ONLINE: WHSFA Lyn Luce Leadership Awards

press release: Two Wisconsin high school educators have been recognized for excellence by the Wisconsin High School Forensic Association (WHSFA). Normally this would be done at the organization’s culminating State Speech Festival at UW-Madison, but with the pandemic, the honorees will be recognized virtually at a live ceremony, 4pm, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, at https://www.whsfa.org/coachawards2020. Both honorees are being recognized with the Lyn Luce Leadership Award.

Ruth Phillips is an art teacher and forensic speech coach at Stoughton High School, and serves as the WHSFA District 12 Chair, coordinating Speech Festivals in south-central Wisconsin. As a forensic speech coach, Phillips works tirelessly with students to cultivate constant improvement, and builds a lasting rapport for which she is respected by colleagues. As a servant-leader of her peers, she masterfully deescalates tensions and fosters proactive planning and communication to ensure contests in her area run smoothly. Shauna Wessely, coach at Milton High School, says of Phillips: “I am impressed with her integrity and commitment to her role as District 11 Chair. I know she has made several personal sacrifices to dedicate her time, and that has not gone unnoticed nor unappreciated.”

David Winkler is an English language arts teacher, yearbook advisor, and forensic speech coach at Wrightstown High School, and serves as a member of the WHSFA Speech Advisory Committee, which recommends rules and best practices for interscholastic speech contests. Winkler has coached his forensic speech team to multiple Excellence in Speech awards at the WHSFA State Speech Festival, engages in conversations to bridge the gap among various interscholastic speech associations in Wisconsin, and serves as a mentor to peers. Terri Erickson, coach at Freedom High School, says of Winkler: “Dave welcomed me as a new coach, recognized my hesitance, and took it upon himself to offer any help he could. He invited my team to Wrightstown for Friday night pizza practices to help my students get more feedback and exposure.”

Award namesake Lynda Luce was a longtime Speech coach who taught at Waupaca High School, as well as at Fox Valley Technical College, UW-Stevens Point, and UW-Oshkosh. She had been president of the Wisconsin Forensic Coaches’ Association (WFCA) and National Catholic Forensic League. She was honored with numerous awards, including the Herb Kohl Teaching Fellowship and the Wisconsin Communication Association’s (WCA) Andrew T. Weaver Award for excellence in teaching speech communication. Luce’s daughter, Kate Greenfield, a teacher with the Madison Metropolitan School District, always assists in presenting the awards in her mother’s memory.

About the Wisconsin High School Forensic Association

Since 1895, the Wisconsin High School Forensic Association (WHSFA) has provided programming for middle and high school students in theatre, debate, and public speaking activities. Each year, our nonprofit organization serves about 10,000 Wisconsin students from approximately 375 high schools and 150 middle schools in the longest-running high school speech contests in the nation. Our aim is to empower students to enhance their skills in presentation through interscholastic assessment. For more information, visit www.whsfa.org.