And, when Nats get underway, people in town, and to a lesser extent other parishioners, seem to endlessly talk about the performance of their beloved Venomous Agendas. And it's only then that people start getting into the finer points of the events they compete in.
On Sunday afternoon, the town's mayor, alongside the parish school superintendent and the principal of the VAs' school, organize one closing rally to this season at the municipal stadium, where the townsfolk, drawn to the novelties that are speech and debate (to their eyes anyway), wanted to see the triumph of another facet they heard so many good things about, but never where it led until Nationals went underway.
The rally begins with a group photo of the five players at Nats holding their respective trophies, under the cheers of the crowd. The mayor then addresses the crowd:
"Dear residents of our town, I can confidently say these kids are a major component of what gives me hope in the population. Our beloved Venomous Agendas returned from the NSDA National Speech and Debate Tournament, held in Raleigh, with three top-ten performances! Never before, since the inception of the NSDA, did any parish high school attend the national championship, so here are five of the smartest kids in the parish! In tenth place in policy debate, a round of applause for Rebecca Tarib and Jarod Wilson! In seventh place in international extemporaneous speech, Chantal Morin! Also in seventh place, in public forum, Sadie Naath and Joe Glumack-Layton!"
"As superintendent of the parish's school district, the post-pandemic years brought its set of challenges, and nothing made our parish more proud in the post-pandemic era than our accomplishments in academic competitions, where we showed time and time again that we could perform even on the grandest of stages, especially in mathletics and quiz bowl. But today, I hereby announce my retirement as superintendent of the parish school district, and my successor here, the principal who made the Venomous Agendas what they are today, will be taking over the reins of the parish school district!"
That sort of rally for our performance at Nationals would, in all likelihood, never happen anywhere else. The sort of schools that get to top-14 positions are mostly in urban areas, irrespective of whether they are public or private. It's very intense! Sadie reflects on how this roller coaster of a season ends. How, despite having struggled with anxiety for months, she still made it through.
But she knows that, for every person like her, there are several people who fail to even qualify to Nats in the first place, and she doesn't think any less of them as people just because they didn't get to compete for a national title; it may well be that their strengths lie elsewhere.
"While this is undoubtedly the crowning achievement of this debate season, it's not time to rest on our laurels. May the next season bring us joy on the debate floor! And in mathletics as well as quiz bowl, too" the principal keeps it shorter. "However, the time is not appropriate right now to talk about the priorities for the parish's school system as the parish's new superintendent!"
"I announce that I will be playing on the math team next season as well!" Chantal then announces to the crowd, who all gasp upon hearing that.
I would never have expected Chantal, of all people, to play on the math team. If what Daisy said is correct, Chantal was shut out of the final because of a bad cross-examination phase in the first semi-final game! Cross-ex can lose games for extempers, but never win one, Dexter said. That said I am fully confident that Chantal won't become one of those lazy extempers... Glen ruminates while he wastes no time returning to the parish school district's office to make the principal's job posting for others in the parish first, as per the rules of the parish regarding managerial positions.
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Choosing a new superintendent created a domino effect; a principal needed to be chosen to replace Glen at the helm of the VAs' school, then an assistant principal... unless, perhaps, the town can accept Jennings Middle to be merged with the VAs' school, in which case there would be one fewer person on the school's staff. Or perhaps two.
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Venomous Agenda Memoirs
Teen FictionGlen, an assistant principal in a rural southwest Louisiana high school, takes up the mantle of the principal of that high school when the previous principal died, alongside the school's football coach, of COVID-19. He inherited a school with its lo...
