Cookeville High School Senior Ciara Oldham is a national champion in Impromptu Speaking.
Oldham also won the state title for extemporaneous speaking. Oldham said the two competitions require different types of preparation. In extemporaneous speaking, Oldham said she has about 30 minutes to research and prepare for her speech. Impromptu speeches have a total of seven minutes: two minutes of preparation and five minutes to speak.
“I’m not going to spend the entire time writing and researching and prepping out during my research time,” Oldham said. “But I’ll also spend some time sort of walking around, pacing, practicing the moves that I will make throughout my speech, and making sure that I have what I want to say down pat.”
Oldham said the extemporaneous speeches tend to be more political in nature, hence the need for more preparation time and research. She said impromptu speech competitions let the speaker decide on one of three topics, which they will speak on minutes later.
Oldham said winning the competitions was an honor, and fulfillment of the hard work she put into speaking. In each contest, Oldham said she had a few minutes to assemble and give a speech on a specific topic.
Oldham said her national champion impromptu speech options related to family, nepotism, and legacy. Oldham ultimately decided to address the topic of “Is nepotism always bad?”
“I chose my prompt because it felt like something I would be well equipped to talk on,” Oldham said. “Something that I had some knowledge on.”
Oldham said nepotism is everything from a buzzword to an internet meme, as the phrase “nepo babies” has become slang for celebrities who have well connected families.
Oldham said she opened her speech the example of the Kardashian family, as Rob Kardashian was prominent in the OJ Simpson murder case, and his children are very wealthy because they were well set up. She said nepotism can be good for families to pave the way for their kids to have success.
Oldham said nepotism can be bad because it can limit access to opportunities for those who have earned it. For example, Oldham’s speech mentioned the Jeff Bezos backed rocket flight that propelled people like musician Katy Perry into space instead of qualified astronauts.
Oldham said she finished her speech by suggesting a meritocracy to balance the pros and cons of nepotism. She said decision makers should look more at qualifications than connections in terms of personnel matters.
Oldham said the skills learned through her time in competitive speech will translate to her life and career after high school.
“You need to speak no matter where you are,” Oldham said. “No matter what career you’re going into, no matter what you do with your life.”
Oldham said speech is just as important for baristas and cashiers as it is for more advanced jobs because of their interactive nature.
Oldham said after high school, she plans to study political science on a pre-law track, and eventually wants to be a lawyer.
