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Event Thu Nov 17 2011
Chicago Youth Speak About Community Issues in Project Soapbox Citywide Competition
On Saturday, Nov. 19 the Mikva Challenge, an organization focusing on getting Chicago high school students engaged with civics, will hold its fourth annual Citywide Public Speaking Competition.
The Citywide Public Speaking Competition is part of Mikva Challenge's Project Soapbox program, in which students develop and deliver a speech after being given the prompt of "What is the most important issue facing your community?"
"Participating teachers implement a five-lesson curriculum in their classrooms between September and November where students identify effective tools and devices for conveying a message, both by analyzing famous speeches and in the development of their own speeches," said Emma Kornfeld, Issues to Action Manager for Mikva Challenge.
Kornfeld explained that a speech competition is held at the classroom level and the best speeches advance to the Citywide Public Speaking Competition.
More than 100 students will participate in the competition on Saturday, representing a large number of Chicago Public School high schools.
"These student speeches are insightful, profound observations on the toughest issues facing Chicago youth," Kornfeld said.
The Project Soapbox program was created around the idea that the first step to being an active citizen is having the ability to stand up and speak on the issues important to a person.
According to Kornfeld, it is unlikely that Occupy Chicago and the City budget will be among the topics discussed, although poverty and the need for jobs will be topics discussed on Saturday.
