Shut Up and Speak By: Alex Escoto And John Heron

There are two kinds of people when it comes to speaking
publicly. There is the type that doesn't speak very much and are shy, and
there is the type that is good with crowds and don't get very nervous.
Serina England is one of those people. She is a part of the Caprock High
School Speech Team. She writes many speeches and will stand up and
perform them in front of judges and people. She recently received fourth
place in the "Shut up and Speak" communication tournament at Amarillo
High School. We wanted to ask Serina a few questions about her
speeches. We asked her why she liked being a part of the speech team. She
told us: "It's challenging; I enjoy being under pressure and breaking
out of what people think is normal. We also get to wear cool clothes. I
practice talking to the youth outside of school," is what England
replied when asked how she prepared for each tournament. England is also
part of the Spoken Word program. Spoken Word is a program for juniors
and seniors who enjoy writing poetry and performing in front of a crowd.