Microphone on top of a dark stage April 2024

Walking from the middle school to the high school building through the sky bridge, students in KIS’ secondary school are greeted with four banners hanging on a blank, white wall. Two are navy, two are white, and they are embellished with numbers from 2011 to 2025; these banners represent the decade-long legacy of the KIS Forensics team.

The KIS Forensics team represents the amalgam of our Public Speakers and Debaters. Currently composed of over 40 students, the Speech and Debate teams have seen hundreds of members cycle through its ranks. The team boasts a rich and long-lasting history: since 2011, KIS has won every year-long conference as well as every end-of-year tournament (bar one conference in the 2015-16 season). This type of record is not only unrivaled, but unprecedented  in the history of KIS activities. Furthermore, the forensics team boasts a record that has seldom been achieved by any school, throughout any competitive activity, in the KAIAC conference.

In the 2025-26 school year conference, KIS finishes once again in 1st place. Though, this particular first-place finish is no ordinary feat. Three tournaments marked the forensics season of this year– the first tournament hosted in YISS during October, the second hosted in GSIS during November, and the third hosted in CI during January; our speakers faced harsh competitions in each category. The season concluded with the annual KAIAC tournament, which was hosted at KIS during early March. Once again, our forensics team swept through the competition and secured a first place finish for the umpteenth time. Out of four finalists in the parliamentary category, KIS represented three. Out of four finalists in public forum, KIS represented two. The speech team earned many finalist and first place finishes, solidifying KIS’ record.

Perhaps thanks to the outstanding success of our forensics team, the structure of KIS forensics is unique to that of other schools: the speech team and the debate team conduct clubs independently, though they both represent KIS at forensics tournaments. This structure may lead one to think that our two sections operate in isolation– the clubs being separated further into 3 debate categories and 7 speech categories– but KIS Forensics has fostered one of the closest-knit communities in the entire school. Categories often feel like second families, and there is a deep-rooted pride that connects the larger team. Recently, forensics has expanded into middle school, and 52 interested students are applying to be a part of the emerging club. With this outpour of interest, tryouts are expected to run throughout the spring months. What has created KIS’ long legacy is not the structure, but the dedication of our competitors. Every Wednesday, the speech team gathers in Mr. Van Moppes’ room, while the debate team scatters across the 6th floor of the G building. In these rooms, our debaters and public speakers fervently prepare and practice to uphold KIS legacy. The dedication of our speakers parallels the unrivaled record of the school– captains go above and beyond to host spar sessions during school lunchtimes (and often after school), and members oftentimes skip lunch just to ensure their cases are well built.

Being one of the clubs with the richest, longest histories, the Debate and Speech teams have seen hundreds of members join through rigorous auditions and depart in their senior years. Yet, what remains constant is not just the record-breaking victories, but the culture of commitment and resilience that defines KIS Forensics. As new members step in and the program continues to expand, this legacy is continuously redefined by each generation of speakers and debaters. In the end, the true strength of KIS Forensics lies not only in its unmatched achievements, but in the people who dedicate themselves to upholding and advancing its tradition.