At their first tournament in over ten years, the Joliet Junior College Forensics Team brought home multiple victories. The competition took place on Oct. 25 at Moraine Valley Community College. The JJC Forensics Team placed in three different categories.
Israel (Izzy) Falana achieved first place in Open Poetry and second place in Novice Dramatic Interpretation. Joanna Corduan came in sixth place for Open Cross Squad Improv, and Truett Bentsen placed second, also in Open Cross Squad Improv.
In Cross Squad Improv, you receive a partner and a scene at random. The two of you have thirty minutes to plan what you want to do on stage, and then you perform it for roughly seven minutes.
“You get like thirty minutes to plan whatever you wanna do,” Truett explained. “And then you perform it, and you mostly make it up on the fly, essentially.”
For a handful of Forensic Team members, being on the JJC team is their first foray into competitive speech. This was the first collegiate tournament for everybody on the team, as well as the first tournament for, as one of the coaches, Professor Golden, put it, “JJC’s new era in forensics.”
JJC did not have a Forensics team for roughly twelve years, but the interest from these students contributed heavily to bringing it back. The impact, experience, and camaraderie offered by this team and this program, both at JJC and in general, cannot be understated.
“I did competitive speech and debate for all of high school, and I really enjoyed it,” Joanna said. “I was disappointed last year when I figured out JJC didn’t have a speech and debate team, but the second that I saw there was one, I immediately signed up.”
The JJC Forensics team is run by the previously mentioned Fine Arts Professor Al Golden and Assistant Communications Professor Tiffany Bruessard. Professor Golden coached the Forensics Team before the program shut down, but this is Professor Bruessard’s first time.
“To be part of this now is exciting,” said Professor Bruessard when asked how it feels to be a first-time coach. “This is one of the things that I asked about during my interview. I wanted to be part of something as amazing as this.”
One thing that was obvious while sitting and talking with the Forensics Team was just how much they help and support each other. Even members who were not present were given specific shout-outs from their teammates and coaches alike.
“I wish we could have given a trophy or a medal, just to acknowledge how important it is to support your team,” Professor Bruessard said. “This team was the representation that JJC left in the world of Forensics; I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The JJC Forensics Team has six more confirmed tournaments this school year, and potential attendance at the Phi Rho Pi Nationals in Washington, D.C. If there’s one thing the Forensics Team wants people to know, it is that they are just getting started.
As Professor Golden said, “We’re back, and we are as strong as we ever were.”
