinas national ranking for the second year in a row! The Aquinas team returns after finishing their season in June at the National Speech and Debate League National Championship Tournament in Texas. At Nationals, Dowd finished in the quarter-final round which placed her among the top thirty students in Dramatic Interpretation, out of 250 competitors from the start. The team also earned state ranking in their first year after Dowd placed 6th overall at the Ohio High School State Speech and Debate League National Tournament.