2023 – 2024 Oratorical Contest

The Terre Haute Breakfast Optimist Club is encouraging area students to speak their minds about the topic “How to Change the World with Optimism” as part of the Optimist International Oratorical Contest for the 2023-2024 year. The Optimist Club will judge the local students’ speeches based on content and presentation to determine the top winners. Winners will receive an award and the winning speeches will be sent to the Zone level, and possibly the District level for the opportunity to win college scholarships. Winners of the District level will be eligible to compete in a regional competition in St. Louis, Missouri, at Saint Louis University. Winners of the regional contests will compete in the World Championship also held at Saint Louis University. Students could possibly win up to $22,500 in scholarships! The contest is open to students under the age of 19 as of October 1, 2024. Students wishing to participate in the oratorical contest can find out more about the contest by contacting the club. Optimist International is one of the world’s largest service club organizations with over 80,000 adult and youth members in almost 3,000 clubs in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico and throughout the world. The Optimist Oratorical Contest is one of the organization’s most popular programs, with more than 2,000 clubs participating annually. Carrying the Mission Statement, “By providing hope and positive vision, Optimists bring out the best in youth, our communities, and ourselves. Optimists conduct positive service projects that reach more than six million young people each year. To learn more about Optimist International, please visit the organization’s website at www.optimist.org.