Whitworth Forensics

06/04/2026

Today’s edition of “Whitworth Today” features the Arguing Bucs, including stories from our alumni about how forensics has influenced their lives! The article honors Coach Mike Ingram as he retires this spring.

Whitworth University’s alumni magazine is published twice a year.

06/04/2026

The end of this season marks some big changes coming to the Arguing Bucs. We’ll share more and do some reflecting in our next few posts!

So first, we say goodbye and thank you to one of our assistant coaches, Lori Welch. Lori has coached with us for 6 years, but she judged for us for many, many more. Many of our circuit friends have probably received ballots from her!

Lori didn’t let living in Oregon stop her from giving back to team and to an activity that meant a lot to her when she was an Arguing Buc in the late 80s/early 90s. She joined practices and held coaching meetings virtually, and she joined us in-person for tournaments. Lori was always willing to run another round or listen to a speech one more time. Her dedication to helping students succeed has been such a gift to our team, as has her encouraging heart.

Although we will miss her, we are so excited for what she has in store! Lori recently earned her Master’s degree, and she is set to teach Communication courses at both Linfield and Pacific this fall. She will also be helping coach the Linfield forensics team - a great opportunity for her to work with students in-person (and with a wonderful team!).

Thank you for everything, Lori! We’ll see you at NFC tournaments next year 😊 And - you got a good one ❤️🖤

05/30/2026

A few weeks ago, we celebrated the season at our annual end-of-year party! We shared favorite memories, honored our seniors, listened to Coach’s last end-of-the-year ADS, and became honorary Enterprise crew members. We also held a highly-anticipated tradition—Character Debate—and crowned Coach (aka SpongeBob) the champion, sending him off into retirement with one final victory 🏆

All in all, it was such a fun way to wrap up a great season together! ❤️🖤

05/22/2026

We can’t help celebrating our seniors one more time! Riia, Minasé, Elly, and Ahmed are such a special group who have all left a significant mark on our community—it’s hard to imagine the team without them. Seniors, we love you and are SO proud of you! We will miss you, but we also can’t wait to see where life takes you next. ❤️🖤

Swipe to read about what Forensics has meant to them over the years! 🏴‍☠️

05/20/2026

From kindergarten to college graduation 🥹❤️🖤

05/17/2026

Congratulations to our newest Arguing Bucs Alumni: Minasé, Elly, Riia, and Ahmed! What an amazing journey it has been. The coaching staff is immensely proud of these four exceptional human beings, and we cannot wait to see how they will continue to change the world for better. Here are 10 highlights from the last few days of celebrating our seniors:

1️⃣ Our four seniors after graduation!
2️⃣ Seniors + coaches + teammates ❤️🖤
3️⃣ Elly’s graduation accessories 🥹
4️⃣ Coach was sick, so we brought Paper Coach to graduation!
5️⃣ Minasé & Riia winning Distinguished Collegiate Achievement Awards - one of Whitworth’s top honors for seniors!
6️⃣ Seniors with their forensics cords and senior scrapbooks 🥳
7️⃣ Ahmed’s commencement speech 🎤
8️⃣ Elly & Coach’s Senior Reflections speech 👯
9️⃣ Riia’s Senior Reflections speech 💭
🔟 Elly, Minasé, and Riia right before graduation!

We’ll share more soon, but for now, congratulations to our graduates!! 🏴‍☠️

05/15/2026

Both of our senior Whitworth University Communication Studies Department majors won senior awards this year! Congratulations, Riia and Elly—we are SO proud of you! ❤️🖤

05/13/2026

Another Arguing Bucs Tournament Archives post…Northwest Forensics Conference (NFC) awards!

In season-long conference standings, the Pirates won our division in speech and took 2nd in debate, culminating in our 12th golden eagle in a row. We are also very excited to share that Madalyn was the top junior competitor in the conference this season, and Ahmed was 3rd. In varsity, Minasé was 3rd as well. These awards represent lots of teamwork, practice, and hard work from each Arguing Buc, and we are so proud of everyone! ❤️🖤

What a season! 🏴‍☠️

05/10/2026

From the Arguing Bucs Tournament Archives: seeing if our ages pass the vibe check!

05/09/2026

Execute. Slay. Engage. Adapt. Diligent. Focus. Savor. Amen.

These are the words that drove our 2025-2026 season. This year, we competed in Portland, McMinnville, Longview, virtually in Dixon Hall, Missouri, Tennessee, and twice on our own campus. We collectively entered over 60 speech events and debated hundreds of resolutions. We drove and flew thousands of miles, laughed through countless team dinners and van rides, and sang approximately 20 hours of karaoke. We shared exciting wins, navigated tough losses, and supported each other all season long. And, best of all, we grew as speakers and debaters, as teammates, and, most importantly, as people.

The last few weeks have leaned heavily into reflection as we returned from our final tournament and celebrated Coach’s retirement. Soon, we will also celebrate our seniors’ graduation. Amidst all of the transition, we can’t help but be grateful for the good this season offered and for each of the 18 Arguing Bucs. What a journey it has been. ❤️🖤

The Pirate Ship is now docked until next season (though we still have a little more celebrating to do!). Thank you to all of our alumni, family, friends, and campus community members who supported us this season - we can’t do what we do without YOU! 🏴‍☠️