Pace’s Speech and Debate Club is on the last legs of being established as a student organization.

Currently, the club has drawn up a constitution and set up the bylaws that the club will operate under.

“Our goal is to first practice and learn methods of public speaking,” Speech and Debate Club President Alexis Neuville said, “after which, we can finally compete in meets with other colleges.”

An introductory meeting took place on Sept. 29 to introduce interested students to the club. Two meetings have since been held, with the club assigning executive positions and deciding on the structure of their meetings.

“Some members just want to debate and some are just into public speaking,” Neuville said. “What we’ve been trying to do is find a way to merge them both into our meetings.”

One last task for the club will be securing a faculty advisor and a coach. The coach will mentor students on how to speak publicly and how to debate. One-on-one meetings outside of regular club meetings will be set up between the coach and club members to individually help students with their communication prowess.

“We’re all about how to help students become more confident in communication skills in a fun way,” Neuville said.

Being that it is an academic club, a GPA requirement of 2.5 will be required of all members. Once the club is established, they will seek membership in the National Speech and Debate Association which holds speech and debate competition events.

“Anyone can become a better communicator, no one is perfect,” Neuville said. “What we’re doing is having a hands-on experience in a fun way that interests people.”

A meeting time of Mondays at 12:15 p.m. has been set. The club will meet bi-weekly beginning Oct 13.