CCHS large group speech contest offered in small contest format

Creston Community High School is hosting its annual large group district speech contest Saturday as usual, but under unusual circumstances as the CCHS speech team takes the threat of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the recommendations set forth by Gov. Kim Reynolds into consideration.

This time, instead of having 25 schools present, three schools will be on site – Creston, Orient-Macksburg and Southwest Valley. Across the state, schools will host smaller contests. Instead of 16 district contests across the state this weekend, speech instructors and educators will hold three times as many in an effort to reduce the number of people gathering for performances.

Laura Granger, Creston Community High School speech teacher said this season was difficult to plan, but with Principal Bill Messerole’s support and insight as an IHSSA council member, the team, comprised of more than 53, students will be able to compete for a rating once again as it looks forward to showcasing its 17 individual and group performances.

“Thankfully the administration and the school board has been really, really helpful making it work,” said Granger. “They recognize the importance of extracurriculars. Even though the fine arts is a little riskier ... we’ve taken precautions and I am really thankful for a supportive administration and school board that supports the fine arts ... .”

One part of the speech experience that has been canceled are All-State festivals, which are typically hosted at University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University. The All-State speech contest will still occur in two weeks, hosted in the same format and location as the district competition this weekend at CCHS. The inability to host a larger contest does not affect the results as students are judged on a rating system based upon their own individual or group’s performance as in previous years.

“So they aren’t in direct competition with each other,” said Granger.

Granger said the smaller group competition lacks the energy of a larger contest, but it’s a welcomed change.

“It feels like we’re more in competition with ourselves to do our best and not with other groups,” said Granger. “It’s good this year because everyone is under a lot of stress with new things they are dealing with so it is nice. It’s more about the pleasure of performing. We’re still competing for ratings, still competing before a judge, but there’s not as much comparison.”

Senior Jay Sexton, 17, said they feel fortunate to even having the ability to perform. This is Sexton’s fourth and final year with the CCHS speech team.

“I didn’t think we would be able to after the pandemic started, so being able to actually act in front of people is amazing,” Sexton said.

Planning hasn’t been the only challenge for CCHS’s speech students. It has helped them become innovative performers.

“It’s a lot harder to be a character with a mask on. Most of your facial expression is from the lower half, so getting rid of that makes it difficult to show emotions. We’ve had to learn to be bigger with our movements and actions, and I believe that will help the younger students to become better actors,” said Sexton. “It’s a challenge, but I believe it will make everyone a stronger actor in the future.”

Granger said the team overcame the challenges of the school year with additional support from support coaches Trey Gift and Kasey Booth, and her new assistant coach, Kelly Marcus, who formerly coached drama at Southwestern Community College. She also praised Renee Millslagle, who sewed more than 100 masks for the speech students with fabric donated by Pam Hoffman.

It has been two years since CCHS choral readers earned the Critic’s Choice Award at the All-State competition, the most coveted award of the competition. With only four veteran performers, Granger isn’t hyper focused on taking home a banner. She only hopes her students enjoy the experience, grown in their confidence and perform to the best of their ability.

“I hope the majority of the entries at least make it on to state. It would be wonderful if some got nominated as well. That’s what we hope for every year. Every year is different depending on the mixture of kids, the scripts. ... We are just hoping they do the best they can.”

Granger said she is proud of the administration for seeing the value in speech as a fine art as for some students, who might not have an interest in other activities, “this is their thing.”

“This is what they do,” Granger said.

“The best part of speech team is the sense of family I get from everyone around me,” said Sexton. “Speech team makes me feel safe and loved.”