SMYRNA – Motlow students can receive career-changing recognition, prizes and awards by participating in the second annual Debbie Zimmerman Oratorical Contest on Oct. 21.
According to Professor Robert Davenport, the contest is open to Motlow students from any of the MSCC campus locations, regardless of major or prior speaking experience. The deadline to enroll is Oct. 7 (Monday). Students can register by accessing the QR code on the event flyer or sending an email with their name, email address, phone number, and MSCC campus location to rdavenport@mscc.edu.
Students will deliver original persuasive/argumentative speeches. The contest rules and requirements can be found in the Dean of Students shell on D2L.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for students to develop better speaking skills and more experience,” said Davenport, who serves as the event’s oratorical contest coordinator and an associate professor of speech on the Smyrna campus. “Effective communication skills are the number one characteristic employers look for in potential employees. Give this a shot to grow your communication skills.”
If more than 10 students enter the contest, there will be a “semifinal” round in which students will submit a video recording of their speech. These speeches will be evaluated by a group of communication professors. The top 10 speakers from that round will qualify for an in-person final round on the Moore County campus in November (date to be announced soon). If there are 10 or fewer entrants, all will advance to the final round to be eligible for prizes and awards.
The Smyrna Entertainment, Arts and Media Club and Motlow Humanities Department began sponsoring a college-wide public speaking competition called the Debbie Zimmerman Oratorical Contest in 2023. Professor Emeritus Zimmerman was a longtime speech and theatre professor at Motlow and instrumental in helping create and grow both disciplines.
“Ideally, participants should have already completed the COMM 2025 – Fundamentals of Communication course or be currently enrolled in the class, but that is not an absolute requirement,” Davenport added.
Students who are taking/have taken English 1010/1020 can potentially turn a persuasive/argumentative essay they have done in the past into a persuasive speech for this event.
As a former intercollegiate speech and debate coach/instructor, Davenport has always seen the benefits of students being able to effectively prepare and present presentations to help prepare them for their chosen careers.
“This event is an important extra-curricular activity for our students,” he said.
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