Around 40 students from Adel-DeSoto-Minburn and Perry High Schools are gearing up for the Iowa High School Speech Association District Individual Contest today.

ADM Speech Coach Jacque Seidl says 28 students will be performing 33 different pieces. She mentions that the students have been practicing since November, while balancing other activities.

“Our students are in many different events in the winter/spring so Individual Speech is all about balance. Actually many of our speech kids are performing early Saturday so they can make a Jazz band contest later in the day. I know it isn’t easy to balance so many things so I appreciate all the work they’ve put into their pieces.”

Seidl enjoys seeing the students’ personalities come out through the pieces they choose. She adds that some of the students wrote their own pieces for Saturday’s contest while others put their own spin on other people’s work.

Perry Speech Coach Ashley Webb shares that 12 students will perform in 14 events at the district contest. She adds that they have a nice mix of returning and new students and they are excited to showcase their hard work.

She adds that several students were able to write their pieces and she is looking forward to having the judges hear what they have to say. 

Both schools will be traveling to Johnston High School for the district competition. The students will need to receive a Division-I rating in order to advance onto state, which will be held on March 14.