WCUSD students win national speech and debate honors

West Covina Unified School District sent 28 students to the NSDA National Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa, where the district earned a national championship, multiple top-10 finishes and Edgewood Middle School’s third straight School of Excellence Award. The results underscore a speech and debate program that district leaders say builds confidence, communication skills and leadership beyond competition.

Why it matters: - West Covina Unified School District’s results show a local speech and debate program competing at the highest national level. - The district’s success reflects both competitive achievement and the long-term skills students gain in public speaking, critical thinking and leadership. - Edgewood Middle School’s third straight NSDA School of Excellence Award signals sustained program strength, not a one-year spike.

What happened: - 28 WCUSD students competed at the National Speech and Debate Association National Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa. - The delegation included 20 middle school students and 8 high school students. - WCUSD students earned a national championship and multiple Top 10 finishes against thousands of competitors. - Edgewood Middle School won the NSDA School of Excellence Award for the third consecutive year. - Edgewood was one of only five middle schools in the country to receive the award.

The details: - Cetlalli Valenzuela-Gonzalez, a 7th grader at Edgewood Middle School, won the national championship in Poetry Interpretation. - Darcy Lam, an 8th grader at Edgewood Middle School, placed second in Poetry Interpretation. - Lorenzo Williamson, a 7th grader at Edgewood Middle School, finished second in Original Oratory. - Jacky Huynh III, an 8th grader at Edgewood Middle School, placed third in Humorous Interpretation. - Jillian Liang, a 6th grader at Hollencrest Middle School, placed fifth in Declamation. - Arielle Hsiao, a 10th grader at Edgewood High School, placed eighth in Prose Interpretation. - The district said the achievements reflect years of sustained work by students, coaches and staff.

Between the lines: - The repeated national recognition suggests WCUSD’s speech and debate pipeline is producing results across grade levels. - Superintendent Dr. Emy Flores framed the program as a vehicle for confidence and eloquence, not just medals. - Board President Joe Magallanes said the program is helping students build communication and leadership skills that extend beyond the classroom. - The district is using speech and debate as part of a broader effort to build a culture of excellence and college-and-career readiness.

What's next: - WCUSD says it will continue expanding its speech and debate program. - District leaders expect the program to keep producing competitive results and student leadership development in future seasons. - The district will lean on continued Board of Trustees support to sustain that momentum.

The bottom line: - WCUSD’s national results show a district program that is winning trophies and building durable student skills at the same time.