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< Back to GAD Home Georgia Academic Decathlon Speech Competition FAQs Decathlete Questions Q: I've never given a speech. Where do I start? A: The best place to start is at the beginning: choosing a speech topic. It is up to you as a decathlete to select a speech topic and make sure you pick a topic that interests you and about which you enjoy speaking. When you choose your topic, research it well so that, if necessary, you can speak on the topic at will with no memorization necessary. Q: What are some resources for me when developing my speech? A: Try Toastmasters International where they have free online resources for you to use or you could join a local Toastmasters club where you can meet and talk to people who give speeches for a living or who want to improve their speechmaking skills. Another resource is your pastor/priest/rabbi/imam who has to give a speech every week. You can also talk to your school's theater/drama teacher who will tell you that giving a speech is a bit like putting on a play. YouTube is a great place to call up famous speeches and watch them whenever you can. Q: How do I practice my speech? A: One of the best places to practice your speech is to give it to anyone and everyone who will listen. Have your parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, and relatives listen to your speech and score it for you. Have one of them record your speech so that you can watch it. Constant practice is your best friend. Q: What about impromptu speeches? I've heard those are really hard! A: Impromptu speeches are only difficult if you've never given them before. Successful impromptu speaking is easy if you: 1) Practice, practice, practice! and 2) If you know the subject matter well. Typically, competition impromptu topics range from current events and decathlon subjects to how you feel about personal topics. Q: How can I practice impromptu speaking? A: Whenever you practice your prepared speech, have those same people give you impromptu topics on which to speak. Also, watch any current political debates. Those are a perfect examples of impromptu speaking. Q: To whom will I be giving my speeches during state competition? A: You will be speaking in front of two or three volunteer adult judges. These judges come from all walks of life and ages. You may have a judge who is a college student, one who is a private sector professional, and one who is a retiree. Also in the room will be a timing judge, a student who has volunteered their time and whose sole job that night is to keep track of the timing of your speeches. Now, of course, if your prepared speech wins the top score at the state competition, you may be giving your speech at the awards banquet. Won't that be amazing? Q: I'm really nervous about speaking to strangers. A: Don't worry at all about giving your speech to the judges. Believe me when I say that they are just as nervous as you are and, if given the chance, they would hand everyone a medal who walks through their doors. Do your best, that's all they ask, and you best will be incredible with lots of practice. Coach Questions Q: I know the prepared speech topics are open to the choice of the decathletes, but what if there's one topic a decathlete has chosen that I really dislike? A: Give your decathlete a chance to develop the topic they've chosen, while choosing a second topic as a backup. Unless the topic is extremely offensive or derisive, your decathlete may surprise you with the topic they've chosen. Q: How can I encourage my decathletes to practice their speeches? A: Make sure they practice their speech, in front of you, at least once a week. Feel free to pull in other teachers from the school to give your decathletes a fresh opinion and perspective. You can even have those teachers score the decathletes speeches. If you have a set time each week, then you know they're at least practicing that much. Encourage them to practice in front of their parents, grandparents, siblings, and friends. Invite someone from your local Toastmasters club to speak to the decathletes and offer assistance. Q: How can I encourage my decathletes to practice and develop their impromptu speaking skills? A: The USAD organization has a book of impromptu speech topics from past competitions you can use for decathlete practice. I encourage you to purchase this book (or find another coach who can let you borrow theirs), make copies of the pages, and cut up the impromptu topics into strips and put them in a basket. Have the students pick a topic out of the basket and give a speech, just like they would at competition. Again, do this once a week in lieu of prepared speech practice and I think your decathletes will be well-prepared. Judge Questions Q: I don't think I'm qualified to judge speeches. I mean, I don't give speeches so how can I properly judge them? A: If you have a desire to get to know more about young people today and don't mind volunteering several hours on a Friday evening to listen to said young people, then you are very qualified to judge the speech portion of the GAD competition. Don't worry about being thrown in the fire. You'll attend a workshop, before the speech competition begins, where you'll learn how to judge the decathletes' speeches. Q: What if all the speeches are about Lady Gaga or Facebook or things I just don't understand or enjoy? I'm rather out of touch with today's youth. A: Trust me, if there are any speeches about Lady Gaga or Facebook or anything else this current generation of young people holds dear, you will be enthralled and a fan before the night is over. These young decathletes are passionate about many things and will speak about many topics, not just current pop music. They may speak about their futures, their heroes, or how they deal with bullying. You'll be pleasantly surprised. RETURN TO GEORGIA ACADEMIC DECATHLON HOME Back to Top CONTACT: Michelle Crawford GAD State Director mcrawford@pageinc.org 404-414-3041

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Scholarship FAQs PAGE Foundation Scholarships Scholarship FAQs Q: How much is the award for a PAGE Foundation Scholarship? A: Most scholarships are a one-time award of $1,000 or $1,500 payable to the winner’s college or university. Some scholarships may be a one-time award of $500. If you are selected as a recipient, your scholarship funds will be sent directly to your college. We regret that we are unable to make the payment directly to the winner. Q: Who can apply for a PAGE Foundation Scholarship and what scholarships are offered? A: Each applicant must be a member of PAGE and pursuing an education degree or teacher certification, or a high school senior planning to pursue a career in teaching. For more specific information, visit the “Scholarship Timelines” page. Q: Are there scholarships for high school seniors? A: Yes. There are currently two scholarships available to high school seniors who plan to pursue a career as a teacher. However, most of the PAGE Foundation scholarships are for individuals who are already enrolled in a teacher preparation program (rising college juniors, seniors, or graduate students) or who are already teaching. Q: When should I apply? A: Applications are due in March and in May (depending on which scholarship you are eligible for), and funds are available to winners the following school year. For more specific information, select the “Scholarship Timelines” page. Applicants should note that a transcript must be submitted with your application, so please allow ample time for your college registrar to process your transcript request. (High School applicants do not have a transcript requirement.) Q: Where can I get an application? A: Applications are available on this website at some point during Fall Semester through May every year. Q: What if I am eligible for more than one PAGE Foundation Scholarship? Can I apply for multiple scholarships? A: Yes, but you will submit only one application. During the application process you will select all of the scholarships for which you are eligible. Q: What transcript should I submit? (High School applicants do not have a transcript requirement.) A: Please submit your most recent, cumulative transcript. An unofficial copy is acceptable. If you are an undergraduate student please send us your most recent cumulative transcript. If you are a graduate student and have completed at least one semester in your current program, please submit that transcript. If you are a graduate student and are just beginning a program of study you must send a cumulative transcript from your last program of study. Q: When should I request my transcript? A: Please allow ample time for your college registrar or transcript service to process your request. Do not wait for the end of a semester. If you wait for your end of spring semester transcript you will miss the scholarship application deadline. Late applications will not be scored. Q: How do I submit my transcript? A: There are three ways you may submit your transcript: Include your transcript with the rest of your completed application. ( recommended ) Your college’s registrar or transcript service may send your transcript electronically to the PAGE Foundation Scholarship Program at : scholarships@pageinc.org . If needed: You may have your transcript mailed directly to the PAGE Foundation Scholarship Office at: PAGE Foundation Scholarship Program, PO Box 937, Young Harris GA 30582. Q: If my transcript is sent separately, when does it need to arrive? A: All transcripts must meet the same deadlines as the rest of your application. Transcripts sent via postal service must be received in the PAGE Foundation office by the end of business on May 29. Transcripts sent via email must be received by May 29. If a transcript is late it will cause your application to be considered incomplete – no exceptions. Incomplete applications will not be scored. The PAGE Foundation can not be held responsible for lost mail, email delivery failure, or a delay in your college registrar or transcript service processing your transcript request. We recommend you include your transcript with the rest of your completed application. Please allow ample time for your transcript request to be processed and sent. Return to Scholarships Home

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Call or email the Professional Association of Georgia Educators or send us a message. PAGE Membership Services Representatives Joy Robinson, left, and Gina Tucker. Robinson serves members in south Georgia and is based in Valdosta. Tucker represents members in Atlanta Public Schools and Clayton County Public Schools. CONTACT PAGE PAGE Attorneys / Legal Services 770-216-8555 (option 1) legal@pageinc.org Member Services 770-216-8555 (option 2) membership@pageinc.org Legislative Services 770-216-8555 legislative@pageinc.org Professional Learning 770-216-8555 pl@pageinc.org General Inquiries 770-216-8555 (option 3) 800-334-6861 (option 3) info@pageinc.org Access the Staff Directory

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< Back to GAD Home Georgia Academic Decathlon GAD General FAQs Click here to access the GAD Essay FAQs Click here to access the GAD Speech FAQs Q: Is it OK to offer Academic Decathlon as a class? A: Several Georgia schools do and have very successfully offered the decathlon curriculum as an elective course in the last few years. The number of schools offering the curriculum as an elective course is growing. Some schools do not because few kids would be able to fit it into their schedule due to AP and Fine Arts classes. Q: What kinds of materials should a team purchase? A: A successful team can simply purchase the basic USAD materials (around $700 for a license to download the materials for unlimited students at one school). Additional materials are also available from USAD and some outside vendors. Many coaches find purchasing the practice tests and some other study materials helpful, but not necessary. Occasionally, books and other resources can be found and purchased from the bookstore that relate to the topic (e.g., the year we studied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, a nice Lewis and Clark diary was available for purchase for $2.99). Q: What kind of outside resources should a team acquire? A: Other than the USAD materials just use the library/internet to independently research most things. Q: How can coaches know what is going to be on the tests? A: You can never really know for sure what will be on the tests other than the published allocated percentages for subcategories (e.g., 20% of Art is fundamental concepts). Sometimes, there are questions that surprise the students. The practice and scrimmage tests (USAD packages) are helpful to understand the format of the questions for each subject area. Coaches are never to administer the tests, see the tests, or be in the same room with any of the tests — even if it is after the administration. Q: Are there places to obtain additional resources? A: The official website www.usad.org is a good resource. Images of all of the art pieces are available online as are several other resources including curriculum outlines. Q: How does Academic Decathlon work as an Independent study course work? A: Students who are identified as gifted in their school records can take a course during 9th-12th grades called “Directed Study”. The one-semester class gives gifted students a chance to independently study a topic of interest to them. They select the curriculum and they keep track of their progress and even calculate their own grade (with teacher oversight). Students can weave the Academic Decathlon curriculum into their Directed Study curriculum contract quite easily. Q: How can you prepare students for the nebulous/vague topics (e.g. calculus)? A: Other than paying attention to the types of questions on the practice/scrimmage tests, the best thing coaches can do is to make sure that the students really understand the basic concepts. Some students may have thorough knowledge of several subjects from previous courses and they can be assets to their teammates. Q: How do you recruit students for the team? A: Advertise your team meetings, mention Decathlon in your classes, invite students to bring other students, and always have food available. The minimum number of students you need for a legal team is six students, the maximum number is nine. Finding the right students is the key. The final team must have two to three students whose USAD GPA fits into each of the Honor, Scholastic, and Varsity categories. Q: How often does your team practice? A: Meet at least twice a week for about 2 hours each time. Some teams meet before school and on weekends; others rarely do. However, this is very common in other states like California, Texas, Arizona, and Massachusetts . . Much of what the students need to know, they can learn independently. The more time the team spends practicing together, the better they will know the material, and the better they will do at the events. Q: How do you prepare students for the various subject areas? A: Use the personal resources available to you in your school and family. The areas that teams often need outside help for are Music and Art. Preparing for the performance areas (speech, interview, and essay), however, is very rewarding. It is really rewarding to observe a shy student develop confidence in him/herself as they get better and better at public speaking. After all, this is one of the purposes of Academic Decathlon. RETURN TO GEORGIA ACADEMIC DECATHLON HOME Back to Top CONTACT: Michelle Crawford GAD State Director mcrawford@pageinc.org 404-414-3041

< Back to GAD Home Georgia Academic Decathlon Speech Judges & Timers Volunteer Information Date: Saturday, February 24, 2024Time: 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Location: Kennesaw State University (more directions in 2024 Speech Volunteer Letter link) Download 2024 Speech Volunteer Letter and Parking Instructions here. Understanding the Speech Rubric Thanks to all of you who have volunteered to judge the Speech event of the PAGE Georgia Academic Decathlon. For the few hours of your time spent in this endeavor, you will be rewarded by witnessing the results of the hard work and creativity of some fine young people. The Speech event of PAGE GAD is the least restrictive of the events in that the decathletes can choose their own topic on which to base their prepared speeches. They are cautioned by their coaches that the topic and delivery must be in good taste, but that is about it as far as restrictions. Expect to hear some wildly creative presentations as well as some fairly staid ones. SPEECH JUDGES In the training session you will be instructed as to how to score each section of the Speech Rubric. Download the rubric here. (This is just a sample. All speeches will be scored electronically on a personal device utilizing a Google form.) As a judge you will be listening for the expected development of each speech - opening, body, and conclusion. You will then determine how effective the speech was; that is, how did the audience receive the speech. Was it interesting? The correctness of language is another element to be considered. Does the speaker have command of proper grammar and punctuation? Appropriateness of language will be judged by whether the language promotes clear understanding and fits the occasion. An interesting element to evaluate is speech value. Is the speaker relating something meaningful to you as a listener? The decathletes will have been coached on using the proper voice, using a variety of pitches, volume, and rate to be clearly understood. The last element to be evaluated is the non-verbal aspect. This would include appearance, body language, and mannerisms. During the training session, I will be showing you some examples of speeches which will range from poor to excellent. We will try to set some benchmarks for evaluating each of the elements. If the past is any indicator, your most difficult task will be to score an average speech as average, a poor speech as poor, and to save the highest scores for the truly excellent presentations. I will do my best to help you make those judgments. Be assured that you will be in for a highly entertaining few hours. SPEECH TIMERS Using timers on their personal digital devices or GAD-issued stopwatches, time the competitors' speeches, giving warnings if the speeches are in danger of going over the allotted times. Once the speeches are finished, the Speech Timers record the times so that Speech Judges can issue scoring penalties if necessary. Thanks again for the time you are willing to contribute. Heather Dobson GAD Speech Judges Coordinator Return to Volunteer Information Page RETURN TO GEORGIA ACADEMIC DECATHLON HOME Back to Top CONTACT: Michelle Crawford GAD State Director mcrawford@pageinc.org 404-414-3041

< RETURN TO GEORGIA ACADEMIC DECATHLON STATE WINNERS Georgia Academic Decathlon 2025 Medalists Art Varsity Gold Marley Taylor Booker T Washington High School Atlanta Public Schools Silver Jillian Waddell Davidson Fine Arts Magnet Richmond County Bronze Morgan Herb North Atlanta High School Atlanta Public Schools Scholastic Gold Isaiah Brown BEST Academy Atlanta Public Schools Silver E'lyies Williams Monroe Comprehensive High School Dougherty County Aiden Goforth BEST Academy Atlanta Public Schools Bronze Zyiah Brown Monroe Comprehensive High School Dougherty County Honor Gold Owen Steele Columbus High School Muscogee County Schools Silver Han Tran Elite Scholars Academy Clayton County Schools Bronze Tony Doan Elite Scholars Academy Clayton County Schools < RETURN TO GEORGIA ACADEMIC DECATHLON STATE WINNERS Back to Top CONTACT: Michelle Crawford GAD State Director mcrawford@pageinc.org 404-414-3041

Learn More About PAGE STAR. < Back to STAR Home Student Teacher Academic Recognition (STAR) 2025 STAR Region Winners Region 1: Dalton City STAR Student: CenCen Wan STAR Teacher: Mr. Matt Harris School: Dalton High School Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Dalton Region 2: Dawson County STAR Student: Harini Lakkakula STAR Teacher: Mr. Todd Cottrell School: Dawson County High School Local Sponsor: Dawsonville Lions Club Region 3A: Atlanta City STAR Student: Stephen Yang STAR Teacher: Mr. Jason Smith School: Pace Academy Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Atlanta, Inc. Region 3A: Atlanta City STAR Student: Charles Leone STAR Teacher: Dr. Kathy Butts School: The Lovett School Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Atlanta, Inc. Region 3A: Atlanta City STAR Student: Ashley Miller STAR Teacher: Dr. Tina Davis School: The Westminster Schools Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Atlanta, Inc. Region 3A: Cobb County STAR Student: Aanchal Acharya STAR Teacher: Mrs. Sharee Thomas School: Alan C. Pope High School Local Sponsor: Metro Marietta Kiwanis Club Region 3A: Cobb County STAR Student: William Weihao Zhao STAR Teacher: Dr. Alan Farnsworth School: George Walton High School Local Sponsor: Metro Marietta Kiwanis Club Region 3A: Cobb County STAR Student: Fiona Peterson STAR Teacher: Mr. Cameron Ward School: Wheeler High School Local Sponsor: Metro Marietta Kiwanis Club Region 3A: Decatur City STAR Student: Renato Dell'Osso IV STAR Teacher: Mr. David Custer School: Decatur High School Local Sponsor: Decatur Rotary Club Region 3A: Forsyth County STAR Student: Andrew Lin STAR Teacher: Ms. Stephanie Beaulieu School: Lambert High School Local Sponsor: Cumming Kiwanis Club Region 3A: Fulton County STAR Student: Ronak Gautam Vyas STAR Teacher: Ms. Ana Maria Gottlieb School: Alpharetta High School Local Sponsor: Midtown Atlanta Rotary Region 3A: Fulton County STAR Student: Srinidhi Chebrolu STAR Teacher: Mr. Matthew Sharp School: Chattahoochee High School Local Sponsor: Midtown Atlanta Rotary Region 3B: Fayette County STAR Student: Vedita Sawhney STAR Teacher: Mrs. Jacqueline Burgess School: McIntosh High School Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Fayette County Region 4: Oconee County STAR Student: Elliott Ian Rogers STAR Teacher: Mr. Scott Smith School: North Oconee High School Local Sponsor: Oconee County Chamber of Commerce Region 5: Harris County STAR Student: Tate Steele Williams STAR Teacher: Ms. Katie Sizemore School: Harris County High School Local Sponsor: Harris County Schools Region 5: Muscogee County STAR Student: Joanna Catherine Wang STAR Teacher: Ms. Josephine Lumsden School: Brookstone School Local Sponsor: Rotary Club of Columbus Region 6: Bibb County STAR Student: Evan Lin STAR Teacher: Mr. Mark McMahon School: Mount de Sales Academy Local Sponsor: Greater Macon Chamber of Commerce Region 7: Columbia County STAR Student: Jerry Fan STAR Teacher: Dr. John Cato School: Lakeside High School Local Sponsor: Harlem Woman’s Club Region 8: Chatham County STAR Student: Sierra LiuQi Abbasi STAR Teacher: Dr. Kristin Peney School: St. Andrew's School Local Sponsor: Kiwanis Club of Savannah Region 9: Lee County STAR Student: Christopher Patrick Dowling STAR Teacher: Mrs. Lindsey Young School: Lee County High School Local Sponsor: Lee County Chamber of Commerce Region 10: Lowndes County STAR Student: Lokesh Satyasai Ramprasad Tammisetty STAR Teacher: Mr. Taylor Payne School: Lowndes High School Local Sponsor: Azalea City Civic Club Region 11: Wayne County STAR Student: Nicholas Edward Leasure STAR Teacher: Mr. Andy Hursey School: Wayne County High School Local Sponsor: Wayne County Chamber of Commerce RETURN TO STAR HOME Back to Top