Director’s Update #2

Thanks to our alumni and students, including those in student government, we believe the Oregon Forensics Forever mobilization is felt and heard in Johnson Hall and across campus. Our efforts are working, but the road ahead requires sustained effort to achieve our goal of securing a robust Oregon Forensics program far into the future.

Simply put: You can help!

Simply put: We may not succeed without your help!

This Director’s Update #2 provides a limited number of specific, concrete actions you can take to help transition a robust Oregon Forensics program to a stable new institutional home and be overseen by a dedicated, experienced, and passionate educator.

Before describing those steps, please permit me to provide a brief update of our progress since my last update.

Recent progress

• The OregonForensics.com website is growing every day, helping coordinate our efforts, giving alumni opportunities to help, and reporting our successes. It also identifies areas where we need more help immediately. Alumni should use the site to update their contact information and that of their forensics friends, share testimonials about the enduring value of forensics, and upload stories and images from their time in forensics.
• The Oregon Forensics Foundation, a 501(c)(3) foundation with a professional board, has been established and can now accept donations. This foundation accepts grant applications to support forensics activities of any type and at any level, with several pressing needs of Oregon forensics students and coaches as the first recipients.
• More than 150 alumni signed a letter to the administration seeking to collaborate to find a stable institutional home, which was received, and we hear efforts to explore alternatives may have started. Stay tuned and keep up the pressure.
• Federal and local elected leaders have reached out the administration to make the case for a permanent institutional home for forensics given our value to our communities in these highly polarized times.
• Coaches, parents and students from across the state communicated the enormous value of a robust forensics program in motivating students to come to Oregon. Some come to compete in forensics, but many more view Oregon as an attractive option because of their participation in our enormous and historic high school speech and debate tournament. Former VP of Enrollment Management Roger Thompson lauded the tournament as one of the institution’s top recruiting events, in part because a positive campus visit is a strong predictor of matriculation.
• Directors of Forensics and Directors of Debate at many of our Big 10 peers sent a letter to the administration explaining the value of a robust Oregon Forensics program, the need for oversight and instruction from a dedicated forensics educator, and the inadequacies and enormous risks of the student club model.
• Students are providing testimonials about the value of forensics in their undergraduate education and how their experience and expectations are at risk under the student club model.
• Media coverage of the Oregon Forensics Forever movement has helped inform the broader public on the importance of a robust forensics program in our communities, the ways in which forensics education benefits future leaders, and the perplexing decisions motivating our movement.
• We are working closely with ASUO student government to sustain their history of strong support for a robust forensics experience, including efforts to transition to a new institutional home as a department.
• In the weeks ahead, we will share with relevant campus leaders a letter signed by coaches, parents, and students from speech, debate, and mock trial high school programs from across the country, explaining the value of a strong Oregon Forensics program in decision-making about colleges.
• A strategic plan for forensics is in its final stages that we intend to present to senior leadership at the appropriate moment.

These efforts and this infrastructure were possible because many alumni and students stepped up to help this program in an hour of great need. This is why I am optimistic that we will prevail!

Our continued success requires more alumni to contribute a little more of their time and money. Please find below some concrete and tangible steps alumni can take over the next few weeks with little effort. Those who wish to contribute an hour a week for the next few months should sign up for the alumni outreach, media, or fundraising action teams.

Help Secure the Future of Oregon Forensics — Start with These 4 Steps

1. Contribute money to Oregon Forensics Foundation. The foundation will receive grant applications from forensics programs at every level across the state, but will first meet several pressing needs for the students in Oregon Forensics, including travel, coaches, and judges, through November. Please contribute now and encourage at least five other alumni you know to match or exceed your contributions. Donate today. Our goal is to raise $15,000 by October 10 so we can plan travel and provide instructional support in October and November.
2. Write a personal email to the administration. Our group letters have had an effect. Now we transition to individual emails seeking a permanent home for forensics, led by a professional educator. Here are some suggested talking points and appropriate recipients for your email. Our goal is for alumni to produce a steady stream of emails over the next 1-6 weeks. Write and send an email. And then another.
3. Help refine our alumni database. We have built a large alumni database since 2013, but some of our information is inaccurate and many alumni are not included. You can help. Please use this link to update your contact information and share the link with as many other alumni as you can, or enter their contact information for them. Your timely help on the OFAN database will be of immediate and enduring value to the program.
4. Boost our signal. Our media team has established a presence on various social media channels and now we need people who care about Oregon Forensics to subscribe to those channels. Follow this link to connect to those platforms, boosting the signal, and ensuring you remain in the loop about the Oregon Forensics Forever movement of which you are a part.