The FUHS Speech and Debate program is a nationally ranked team, with an abundance of awards, trophies, and national titles.

Senior Cordelia Tran visited Fullerton during an open house, and was immediately enticed by the accomplishments of the program.

“Seeing the trophies on the table, and the actual products of the program, and what they can do with people was so powerful to me as a little freshman, and I knew I had to do it,” Tran said.

Tran has been in Speech all four years of high school and has achieved many huge accomplishments, including the title of district champion and national champion for her duo with 2018 graduate Lauren Fu.

Speech has also shaped Tran into the person she is today.

“Speech and the people in it inspire me every single day to be the absolute best version of myself–as a leader, as a human being, and as a friend; and those skills can go far beyond anything you can learn in a classroom,” Tran said.

Although most students in speech typically compete individually in their events, that does not overshadow the powerful team element that comes with being in speech.

“When you win you know that that win is not solely based on your own hard work, it’s based on the hard work of your entire team, and everyone that has put their time and their love into you,” Tran said.

Teamwork and family is a huge element in speech, through coaching one another, and even through simply supporting one another’s successes.

“Even though you are the only person receiving that trophy, and receiving that title, a win for one is a win for every single one of us because every single one of us has been there for each other, backing each other, and encouraging and supporting, and facilitating each other’s’ growth throughout the entire process,” Tran said.

To Tran, tribe means being there for one another.

“Tribe to me means support–having a support system and a community of people that you can depend on to count on you. Because it goes both ways, they’re just not there for you, but you’re there for them too,” Tran said.

“I haven’t made speech my tribe, speech has made me a part of it’s tribe.”