Molly Izer

George Mason Students Secure Second in the Country in Collegiate Speech

Andrew J Schappert — Wed, 01 May 2024 15:37:22 +0000

George Mason Students Secure Second in the Country in Collegiate Speech Andrew J Schappert Wed, 05/01/2024 - 11:37

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The ��AV Forensics Team poses with its 2nd place trophy at the National Forensic Association Tournament.

On any given Saturday, you might find the members of the ��AV Forensics Team, or intercollegiate speech team, huddled together in an empty classroom.

After a rousing round of vocal warmups, the students—nearly half of them students in the Schar School of Policy and Government—join hands and recite “The Covenant,” a poem passed down since the team’s founding more than 50 years ago. At the completion of the poem and a after a round of pep talks from coaches and captains, the team disperses to compete against teams from across the country for the title of most persuasive, informative, or poetic speaker (among other titles).

With a glance at the “wall of champions,” students can trace their competitive lineage decades back—with Schar School students scattered throughout the wall. One alumnus, former captain Jacob Thompson and two-time national champion, credits the Schar School for its seamless integration with the team.

“Being a Schar School student and competing on the Mason speech team is really the best of both worlds,” he said. “You get a chance to travel the country and practice your advocacy with the team then directly apply those skills to help change the country through the connections and opportunities the Schar School provides.”

The Forensics Team has existed longer than Mason itself. With a focus on both competitive success and education, the team has attracted Schar School students since its founding. Its current cohort of 10 Schar School students compete in a wide range of events, from poetry interpretation to extemporaneous speaking—an event in which the speaker is given a political question and 30 minutes to prep a seven-minute memorized answer with sources and argumentation. Students hail from across the country with varying prior speech experience, but one thing binds them together: a passion for advocacy.

Evanna Koury, a first-year Schar School government and international politics major, sought the speech team as an avenue for both personal and academic passions.

“Being a queer, disabled woman interested in government and political advocacy is challenging because I can't often get my foot in the door,” she said. “The Forensic Team changed that. I get seven to 10 minutes of uninterrupted talking time to amplify my voice with an amazing community.”

Mason’s speech team has been among its most successful competitive teams of all time. The team has been a Top 5 national program consistently since its founding, taking second in the country at the national championships for the past three years.

With advocacy as a focus, it is unsurprising the teams student population is so dominated by Schar School students, including seniors Molly Izer and Eleni Mercer, who share the team’s captainship and are both students in the Honors College. In fact, Schar School students earned an impressive array of awards at this year’s 2024 American Forensic Association National Speech Tournament, held in April, as well as taking second place in Division I at the National Forensic Association Tournament, its sister tournament held just a week later.

Eleni Mercer, senior government and international politics major
- Semifinalist, Informative Speaking (AFA)
- 2nd place, Program Oral Interpretation (AFA)
- National Champion, Program Oral Interpretation (NFA)
- Semifinalist, Poetry Interpretation (AFA)
- 9th place Individual Sweepstakes (AFA)
- 2nd place, Duo Interpretation (AFA)
- Octofinalist, After Dinner Speaking (NFA)
- Octofinalist, Informative Speaking (NFA)
- 3rd place, Duo Interpretation (NFA)
Molly Izer, senior government and international politics major
- Semifinalist, Impromptu Speaking (AFA)
- 4th place, Impromptu Speaking (NFA)
- National Champion, Informative Speaking (AFA)
- National Champion, Informative Speaking (NFA)
- National Champion, Poetry Interpretation (AFA)
- Quarterfinalist, Persuasive Speaking (NFA)
Grace Martinez-Cora, freshman government and international politics major
- Octofinalist, Poetry Interpretation (NFA)
Lexi Martinez, sophomore government and international politics major
- Quarterfinalist, Prose Interpretation (AFA)
- Octofinalist, Prose Interpretation (NFA)
- Semifinalist, Informative Speaking (AFA)
- Octofinalist, Dramatic Interpretation (NFA)
- Quarterfinalist, Informative Speaking (NFA)

“It is always exciting to have Schar School majors on the team,” said Dawn Lowry, director of the Forensics Team and lifetime forensicator. “They possess the unique combination of idealism and practicality. They can see a better world, but they also understand the institutional and societal structures that shape our lives.”

While the team continues to attract many Schar School students, each Forensics Team alum leaves the experience a passionate advocate, citizen, and human being.

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Two Schar School Students Receive Partnership for Public Service Award

Andrew J Schappert — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 17:13:52 +0000

Two Schar School Students Receive Partnership for Public Service Award Andrew J Schappert Mon, 03/18/2024 - 13:13

In This Story

Bonnie Stabile

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��AV undergraduates Minh-Dy Pham and Kalkidan Zewdu share several similarities: Both are driven, passionate about volunteering, and hail from Virginia.

Minh-Dy Pham stands in the U.S. Department of Transportation office, where she works as an intern.

This year, the two Schar School of Policy and Government students were further connected by the receipt of a high federal honor: the U.S. Department of Transportation Partnership for Public Service Award. The award recognizes young leaders in federal government and is given by the Department of Transportation and Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that provides a wide variety of career training programs and leadership exercises to help build valuable skills for future federal leaders.

Pham, a junior public administration major, received the award in fall 2023 at the start of her internship with the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Civil Rights. She has since accepted an offer to extend her internship. While she wears a lot of hats within the office, Pham focuses on compiling reports of diversity-, equity-, and inclusion-related misconduct and assisting the antiharassment coordinator.

Her involvement in DEI initiatives began in spring 2022 with the Schar School Undergraduate Research Assistant Program (URAP). Within the program, she studied under Bonnie Stabile, associate professor and founder of the Gender and Policy Center (GAP), as they researched inclusivity within public administration curriculum—an area Pham continues to study in her position in the Office of Civil Rights. She later enrolled in GOV357, a class on urban planning, which included transportation infrastructure now relevant to her internship. Through the combination of her prior experience at Mason, Pham now puts her passion for diversity and transportation policy toward the public good.

Minh-Dy Pham presents her Undergraduate Research Assistant Program poster in spring 2022.

The importance of the Partnership of Public Service Award cannot be overstated, Pham says. In addition to gaining experience in policy analysis—a career she hopes to pursue postgraduation—the award provides an opportunity for vital youth voices in the federal government.

“We are the future,” she said.

Pham’s future, in particular, looks exceptionally bright—and the Schar School has helped guide her.

“This internship would have not been possible without the Schar School,” she said. “As someone who aspires to work in the federal government after graduation, the school has immensely supported me in my career and educational pursuits.”

Kalkidan Zewdu, who received the award and began her portion of the internship in spring 2024, views leadership as integral to the role. As a Schar School senior, she has explored various options within her major, ranging from public administration to international relations. Above all, one principle has guided Zewdu through her journey: Government is a form of leadership.

“Working at the Department of Transportation has provided invaluable opportunities for me to cultivate leadership skills within government institutions—tools I plan to take with me wherever I land in public service,” she said.

Kalkidan Zewdu mans her desk at the U.S. Department of Transportation.

In particular, Zewdu credits the internship with immense educational benefit, adding the professional and intrapersonal skills provided in workshops were an attractive feature of the job.

As for the Schar School, it offered her the opportunity to explore her interests in government in broad strokes—eventually exploring diplomacy courses, law school preparation, and Mason’s study abroad programs. Mason also provided the chance for Zewdu to explore cultural initiatives in addition to academic ones. As a junior, she founded the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) Campus Ministry with the goal of connecting with other Ethiopian students through shared faith. Through EOTC, which now has 36 members, Zedwu cultivates her leadership skills both in and out of government.

“As president and cofounder, I wanted to create a place where other Ethiopian students who grew up speaking English could find each other,” she said.

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