Tag: extemp interview

NFL Champion Interview Ashesh Rambachan (Part Two)

On August 23, 2013

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Ashesh Rambachan competed for Eastview High School (MN) and was the 2012 NFL National Champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking. Ashesh was also the runner-up in International Extemporaneous Speaking at the 2011 and 2013 NFL national tournaments and was a semi-finalist in that category his freshman year. In fact, since the inception of the United States Extemp/International Extemp category split, no extemper has had a better three year record at the NFL National Tournament than Rambachan. Ashesh is also the only extemper in the history of the NFL National Tournament to win consecutive final round national championships in the same extemporaneous speaking category (2012 & 2013). Ashesh was the runner-up at the 2012 NCFL Grand National Tournament and was a two-time Minnesota state champion in extemporaneous speaking (2012 & 2013). Ashesh agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers. Part one of the interview can be found here.

NFL Champion Interview with Ashesh Rambachan (Part One)

On August 22, 2013

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Ashesh Rambachan competed for Eastview High School (MN) and was the 2012 NFL National Champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking. Ashesh was also the runner-up in International Extemporaneous Speaking at the 2011 and 2013 NFL national tournaments and was a semi-finalist in that category his freshman year. In fact, since the inception of the United States Extemp/International Extemp category split, no extemper has had a better three year record at the NFL National Tournament than Rambachan. Ashesh is also the only extemper in the history of the NFL National Tournament to win consecutive final round national championships in the same extemporaneous speaking category (2012 & 2013). Ashesh was the runner-up at the 2012 NCFL Grand National Tournament and was a two-time Minnesota state champion in extemporaneous speaking (2012 & 2013). Ashesh agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers.

CFL Champion Interview with Gabriel Ferrante (Part Two)

On August 16, 2013

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Gabriel Ferrante was a competitor for the Iona Preparatory School in New York. He was last year’s Catholic National Champion. In addition, he was an extemp finalist at Yale, Bronx, Villiger, and a champion at the Columbia invitational. He was a competitor at the Montgomery Bell Academy Round Robin and New York Sate Champion in 2013. He will be attending the University of Pennsylvania in the fall, studying Chemistry and Philosophy. Gabriel agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers. The first part of the interview can be found here.

CFL Champion Interview with Gabriel Ferrante (Part One)

On August 15, 2013

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Gabriel Ferrante was a competitor for the Iona Preparatory School in New York. He was last year’s Catholic National Champion. In addition, he was an extemp finalist at Yale, Bronx, Villiger, and a champion at the Columbia invitational. He was a competitor at the Montgomery Bell Academy Round Robin and New York Sate Champion in 2013. He will be attending the University of Pennsylvania in the fall, studying Chemistry and Philosophy. Gabriel agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers.

NFL Champion Interview with Nathan Leys (Part Two)

On August 9, 2013

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Nathan Leys competed for Des Moines Roosevelt High School (IA). Last year, he became the 2013 NFL National Champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking. During his career, Nathan also notched victories at the Yale Invitational (2012), Glenbrooks (2012), and St. Mark’s (USX-2011). He also won the Exhibition Round at last season’s Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin and was a three time Iowa state champion in extemporaneous speaking (USX-2011, IX-2012 & 2013). This fall he will study global affairs at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, where he will participate in college forensics. Nathan agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers. The first part of the interview can be found here.

NFL Champion Interview with Nathan Leys (Part One)

On August 8, 2013

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Nathan Leys competed for Des Moines Roosevelt High School (IA). Last year, he became the 2013 NFL National Champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking. During his career, Nathan also notched victories at the Yale Invitational (2012), Glenbrooks (2012), and St. Mark’s (USX-2011). He also won the Exhibition Round at last season’s Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin and was a three time Iowa state champion in extemporaneous speaking (USX-2011, IX-2012 & 2013). This fall he will study global affairs at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, where he will participate in college forensics. Nathan agreed to sit down with Extemp Central for a two part interview to share his thoughts on extemporaneous speaking, reflect on his career, and provide advice to future extemporaneous speakers.

National Points Race Champion Interview with Jacob Baker (Part Two)

On August 27, 2010

Jacob Baker competed for Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, California. He was last year’s NFL national champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking, winner of the International Extemporaneous final round, and winner of the Extemp Central National Points Race. Jacob also made the final rounds of Glenbrooks and the California Invitational and was a sixth place finisher at the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin. He will attend Cornell University this autumn. He sat down for an interview with Extemp Central to discuss his experiences in extemporaneous speaking and provide advice for up and coming competitors. This is the second part of a two part interview.

National Points Race Champion Interview with Jacob Baker (Part One)

On August 26, 2010

Jacob Baker competed for Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, California. He was last year’s NFL national champion in International Extemporaneous Speaking, winner of the International Extemporaneous final round, and winner of the Extemp Central National Points Race. Jacob also made the final rounds of Glenbrooks and the California Invitational and was a sixth place finisher at the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin. He will attend Cornell University this autumn. He sat down for an interview with Extemp Central to discuss his experiences in extemporaneous speaking and provide advice for up and coming competitors. This is the first part of a two part interview.

Around the Circuit: An Interview with Dr. Steve Moss (Part Two)

On June 11, 2010

Photo courtesy of David Tucker

When extempers attend national circuit events there are a few recognizable figures that they will run into. Dr. Steve Moss is one of those recognizable figures. For the last decade he has been a fixture on the national circuit and he regularly judges marquee events like the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin and the Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions. Dr. Moss agreed to sit down for an interview with Extemp Central to discuss his involvement with forensics and give extempers some insight into his judging philosophy. This is the second part of a two part interview piece.

Around the Circuit: An Interview with Dr. Steve Moss (Part One)

On June 10, 2010

Photo courtesy of David Tucker

When extempers attend national circuit events there are a few recognizable figures that they will run into. Dr. Steve Moss is one of those recognizable figures. For the last decade he has been a fixture on the national circuit and he regularly judges marquee events like the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin and the Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions. Dr. Moss agreed to sit down for an interview with Extemp Central to discuss his involvement with forensics and give extempers some insight into his judging philosophy. This is the first part of a two part interview piece.

Extemper’s Corner: An Interview with Evan Larson

By Logan Scisco

On November 19, 2009

Interview by Logan Scisco

At the 2009 NFL National Tournament in Birmingham, Alabama, Evan Larson of Bellarmine College Prep anchored the best extemp squad at the tournament and emerged as the United States Extemporaneous Speaking National Champion. A two-time champion at the California Invitational, a two-time California state champion in United States extemp, an MBA Round Robin Exhibition Round participant, a three-time national finalist, and CFL runner-up, Larson agreed to sit down for an interview to discuss his extemp career and provide advice for those wishing to compete at the highest level in extemp.

Logan Scisco: Thanks for doing this interview with us Evan. The first question to get us started here is how did you get started in extemp?

Evan Larson: Kim Jones, my team’s head coach, teaches a class for freshman that goes over the fundamentals of public speaking and debate. It’s a great resource for newcomers that are just getting started in speech. The students practice policy debate and then choose an IE event to work with. I chose domestic extemp during rhetoric class and I competed in it all four years. I think I was drawn to extemp because I wanted to speak on new topics, rather than memorizing a speech. I was also drawn to the current events element of extemp— I like talking about politics. Finally, as you may have already ascertained, I am both tedious and longwinded. In any other speaking event, this would be an extreme disadvantage, in extemp, it may have given me the competitive edge.

National Points Race Champion Interview with Stacey Chen

By Logan Scisco

On September 1, 2009

by Logan Scisco

Last year was the first official year of the Extemp Central National Points Race and Stacey Chen of North Allegheny Senior High School in Wexford, Pennsylvania emerged victorious by a wide margin over the rest of her competitors. Chen’s season saw her win the Glenbrooks, the Harvard Invitational, the Extemp TOC, and arguably her biggest title of the year, the International Extemp national championship at NFL Nationals. She also managed to win the final round national championship, and the tournament, by one rank over Will Rafey of Bellarmine College Prep in California enabling her to capture the National Teams Points Race trophy for her team as well.

Stacey has agreed to become a writer for the Ex Files this season and as her first assignment, she decided to sit down and discuss her goals, accomplishments she earned last season, and offer advice to extempers who would one day like to achieve her level of success.

Logan Scisco: Thanks for deciding to sit down and share your thoughts with the extemp community Stacey and congratulations on being last year’s first Extemp Central National Points Race champion.

Stacey Chen: You’re welcome! Thanks for the opportunity to share with the extemp community… I apologize in advance for rambling.

Scisco: That should be okay, more is better than less with these interviews. Tell us how you got started with extemporaneous speaking.

Inside the Extemp TOC: An Interview with Michael Garson

By Logan Scisco

On May 11, 2009

In Extemp TOC, Interviews

Interview by Logan Scisco

Gearing up for its seventh installment, the Extemp TOC at Northwestern University has gradually established itself as one of the premier tournaments for extemporaneous speaking. Seeing its talent pool continue to increase in quality over those seven years, the Extemp TOC is now the place to be in early May prior to CFL and NFL Nationals. Michael Garson, former NFL IX finalist, Ex Files contributor, and current co-tournament director of the Extemp TOC sat down to discuss his experiences at the tournament, some changes the tournament is making for the 2009 edition, and what competitors can expect at Northwestern University this weekend.

Logan Scisco: Thanks for sitting down with us Michael to discuss the Extemp TOC. I think a question from those who may not know you is how long have you been involved in the Extemp TOC and what made you want to involved in running this special event?

Michael Garson: I first got involved back in March 2005, when I met Dr. Steve Moss at my NFL Districts tournament. It was there that Dr. Moss suggested that I “go national”. TOC Extemp was my first foray into top-notch competition. I haven’t checked the old tab sheets, but I think I finished somewhere around 42nd out of a pool of 47. Needless to say, it was a very humbling, and educational, experience. In 2006 I went if for no other reason than to visit Northwestern and finalize my college plans. At that time, I barely qualified for NFLs and was resigned to mediocrity. Through a combination of luck, attitude, and a style particularly well-suited to the TOC Extemp, I ended up finishing 4th.

Part of the reason I came to Northwestern was the TOC Extemp and the NU Speech Team. I have since stopped competing to pursue other endeavors, but I haven’t left the tournament. For everything that it gave me, I just can’t let it go.

Scisco: I think many observers could comment that each year the TOC field continues to get stronger and stronger. What efforts have Northwestern University made to make this tournament one of the premier events in the country?

2009 Montgomery Bell Academy Champion: An Interview with Matt Arons

By Logan Scisco

On March 31, 2009

Interview by Logan Scisco

The Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin is one of the most prestigious extemp tournaments in the country. Its unique, select field makes it an honor to be invited. The Ex Files was able to secure an interview with Matt Arons of Millburn High School in New Jersey who won this year’s Round Robin against the best extempers the tournament could bring together in early January.

Inside the MBA Round Robin: An Interview with Adam Johnson

By Logan Scisco

On December 23, 2008

In Interviews, MBA Coverage, Tournaments

Interview by Logan Scisco

The Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin is a tournament that has occurred since 1999 and has featured the best extemporaneous speaking competitors the nation has ever seen. The list of participants over the years includes six CFL national champions, ten NFL national champions, and twelve NFL final round national champions. While the tournament is prestigious, it has often been shrouded by misconceptions about how it evolved and how its participants are selected.

Adam Johnson, a former extemporaneous speaking competitor for Montgomery Bell Academy and who has run the Round Robin for nearly a decade, was nice enough to sit down with Logan Scisco for this exclusive interview to clarify the misconceptions that has existed over the years about the Round Robin and to provide his insight into current trends in the extemporaneous speaking community.

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