Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: News

The winners of the Santa Rosa contest, from left to right: Kricel Gutierrez, Jordan Adelman, Sara Slechta, Charlie Passero.

They probably wouldn't hang out together outside of school, Janet Brehe Johnson said. But that doesn't mean that they can't perform as a team when they're placed in front of judges who are examining and judging every word they say.
LPC's Talk Hawks, the speech and debate team, have once again taken their division by storm, taking home plaque after plaque showing their talents.
The victories which best show the team's talents are their constant placing in the sweepstakes contest, where the victories of an individual give points towards their school. The total amount of points decides the winners of the sweepstakes competition.
And with two 1st place and two 2nd place sweepstake victories, the Hawks are the top ranked community college, according to Johnson, the head adviser of the team.Among some of the big names that have brought the Talk Hawks to this level are veteran speakers Birney Young and Charlie Passero, both of whom compete in the advanced Open Division. Young took the Top Speaker award in the most recent competition at Sacramento City College and Passero places consistently in the events he attends, including three 3rd place awards at the most recent competition.
Competing alongside Young and Passero are a group of newcomers, all of whom are doing well in the Novice Division.
One of the notable novices is Kricel Gutierrez, who, as Passero put it, is killing it. After placing in every Novice Division category she competed in, she has moved up to compete in the Open Division.
"Next semester, most of our novices are moving up into the Open Division," Johnson said, "so I imagine that they might get trounced on to begin with and then realize what they have to do to step it up."
The way the team has pulled together, though, is thanks to the advisers of the team. Johnson and Jim Dobson have coached the team for ten years now, taking turns as head adviser from semester to semester.
"I'd like to think we make a difference," Johnson said. "It is all about the students though."
Johnson, who is planning
on bringing some students to a national competition, is excited about their prospects there.
Though the competition there is good enough to pay for, according to Johnson, the most important thing that the students get is the experience and the memories.
She told the story of her entrance into the world of Facebook, and how students from 20 years ago began sending her messages, telling her about how her teaching helped them out in the real world and their favorite times from competing.
And those reasons are why Johnson has kept the Talk Hawks going since 1986.

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