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Colina wins national championship in speech and debate
Claudia Colina '25 concluded an extraordinary season in speech and debate with a national championship in Dramatic Interpretation at the 100th anniversary of the National Speech and Debate Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa. A year after finishing fifth in the nation, Colina captured the U.S. title on June 21 with her moving, impassioned interpretation of Legitimate Kid: A Memoir by Aida Rodriguez. Surrounded by teammates and supported by coaches Kate Hamm and Justinmar Perez, she flourished during numerous competitive rounds and endured a tournament delay caused by an intruder who was apprehended.
RE had other notable results at the tournament: Gustavo do Valle '26 reached the semifinals and earned 14th place in the nation in Humorous Interpretation. Chloe Zaldivar '26 reached the semifinals in Student Congress; Daniela Garcia '26 and Miranda Silva '26 reached the octofinals in Duo Interpretation; Ana Gonzalez '26, Minnie Zhou '26, and Eli Tomassetti '27 triple octo-finaled in World Schools Debate; and
Julia Jacir '27 and Sofia Mena '27 quadruple octo-finaled in Public Forum Debate.
Hamm, meanwhile, won the Thomas Glen Pelham Award, given annually since 1990 to an educator or speech and debate advocate who has displayed devotion to the forensic arts, spurring motivation, integrity and character in students. This award is given annually to someone who has spent a decade or more in the high school speech and debate community.
Hamm, meanwhile, won the Thomas Glen Pelham Award, given annually since 1990 to an educator or speech and debate advocate who has displayed devotion to the forensic arts, spurring motivation, integrity and character in students. This award is given annually to someone who has spent a decade or more in the high school speech and debate community.
The Ransom Everglades team also earned a Debate Schools of Excellence award, an honor that recognizes the top 20 schools in total debate points that did not win a School of Outstanding Distinction Award.
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2045 South Bayshore Drive, Coconut Grove, FL 33133Phone: 305 250 6850
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Founded in 1903, Ransom Everglades School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for grades 6 - 12 located on two campuses in Coconut Grove, Florida. Ransom Everglades School produces graduates who "believe that they are in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it." The school provides rigorous college preparation that promotes the student's sense of identity, community, personal integrity and values for a productive and satisfying life, and prepares the student to lead and to contribute to society.
Ransom Everglades School®, The RE Way™, RE Pathways™ and Bowden Fellowships in the Humanities™ are trademarks of Ransom Everglades School.
Ransom Everglades School®, The RE Way™, RE Pathways™ and Bowden Fellowships in the Humanities™ are trademarks of Ransom Everglades School.