Braintree Student Wins State Extemporaneous Speaking Title

BRAINTREE, MA — Imagine competing in a contest where you need to know everything that's happening everywhere at all times. For Braintree's Michael McCarthy, a senior at Catholic Memorial High School, this type of competition is only slightly exaggerated. McCarthy was this year's state champion in extemporaneous speaking, a competition that asks students to be an expert on a topic with almost no time to prepare.

This month during the Massachusetts Speech & Debate League’s State Tournament, McCarthy had to become an expert on crypto-currency, the Mueller investigation and Israeli elections with very little time for research. McCarthy didn't receive each category until 30 minutes before having to hit the stage. Then, he was expected to be knowledgeable enough about the topic to give a detailed seven-minute minute speech.

"Extemporaneous speaking is the most challenging category in high school forensics, so it's not for the faint of heart," McCarthy said. "To prepare, all a person can do is read the newspapers and magazines as much as possible to gain as vast a knowledge of current events as possible. Quite literally, an extemper needs to know everything that's happening everywhere all the time."

Although the competitions are challenging, McCarthy said he has the confidence to succeed. He's attending Haverford College in the fall.