
Expertise:
-
Dynamism → I offer a different level of dynamics. I teach students different ways and give them different tools to use while unpacking scripts aswell as how to translate the nuance of those dynamic characterizations into their performance.
-
Uniquness → It's extremely important that in speech and debate we are unique and strategic with the way in which we craft and deliver our messages. I also feel like it’s important because it keeps your audience entertained by offering new and unique ideas aswell as ways of thinking about how we perform.
-
Realism → As a performer you want your acting to be believable, right? Haha as much as we are advocating for something much bigger than all of us. Speech and Debate for the most part is still an acting competition. So performers who are more natural and have more realism and realistic performances typically do better. However there are ways that a person can make their performance more real and in turn connect with someone in the audience.
-
Dimension → While performing it’s imperative that we have dimensions and levels. These are very important because they take the audience on a ride of a different range of emotions that a character might be going through. Allowing for the audience to more readily connect or identify with you or your literature. Dimensions in a piece can very easily be the difference between the champion and everyone else.
Rashon Leday
Duo. POI
Short Bio:
Hello, everyone my name is Rashon Leday. I'm from Lafayette Louisiana, I am a current member of the WKU Forensics team and i'm also an alumni of Comeaux High School. I have been doing speech and debate for 7 years now. However I didn’t start competing nationally until the latter end of my freshman year of high school, by the time I was a sophomore I was locally competing in 6 events and doing extremely well in all of them. Throughout my time in this activity I have had the incredible opportunity to travel across the nation and achieve the wildest dreams of my speech and debate career like winning state, qualifying for Nationals or making National Finals. But while traveling I began to realize that this activity and the words that I was saying as well as the people I was advocating for and the messages, experiences and artistry of other performers meant so much more than just me or a trophy.
​
Coaching Philosophy:
In interp I think the most important part is being able to be a true advocate. In coaching sessions I always tell my students while performing advocacy works like a cycle, with three parts. When you get up to perform, firstly you're advocating for yourself because that alone takes courage. In fact 77% of the world's population suffers from glossophobia, which is the fear of public speaking. Secondly you're advocating for the people on whose behalf you're speaking. Finally you're advocating for the author's whose words that you are using. Now being a true advocate for what you wanna speak on is easier than you may think and all it really takes is research, compassion and honesty. Some of you might ask, how does that make you a better performer? well if you incorporate true advocacy and its components, you can't help but to become a better, more well rounded performer. Because you have done thorough research on your topic, your one more educated about it and now you can educate others in hopes that the change you are advocating for does not fall on deaf ears because the people in the classrooms with you literally hold the future in their hands. If you are compassionate about the message you're sharing and the words you're saying, you connect better and deliver a more moving performance people can connect to. And if you're honest in your art, message, delivery and your truth you will enjoy every single second of it. It is my belief that the culmination of all these different things will undoubtedly lead to a spectacular performance, and an even more rivaling competitor.
Accolades
Sophomore Year HS:
-
2018 LHSSL State Declamation Champion
-
2018 LHSSL State Duo Champion
-
2018 NCFL National Champion in Duo
-
2018 NSDA National Finalist in Duo (4th place)
Junior Year HS:
-
2019 James Logan Champion in Duo
-
2019 Emory Champion in POI
-
2019 Emory Champion In Duo
-
2019 LHSSL State Champion in Duet
-
2019 LHSSL State Champion in Duo
-
2019 LHSSL State Champion in Oral Interp
-
2019 LHSSL State Champion in POI
-
2019 NCFL National Finalist Duo (2nd place)
-
2019 NSDA Prose National Champion
Senior Year HS:
-
2019 Grapevine Champion in POI and Duo
-
2019 Oak Grove Champion in POI
-
2020 Winston Churchill Champion in POI and Duo
-
2020 (2x)Emory Champion in duo
-
2020 (2x) Emory Champion in POI
-
2020 NSDA National Champion in POI
Freshman Year College:
-
2021 AFA National Finalist in POI