There is little question that speech programs across the state took a hit the last two years.
In March 2020, as the pandemic ramped up in the United States, and Windom was about to head into post- season competition, the season was shut down.
In 2021, students were forced to compete virtually from their respective schools. While better than not competing at all, local speech programs saw a drop in participation. In fact, Windom had just 20 students (grades 7-12) on its preseason roster.
Fast forward to 2022, Speech tournaments are back to in-person competition and students are flocking back. Windom’s speech roster is almost double (38 students, grades 7-12) what it was a year ago and that has Windom Speech Coach Lisa Letcher excited about the season.
“We’re super happy because after last year’s virtual season we were unsure how people would feel about speech,” Letcher said recently. “If they went out for the first time last year, they really didn’t get to experience what it was really like and we didn’t know if they would come back, or if we would attract new people.”
To learn who’s heading up the speech program at WAMHS in 2022, see the story on the Education page in the March 2 issue of the Cottonwood County Citizen, on newsstands today.
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