Harlingen students win big at national speech, debate tournament

HARLINGEN - Everybody's talking about it. And there's a lot to talk about.

They're talking about Lauren Elliot taking home three championships from the 2026 National Speech and Debate Tournament in Richmond.

They're talking about Jocely Coto and her partner Alisha Dorado from Harlingen High School for advancing to the fine round with their duo interpretation, they're talking about Leah Domar, Aiden Casarez, Azeneth Corrales and Bianca Rios.

And …

They're talking about George Matthew Gutierrez and Vesper Garza.

Both of them made history at the tournament June 14 to 19.

"Last week I was named the 2026 National Speech and Debate Program Oral Interpretation champion," said George Matthew, who graduated in May from Harlingen High School South.

"It was a title that was very dear and close to my heart," he said.

Matthew Rodriguez, theater teacher at Gutierrez Middle School of Arts and Sciences, commended George Matthew for being a four-time national finalist.

"He's gotten a one or a two, first or second place in the nation the last four years," Rodriguez said.

Program Oral Interpretation is a relatively new event, explained George Matthew. In other events such as dramatic interpretation, humorous interpretation, or duo interpretation, he said, students are merely given a script.

"In program oral interpretation, you're kind of given the ability to take a bunch of scripts from articles, plays, movies, lyrics from songs, basically as much literature as you can find and put it into this 10 minute and 30 second interpretation," George Matthew said.

His presentation combined several pieces to address the word alien in use as science fiction and in reference to immigrants.

"I wanted to compare them to how immigrants are treated in America nowadays and the rhetoric surrounding immigrants," he said.

Vesper Garza, 14, made national champion for program oral interpretation two years in a row. (Courtesy photo)

Vesper, 14, used several pieces to address what America is really supposed to be about. The used the poem, "Let America Be America Again" by Langston Hughes, the novel "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros, and other pieces to make her statement.

"America turns 250 this July, and we don't really know what America is anymore," said Vesper. "I think that's what I want to convey with this piece. Let America really just tell the stories of the many lives of America."

She conveyed her message so well that she took champion for the second year in a row. Such a back to back victory in the same event is a first for the district.

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