Two hundred students from across the country, 5 minutes to impress the judges to show she is the best. This is what senior Jekhia Ballard did to place second at Speech and Debate Nationals in Des Moine, Iowa in June.
Ballard competed in the spoken word competition but she originally qualified to nationals for drama; however, she did not move on to further rounds. Ballard wrote a poem for the spoken word category and decided to enter it.
Spoken word is a supplemental category at the national tournament, where students prepare an original five minute spoken poetry piece.
The hardest part of writing this speech was that she revealed something she had never talked about before.
Ballard said she felt scared presenting this speech. She had said it over in her head but never really said it to others. Ballard’s speech was about a past experience at another school.
“I thought people would see me differently when I revealed this secret,” Ballard said. “It definitely has made me paint an image of myself, I feel like it’s harder for me to make friends.”
Ballard went through three rounds to reach the final round. This was the first time that a GlenOak student in spoken word made it to the final round.
Despite playing at nationals, Ballard speaks on how hard she is on herself when it comes to stepping outside her box. Ballard tries to get people to look at her for who she truly is and not what she has been through.
She felt excited and overjoyed placing second. She was in tears when her old coaches from her old school gave her the trophy at the district tournament (after winning)
Though it was hard for Ballard to talk about her past, she still got up on stage in front of hundreds of people and spoke her truth, showing the judges that she was, in fact, the best.
After a long year of competition, blood sweat and tears Ballard’s dedication paid off, securing GlenOak an accolade they have never had before. Ballard is returning to the tea this year in Program Oral Interpretation. Stay up to date on her and the rest of the team’s achievements by following @gohsspeaks on Instagram.