AHS Senior Soars at Nationals, Meets Governor

Debate successes took Liam Hoffman to a national podium and the Governor's mansion.

Weeks after the 2022-23 school year ended, Avon High School senior and Speech and Debate Team Member Liam Hoffman was still hard at work. Through his steady improvement and success during the Speech and Debate season, he earned a place on the world schools debate team for the national competition.

"Our team and coaches were thrilled for Liam to have this opportunity to compete on our district's world schools debate team," says Speech and Debate Coach Linda Langford. "It was a lot of fun to cheer Liam and his team on as they progressed through the tournament, especially when they competed on the big stage in the nationals final."

Hoffman recently relayed his experience with Governor Holcomb, and we wanted to hear about it, too. We reached out to Hoffman, and the following exchange has been edited lightly.

You've personally had a lot of success as part of a really successful Speech and Debate Team. Can you give us a summary of your personal and team achievements?

My speech and debate achievements include being a two-time state finalist, as well as being state champion in International Extemporaneous in 2023, and placing second in world schools debate at the 2023 nationals competition. The team itself has been super successful recently, placing second in the large schools division at speech state. With over 70 members, including many state finalists, we’re one of the largest and most successful teams in the state.

After we all began summer break, you were still competing. What was the national competition like?

The national competition was definitely a surreal experience. I’ve never really debated at that high of a level before, and going against teams like the Singaporean national team (winners of multiple world championships) was very eye opening to the level of high school debate that’s occurring across the world. My team was also quite successful, making finals, and even beating teams like Singapore in some pretty big upsets. We became the first team from Indiana to place in the top eight.

You recently got to meet Governor Holcomb. Tell us what that experience was like.

Meeting Governor Holcomb was also a crazy experience. My four teammates and I, who all applied and were chosen to be on the Hoosier Crossroad District team, were invited to the Governor’s Estate after our placement. It was a great privilege to meet him, and we were even able to share a bit about speech and debate and the impact it has in our communities.

What's your prediction for the upcoming Speech and Debate season?

I’m someone who always believes in aiming high, so I’m predicting a state championship from Avon this year in speech, as well as a top five finish in debate. I also hope I can win another state championship, and that my district Debate Team can have another great run at nationals.

If a middle school student was thinking about joining the team once they get to AHS, what is your advice?

I would say the best advice for anyone trying speech and debate would be to just throw yourself into the thick of it, and try any event that seems interesting. About two years ago, I gave my first ever speech at a meet. It definitely did not go very well, and I think I even placed last at that tournament. However, I continued to compete in tournaments every weekend, and the experience that I built helped me more than almost anything in improving my speech skills.

If someone in the community wanted to know more about AHS Speech & Debate, how could they do that?

You can always learn more about speech and debate by simply watching last years final rounds at nationals, which can all be found online. Or, you can learn more about the Avon team specifically by attending events like our annual showcase, where we have competitors from every event showing off their amazing speech skills.

Anything else you want people to know?

If you’re even considering giving speech and debate a shot, try it out! It’s a lot less intimidating that you might think.

photos provided by the Hoffman family