Figure of Speech

Larry Schnoor is one of the most respected voices in competitive speech and debate. now retired, he served as professor at Minnesota State University, Mankato since the 1960s. Schnoor was instrumental in starting the American Forensics Association - National Individual Events Tournament and served as the organization’s chair from 1977-1979 and as the long-running tournament director from 1994-2016. Additionally, Schnoor also served as the National Forensics Association’s president from 1995-2015 and tournament director in 2004. He is currently enjoying his retirement in Minnesota.

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In this episode, Robert and Larry discuss the differences between forensics in the ‘50s and today, the disappointment when controversies like Peter Pober’s are brought to light, and having some tough love for students who jeopardize the rest of the team.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify, iHeartRadio or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Andy Stone is a two-time high school state champion and went on to compete in college forensics at Arizona State University where he was a six-time national finalist. As a coach, he helped lead Desert Vista High School to 8 consecutive state championships and worked at some of the nation’s most prestigious speech summer camps in Arizona, Illinois, and Florida. For several years, Andy was a producer and co-host of the Encyclopedia Show Arizona, a live semi-educational variety show in Tempe, AZ. Andy graduated from the University of Dubuque with a Masters in Business Administration in 2019 and spent 10 years working at Apple Inc before accepting a position earlier this year as a strategic customer success manager at Sendoso, a rapidly growing tech startup in Scottsdale, AZ. He is married to his former duo partner and AFA national champion Julia Kolsrud. 

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In this episode, Robert and Andy discuss falling in love with speech from the very beginning, falling in love with winning, and falling in love with a teammate.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Heather Wolpert-Gawron is an award-winning middle school teacher and district PBL/21st Century Instructional coach. She was a 2013 USDOE Profiled Connected Educator as well as the San Gabriel Valley Computer Using Educator TOY for 2009. She is the author of Just Ask Us: Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement (Corwin/AMLE) which shares the results of of her nationwide survey of 6th-12th graders and their responses to the question, "What engages you as a learner?" Other books include DIY for Project Based Learning for ELA and History (Routledge), DIY for Project Based Learning for Math and Science (Routledge), Writing Behind Every Door: Teaching Common Core Writing in the Content Areas (Routledge), and ‘Tween Crayons and Curfews: Tips for Middle School Teachers (Routledge). She has been a staff blogger for Edutopia since 2008 and shares all things middle school at tweenteacher.com. She has been a proud member of the California Writing Project since 2008 and was selected as National Faculty for Buck Institute in 2017. 

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In this episode, Robert and heather discuss The People vs. Laron, the benefits of project based learning, and how to avoid tabbing at all costs.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Blake Longfellow's journey through forensics has taken him across the country with stops at major collegiate programs along the way. A bay area native, Blake began transitioning from theatre to forensics in high school when a teacher forced him to try duo interpretation. Three years later Blake moved to southern California to attend and compete for Orange Coast College, picking up several community college national titles along the way. In 2009 Blake was one of the top community college competitors in the country, which earned him a small scholarship to attend Bradley University. During his time in Peoria, Illinois Blake won the 2011 NFA Informative speaking championship and two team sweepstakes titles. Then after completing his masters degree at Western Kentucky University in 2014 he left the activity all together. But forensics slowly pulled him back in from the wilderness and in 2016 he became the ADoF in his hometown's high school and community college teams concurrently. He's since help establish Diablo Valley College as one of the nation's premier community college teams, and launched the forensics judging services company Hired Judge. His company has connected hundreds of judges nationwide with tournaments in their local area, and has big plans for the future of forensics. 

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In this episode, Robert and Blake discuss the power of community college competitors, the finer points of Reader’s Theater, and the goal of winning forensics as a team.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

An accomplished public speaker for many years, Mike began his competitive speaking career at the age of 12 when he was invited to attend a high school speaking competition on behalf of South Salem High School (even though he was still in junior high!).  Mike won first place in both the Novice division of Humorous Interpretation and junior division of Lincoln Douglas Debate.  From then on and throughout high school, Mike went on to win 78 times, taking home 117 trophies along the way. Mike was awarded a debate scholarship to Arizona State University and continued winning speech and debate tournaments in college, in both NDT and CEDA formats. Graduating Magna Cum Laude from ASU with a B.S. in Engineering, Mike also became a notable and sought-after public speaker in the Printing and Marketing industry, speaking at industry events such as VUE Point and PODi. Mike began realizing his dream of mentoring students in speech and debate in 2011, and began Nova 42 Academy in 2012. Nova 42 now helps guide close to 300 students, including several from all around the world. In 2019 Nova 42 Academy, adding to its offerings, became a private high school and was able to join the NSDA.

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In this episode, Robert and Mike discuss the guilty pleasures of Monty Python, how to make money through printing, and the impact of teaching students by focusing less on winning.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Wei Wang is currently a co-founder of QD Learning and Gateway Academy. He is passionate about Speech,Debate,  Leadership, College Admission and anything in between to get students in K-12 ready for college and career. His previous career was in IT consulting/sales specializing in cloud computing & enterprise software. He is originally from Shanghai, China and graduated from UCLA with a MBA degree. He is also a Captain from US Air Force Reserve based in March Air Reserve Base.

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In this episode, Robert and Wei discuss Toastmasters, the differences between Chinese and American education, and how the military plays into the speech world.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Lance had a twenty one year forensics career that started with him winning a jr high speech competition sponsored by the Modern Woodmen of America in 1977. Lance competed for two years at the University of Wyoming and then at the University of Colorado, where he was president of the student run team.  He coached at the University of Wyoming as a graduate student and then at Northern Arizona University where his teams won numerous national championships. He was tournament host for the DSR-TKA national tournament in 1997 and then for the AFA NIET in 1998, where he made the mistake that rocked the forensics community. Today he is the host of the YouTube channel The History Guy: History Deserves to be Remembered where he applies the skills learned in forensics on three episodes per week.

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In this episode, Robert and Lance discuss the dangers of driving after competitions, the joys of a student-run team, and get into one of the biggest controversies in forensics history.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Ryan is a 16 year old sophomore at California State University, Los Angeles under the Early Entrance Program. As a middle schooler, he primarily competed in Congress and found some success there. Ryan chooses to stay active within the forensics community by volunteering at speech and debate tournaments.

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In this episode, Robert and Ryan discuss the joys of being a Parliamentarian in Congressional Debate, dealing with the work demands of college when you’re only 15 year old, and the troubles of transportation in Los Angeles.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Bill Eddy is teaches speech and debate courses at Magnet Learning Academy, in Irvine, California. A graduate student at Gonzaga University, "Coach Bill" as he is known to his students served as a consultant, professor, research fellow and speech & debate coach for several prestigious universities and academies. While working in the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Korea, his students won NSDA-Korea's national tournament three years in a row. He has earned numerous distinctions as both a competitor and as a coach.

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In this episode, Robert and Eddy discuss the joys of coaching in another country, dealing with unethical approaches to forensics, and the fact that debate, once in your blood, never truly leaves.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Angela is a recent grad from Cornell University, where she studied Government and European Studies. She started competing in speech and debate when she was in middle school and continued until her freshman year of high school. Her debate career was primarily focused on Public Forum and Lincoln Douglas events.

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In this episode, Robert and Angela discuss the benefits of unusual research styles, dealing with crushing competitive losses, and the way in which debate shapes political thinking.  Listen for free through Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Overcast, Podbean, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.