Warrenton junior Katelyn McJannet discovered her passion for speech and debate last year. As an active member of the club, McJannet was the lone Warrior to qualify for the state speech and debate tournament as a sophomore for poetry reading. While she is still young in her career, McJannet is now dabbling on the debate side of the club, while still honing in on her performance event skills. She hopes to continue her love for speech and debate at the collegiate level and receive a scholarship. 

Favorite poet: Kyle Tran Myhre (Guante) 

Favorite school subject: ELA 

Dream destination: “The little beach side town of Seaton in the United Kingdom. That’s where my grandma lives. I got to visit in the summer of this year and see some of my family, and my father’s English.” 

Favorite animal: Ferrets

Favorite book: “Sky Without Stars” by Jessica Brody and Joanna Rendell 

School activities: Speech and debate, DECA, NHS and scholar bowl.   

What do you enjoy most about speech and debate?

“It’s a very diverse activity. There’s performance events or more informative events. Debate can be either very intense or very friendly and casual. You meet so many different types of people and have so many different experiences, so it’s the vastness of it that is really important to me.”

Do you have a main topic that you present?

“Last year, I went to state for poetry reading. That was my main thing throughout the season, so you have a black book, you read from it and you give a performance based on the poetry in the book. I also dabble in debate more often this year than I did last year. Then, I’m also doing original oratory which is like a persuasive speech or persuasive essay. I kind of do a little bit of everything but mainly the performance events.” 

Do you present by yourself or with a partner?

“All the events I do are usually by myself.”

What was your experience like at state?

“All of the different pieces I saw were so unique and really touched my heart in different ways. I could tell that each individual person really sharpened their performance as much as they could, but it still felt natural because it was a part of them. You could tell they loved their piece and that was really cool. Even though I didn’t get to the finals, it was still amazing to be in the room with some of the top performing poets in the state.”

What poem did you read at state?

“I read “Impulse” by Ellen Hopkins. It’s a little dark but it covers the mental health recovery story of somebody whose parents are very perfectionistic and it was his experience navigating through that.” 

Did you choose this poem yourself or did your coaches help you?

“I actually started with the sister event to poetry which is prose and that is more narrative story reading. I found this piece by searching for a different prose piece and then decided to try poetry because I liked the piece.” 

What did preparation look like going into state?

“There was a lot of sharpening the weaker areas and emphasizing the parts I loved even more. I would stay after with my coach a little bit and she would go through my performance. Each time we timed it and we’d make sure it was right on the dot. I also tried to make sure not to lose that natural element of, I love this piece, and I don’t want it to feel too rehearsed. It was a lot of work but it was a great opportunity.” 

Do you anticipate going back to state this year?

“Possibly. The possibility of us going to districts is a little bit dodgy because it’s changed locations and it’s really far away for us. But if I go to districts, I would be shooting for that. I don’t expect it because I was very blindsided by the ability to go to state last year so I’m not sure. We’ll have to see what happens.” 

Do you have any memorable tournaments?

“I think it was just at every single tournament I met somebody new or I had a new experience with a different person. I was always making new friends or talking to new people and learning new things. I think the experience of going to any tournament, whether we took some hard losses or had some great wins, there was always something to learn or somebody to meet. 

With you being more involved in the debate side this year, how has that been going?

“It’s terrifying for sure but the sportsmanship makes it a lot easier to navigate. I was terrified going into this first tournament at Clayton but every single person I debated with, we shook hands, we talked about the match we just had and made small talk on the way back. That made it a lot more comfortable for me. I love debate and I love getting to look at every side of an argument but it does get stressful in the moment, so that’s why I’m thankful for how much time there is in between rounds.” 

What have you learned through speech and debate?

“A lot of your performance isn’t just what you say, it’s how you say it. Whether you say it with more of the performative aspect, quietly or loudly or if you say it quickly or slowly. That really plays into how people perceive things but at the same time, words are interpretive. You could see what you’re saying in a completely different way from what somebody in the audience thinks you’re saying. It’s important to take those things into account when you’re giving your speeches or writing them.” 

Do you have any schools you’re looking at to continue your career collegiately? 

“Currently, I’m looking at Mizzou because they have a very vast range of degree opportunities. I think because of their speech and debate team and their campus and what it looks like and how the faculty operates, it would be a good fit for me. They also have a law school attached, so if I do decide to go down the lawyer route there’s that.”