Hastings College Forensics 

The Hastings College Forensics Team is having a great year. They were named overall champions in both the debate and individual events and received five team championships at the Barton College tournament held Nov. 6-7. They brought back 33 awards including six individual championships.

At the Nebraska Forensics Alumni tournament held Nov. 20-21, they received 29 awards and five individual championships, and qualified five more events for nationals.
The team has had seven members qualify for the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET) that will be held at the University of Nebraska-Kearney, April 2-4, 2011.

Current National Qualifiers
Hannah Davis, Grand Island, Neb., qualified Dramatic Interpretation and Duo Interpretation with Matt Cashoili
Trevor Brass, Lincoln, Neb., qualified Impromptu Speaking
Jared Buskirk, Holdrege, Neb., qualified After Dinner Speaking
Mike Dvorak, Muskogee, Okla., qualified Impromptu Speaking, After Dinner Speaking,
Extemporaneous Speaking and Persuasive Speaking
Corey Reutlinger, Lexington, Neb., qualified Program Oral Interpretation and Communication Analysis
Matt Cashoili, Hastings, Neb., qualified Duo Interpretation with Hannah Davis
Curt Casper, Lexington, Neb., qualified Informative Speaking and Communication Analysis

The Director of Hastings College Forensics and Forensics Coach Dr. Kittie Grace is excited to watch the success of the team this year.

“We have a very young team this year, over half of them are first-year and second-year students,” Grace said. “They are a talented group of students who are driven to achieve national recognition. I am honored to be their coach.”

The Bronco Forensics team has always seen national success at the American Forensics Association-National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET). They have ranked in the Top 20 for 11 of the last 12 years and in the Top 15 for five of the last six years. The team has had 11 Individual Sweepstakes Award Winners since 1990. Since 1998, 43 students have achieved a quarterfinal at the AFA-NIET, 21 students have advanced to semifinals, 13 students have placed in finals at nationals and four speeches have achieved championships. Six students have been named to the AFA-All American Team placing Hastings College third in the nation for number of students with this honor. The team is ranked as the number one undergraduate college for the last decade at the AFA-NIET (Sternhagen, 2010).

Hastings College Forensics is a co-curricular activity grounded in education. The goal of the coaching staff is to provide each student with the resources and feedback needed to become an accomplished speaker. The coaches at Hastings College believe that successful competition and trophies are the result of a strong educational philosophy. Additionally, the coaches support a fun social atmosphere where students get to know each other. The team is a family-away-from-family.

Hastings College has had a long tradition in forensics. It is this tradition that has been recognized throughout the district and the nation. For his contribution to forensics, numerous awards have been posthumously named after Kevin Heineman, the team director from 1988 to 1996. On June 9, 1920, Hastings College became one of the first colleges in the nation to become a member of Pi Kappa Delta, the national forensics fraternity. Since then, the HC forensics team has distinguished itself as among the best in the nation.