The Arkansas Student Congress Committee has announced the caucus, chamber, and committee assignments for the upcoming model legislative event, which is scheduled for Nov. 10-12.

Assignments can be found in the 2024 Bill Book, which also publishes original student-written dockets for debate in committee and legislative sessions. The Bill Book can be accessed at actaa.org/congress.

Arkansas Student Congress is the oldest model legislative event in the state. Established in 1968, it provides a unique opportunity for both high school (House) and college (Senate) students to simulate the representative democratic process at a state-wide level. For over 50 years, the Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association has hosted this tournament, which includes the opportunity for students to participate in mock party caucuses, committees, and floor debates over student-written legislation.

Jessica Skordal, speech & debate teacher at Bentonville West High School, was recently named Teacher of the Year by the Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA). Skordal was officially presented the award at the ACTAA’s annual Fall Conference on Petit Jean Mountain Sep. 19-21.

Skordal is a highly respected teacher with 10 years of experience in the communication classroom. An alumni of the Bentonville Schools, she currently serves as the Director of Speech & Debate for the students of Bentonville West High School. Skordal has studied political science, education, and leadership at the University of Arkansas. She received an MA in Secondary Education & Teaching.

Beck Greenway, a colleague from Bentonville High School, praises Skordal's significant contributions to the field of communication education in Arkansas. "Her passion for providing learning opportunities for students both in and out of the classroom, her role as a trusted servant, compassionate coach, and valued mentor, and her leadership in the state-wide community make her a true asset to Arkansas," reported Greenway at the presentation ceremony.

“Jessica is passionate about providing opportunities for the students of Arkansas to be transformed through communication education,” shared ACTAA President Zackery Tucker. “When students learn the critical skills to think for themselves, speak their passion, and act to serve others, they are equipped to transform their communities. Jessica's leadership is evidence of effective ethical communication as an essential discipline, life skill, and art form.”

Skordal’s leadership abilities benefit educators across Arkansas as she regularly leads professional development and serves ACTAA as its second vice president. Despite coaching one of the more nationally competitive speech & debate programs in the state, Skordal makes time to mentor other educators in speech & debate instruction.

As ACTAA Teacher of the Year, Skordal will be nominated by the association for the National Federation of State High Schools Association (NFHS) Outstanding Speech, Debate, & Theatre Educator award this winter.

The Arkansas Communication and Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) is a non-profit professional organization serving educators. Its purpose is to promote communication, debate, forensics and theatre as an essential discipline, life skill, and art form. Additionally, ACTAA is the official sanctioning organization authorized by the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) and National Federation of State High Schools Association (NFHS) to govern interscholastic speech and debate competition in Arkansas.

Dr. Paul Griep, principal of Har-Ber High School, was recently named Administrator of the Year by the Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA). Griep was officially presented the award at ACTAA’s annual Fall Conference on Petit Jean Mountain Sep. 19-21.

“Dr. Griep unwavering support, honesty, and integrity have been instrumental in fostering a thriving educational environment where both staff and students can excel,” shared Lauren Loehndorf, Har-Ber communication teacher, at the presentation ceremony. “His commitment to open dialogue, collaboration and listening models effective communication to our students; and his support for provided quality learning opportunities both in and out of the classroom evidences him as a champion for speech & debate.”

Under Dr. Griep’s leadership and support of co-curricular learning, programs like Har-Ber Speech & Debate have grown to be one of the more of the more nationally competitive speech & debate programs in the state.

The Arkansas Communication and Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) is a non-profit professional organization serving educators. Its purpose is to promote communication, debate, forensics and theatre as an essential discipline, life skill, and art form. Additionally, ACTAA is the official sanctioning organization authorized by the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) and National Federation of State High Schools Association (NFHS) to govern interscholastic speech and debate competition in Arkansas.

Eight high school student leaders from across the state have been selected to serve on the Arkansas Speech & Debate Student Advisory Board for the 2024-2025 academic year. The eight juniors and seniors were chosen for their outstanding leadership skills, achievements in academics and activities, and commitment to positively impacting their communities. The group will attend several meetings throughout the 2024-2025 academic year, being provided the opportunity to work with adult leadership of the Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) to grow leadership skills, bring youth perspectives to speech & debate, and support inter-program camaraderie and community within the Arkansas speech & debate high school circuit.

“Promoting student involvement and leadership training within our learning community is one of the organization’s most important initiatives,” shared Zackery Tucker, ACTAA President. “As ACTAA continues to support educators to invest and train Arkansas’ next generation of leaders through speech & debate, I am excited to gain the insight and perspectives of the students we ultimately serve on how speech & debate can be more than just competition but a valued experience in every school in the state.”

2024-2025 Student Advisory Board:

---

The Arkansas Communication and Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) is a non-profit professional organization serving educators. Its purpose is to promote communication, debate, forensics and theatre as an essential discipline, life skill, and art form. Additionally, ACTAA is the official sanctioning organization authorized by the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) and National Federation of State High Schools Association (NFHS) to govern interscholastic speech, debate and theatre competition in Arkansas.

ACTAA Leadership has called the annual general business meeting of the association for Saturday, Sep. 21 at 9:15 a.m. to take place in the Show Barn at the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain as part of the annual Fall Conference, Sep 19-21.

The association's general business meeting is an annual opportunity for the membership will hear reports from officers & committees, vote on Proposed Rule & Governing Changes, and elect new members of the Nominations Committee. 

Below is linked the agenda for the meeting. 

General Business Meeting Agenda

The Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) has announced that the 2025 Arkansas Forensics & Debate State Championship Tournament will be held May 2-3 at Fayetteville High School.

The Arkansas Forensics & Debate State Championship Tournament is the official Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) sanctioned state title competition for high school speech & debate activities in Arkansas. Each year, student competitors earn a place in the state tournament by advancing into certain final rounds of competition at one or more of the sanctioned speech & debate tournaments hosted throughout the state in a season that runs from September to April. Approximately 250 of the state’s top student competitors from 20-plus high schools are expected to qualify to compete in the tournament to earn a state champion title in one of the 21 individual or team speech & debate events.

Details about the Arkansas Forensics & Debate State Championship Tournament will be made available at actaa.org/state.

About ACTAA.

Founded in 1919 as the Arkansas Little Theatre Association, ACTAA has a long history of promoting the rigorous study and ethical practice of professional communication, debate, and theatre arts as an essential discipline, life skill, and art form. As a professional association of educators since 1934, ACTAA has served as the official organization sanctioned by the AAA to govern interscholastic speech, debate, and theatre competitions between AAA member schools in Arkansas. Through supporting educators in the classroom and coordinating interscholastic competition, ACTAA works to provide the students of Arkansas opportunities to grow critical thinking skills, interpersonal effectiveness, leadership, collaborative work, problem-solving, self-efficacy, etc., in experiential learning through debate, forensics, acting, and public speaking.

Arkansas high schools and colleges are invited to send a student delegation to the 56th Arkansas Student Congress. This year’s Student Congress will be held at Episcopal Collegiate School (1701 Cantrell Road) and the Arkansas State Capitol Building (500 Woodlane Street) Sunday, November 10th to Tuesday, November 12th, 2024. Entry forms and bills must be submitted by Wednesday, September 25, 2024.

Arkansas Student Congress is the oldest model legislative event in the state. Established in 1968, the event provides a unique opportunity for both high school (House) and college (Senate) students to simulate the representative democratic process at a state-wide level. For over 50 years, ACTAA has hosted this tournament, which includes the opportunity for students to participate in mock party caucuses, committees, and floor debates over student written legislation. On Sundays of the tournament, parties, caucuses, and committee meetings are held at a chosen location in Little Rock. Monday & Tuesday of the tournament, students debate original student legislation on the House & Senate floor in the State Capitol Building.

More information about the competition and registration can be found at actaa.org/congress.

UPDATED 08/28/2024

Ahead of the Fall Conference, Sep. 19-21, at Petit Jean Mountain, Executive Director Martene Campbell shares three proposed changes to the association's governing documents and competition rules for its activities. 

Each year, members are able submit changes to ACTAA's government documents and competition rules for consideration for adoption at the organization's annual business meeting by the membership. 

Proposed amendments for consideration at the General Membership Business Meeting on Saturday, September 21:

For reference, below are links to the current versions of each document being proposed to be amended:

15 Arkansas students advanced elimination rounds at the National Speech & Debate Tournament hosted in Des Moines, Iowa, June 16–21, 2024.

Rachael McCall from Cabot Junior High North won first place in the Original Spoken Word Poetry in the middle school, becoming the first student from Arkansas to earn a national championship title at a National Speech & Debate Association national tournament (middle or high school) in state history

More than 6,700 students from 1,500 schools competed in the tournament, which is the largest speech & debate competition in the nation.

In addition to McCall, the following students advanced to elimination rounds at the tournament:

The National Speech & Debate Tournament marks the capstone of speech and debate activities for more than 140,000 members across the country. The student competitors represent the best and brightest young people across the United States and the globe. The tournament is hosted by the National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) June 16–21, 2024 in Des Moines, IA.

Competitors earned bids to qualify to participate in  the National Speech & Debate Tournament through advancing to key elimination rounds at the NSDA Arkansas District Tournament and the national virtual Last Change Qualifier Tournament.

The following Arkansas students have earned bids to the National Speech & Debate Tournament in the 2023-2034 academic year: 

https://www.tabroom.com/index/tourn/book.mhtml?tourn_id=29238