Individual Events Staff
Come work with the absolute best! Our staff represents the highest levels of competitive accomplishment and education. No matter your incoming level or your future competitive goals, we have the staff that can help you reach for your dreams, be they competitive, performative, or educational.
No other institute can offer you staff representing ALL EIGHT of the top 8 AFA collegiate speech teams in the nation, or a more diverse or accomplished group of instructors. Our staff includes not only former national champions (20 of them and counting!), but coaches of multiple national champions. Staff listings are projected and subject to change. These listings do not include all staff. (Updated 4/19/07)
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Randy Cox, Director of UTNIF 2007
Randy Cox is the Director of UT's Individual Events Team, and serves as current President of the Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association and Executive Secretary of the Texas Speech Communication Association. A founding member of UT's competitive speech team and a former national champion himself, his students have been graced with 17 individual national titles at both the high school and collegiate levels, and have also been awarded national team titles including the NFL Bruno E. Jacob cumulative trophy, the NCFL Masterson and Founders awards, as well as three American Forensic Association NIET team titles. Randy is also one of the founders of the University of Texas National Institute in Forensics. Randy served as Director and Co-Director of the IE Team from 1991-1994 before serving for five years as Co-Director of Boston's Milton Academy Speech Team. In 2006, he was recognized as the University Educator of the Year by the Texas Speech Communication Association.
Deborah Simon, Division Director for Individual Events
Deborah Simon is the Co-director of Forensics at Milton Academy in Boston, MA. Recipient of the 1987 NFL Coach of the Year and 1997 Bruno Jacob Coaches' Commendations, her students have advanced to the final rounds of every NFL and NCFL speech event at the national tournaments, culminating in 12 event national championships in Dramatic Interpretation, Extemp, and Oral Interpretation, just to name a few. Under her direction, the Milton Academy Speech Team has won the NFL Team Championship, multiple NFL Excellence Awards, the NCFL Team Championship, and multiple NCFL Masterson & Founders' awards for speech & debate. Debbie was a founding member of UTNIF.
Interpretation Events
August Benassi
August returns to UTNIF for the third time in 2007 as head of the Advanced Interp Lecture Series. A six-time national champion and current Assistant Director of Forensics for Bradley University (NFA Team Champions, 2005), August is one of the most accomplished performers in the history of collegiate competition. In addition to heading up the Advanced Interp Lecture Series, August is an interp cohort leader.
Mark Banks
Mark was the 1997 NFL National Champion in Humorous Interpretation, the 2000 AFA National Champion in Program of Oral Interpretation, as well as the 2001 National Runner-Up in After Dinner Speaking. Mark has established himself as one of the most dynamic personalities in the Austin theatre scene, and has appeared on-screen in numerous roles. His most recent effort, the lead role in the movie Hope’s War, has received numerous accolades, including an invitation to screen the film at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival in France. Mark also coaches the University of Texas Individual Events Team.
Paul Davis
Paul was a multi-year student at UTNIF before joining the Arizona State University forensics program. During his time at ASU, Paul was the 2004 AFA National Champion in Poetry, the 2005 AFA National Champion in Duo (with his partner Joe Guffey), the 2006 NFA National Champion in Poetry, and the 2006 NFA Pentathlon Champion (top overall speaker). This will be Paul’s fourth year as a faculty member at UTNIF.
Casey Garcia
Casey Garcia began his tenure as a Professor of Speech at Mount San Antonio College in California in the Fall of 2006. He is the former Assistant Director of Forensics at George Mason University, and a former long-time coach at the University of Texas. While competing for UT, Casey was a national champion in Dramatic Duo, 3rd overall speaker, and multiple national finalist in Dramatic Interpretation. During his tenure as a coach at UT, his students advanced to the national final rounds almost every year. A founding staff member, Casey heads up the Intermediate Interp Lecture Series.
Aimee Gonzalez 
A two-time UTNIF participant and a member of the very first UTNIF Individual Events sessions in 1994, Aimee placed 10th in Dramatic Interpretation at the NFL National Tournament before attending Amherst College magna cum laude with a degree in English/Playwriting. In 2006, Aimee completed her MFA in playwriting at Columbia University, where she was awarded the John Golden Award for Playwriting for her play The Death of Dyanara. Now past her extended absence from UTNIF, we are delighted to have Aimee join our interp staff where she will also help with the Advanced Interp Lecture Series.
Jaime Long
Jaime was a graduate of Bradley University, where she was a ten time national finalist as well as the 2002 NFA National Champion in Duo and second overall speaker. Having completed her graduate work at the University of Texas, Jaime is now the Director of Forensics at Kishwaukee College in Illinois. Jaime was a 2002 AFA All-American and a coach at Peoria Central High School, in addition to serving as a coach for Bradley University in 2004-05.
Ben Robin
Ben Robin is a graduate and former coach at UT, where he coached the 2005 AFA National Champion in Informative Speaking. Now a graduate assistant and coach at Western Kentucky University, Ben was a national finalist in Prose and multiple national semi-finalist as a competitor, first as a freshman at Louisiana-Monroe and thereafter at UT. This is Ben's sixth year as a staff member at UTNIF.
Katelyn Wood
While competing for Illinois State University, Katelyn was the 2006 AFA National Champion in Duo (with her partner, Kyle Shultz), as well as the 2007 AFA National Runner-up in both Duo and Informative Speaking. An incoming graduate student at the University of Texas, she begins her professional coaching career in the Fall of 2007 as a member of the coaching staff of the UT Individual Events Team.
Ken Young
Ken enters his third year as a member of the UTNIF staff. Now an assistant coach at Northern Illinois University, Ken was a five time national finalist as a competitor for Bradley University. Having served as an assistant to August Benassi the last two years, Ken will be helping at the faculty level this year as a cohort leader and contributor to the Interp Lecture Series.
Plus many others, including:
Kyle Schultz (Illinois St; 2006 AFA National Champion in Duo; 2006 NFA National Champion, Informative Speaking)
Caetlin Mangan (UT; 2005 AFA National Champion – Poetry; multiple AFA national finalist)
Eric Cullather (UT, 2006 AFA National Runner-Up in Poetry; multiple AFA national finalist)
Jeff Moscaritolo (GMU, 2005 NFL National Champion in Humorous Interp; multiple AFA National Finalist)
Ashley Tinnell (UT; NFL HI & AFA DI National Semi-Finalist)
Jordan Palmer (Hastings College; 2006 Top 10 Speaker; AFA National Runner-Up in both Prose & Dramatic Interp)
Jackie Silvestri (NYU; Yale & New York State Champion in Humorous Interp for Syosset HS)
Mike Storr (Multiple national finalist for Bradley University)
Jesse Gall (UT; 2004 NFL National Champion in Poetry; multiple AFA national finalist)
Duval Bodden (GMU; 2007 AFA national finalist in DI)
Aviva Pinchas (UT; 2007 national semi-finalist in Duo)
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Oratory Staff
Kris Barnett
Kris Barnett rejoins the staff for his seventh year. UTNIF Oratory students under his direction have won the TFA State Championship 3 of the past 6 years, and have placed in the top 14 at NFL every year. Kris advanced to the national elimination rounds in After-Dinner Speaking at the 2000 AFA National Tournament and is a former coach of the UT Individual Events Team. He joins Kristyn Meyer as Co-Director of Oratory for the third consecutive year.
Kristyn Meyer
Kristyn Meyer was a two-time national finalist at the AFA National Tournament, in Communication Analysis and Informative Speaking. She has advanced in 3 other events to the elimination rounds of AFA nationals. Kristyn currently coaches as a graduate assistant at Illinois State University, and she returns to UTNIF for her sixth year, third as Co-Director of the Oratory Division. Over the past six years, 3 of her former institute students have won the TFA State Championship in Oratory, and they have placed in the NFL top 14 every year. Kristyn was part of a staff that was graced with 3 national championships at this year’s AFA National Tournament.
Saeed Jones
A graduate of Lewisville HS in Texas, Saeed was the 2004 NFL National Runner-up in Original Oratory. Now a student at Western Kentucky University, he was the 2006 NFA National Champion in Impromptu Speaking, and was a three time national finalist and top 5 speaker at the 2007 AFA National Individual Events Tournament. Saeed joined us in 2006 as a member of the Extemp Staff, and joins Oratory for the first time this year.
Nicole Kreisberg
As a senior at San Antonio’s Churchill High School, Nicole was the 2006 TFA State Champion and NFL National Runner-Up in Original Oratory. Now a student at the university of Texas, she joins the oratory staff for the first time in 2007.
James McGraw
As a competitor for Loyola Blakefield High School in Maryland, James was the 2005 NCFL National Champion in Oratory, and the 2006 NCFL National Runner-Up in Oratory. Now a competitor for St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, James joins the UTNIF staff for the first time in 2007.
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Extemporaneous Speaking Staff
Jason Warren
Jason Warren, Co-Director of Extemp, also an UTNIF alum, graduated in 2004 from Northwestern University, where he won both the AFA and NFA National Championships in Extemporaneous Speaking. He was the 2000 Barkley Forum Extemp champion, an NFL National Extemp finalist, and a Texas high school state champion in both UIL and TFA. Jason recently completed his graduate work at the University of Texas, where he served as head coach of Extemporaneous Speaking (2005 AFA National Champion; 2006 2nd & 3rd places) and Persuasive Speaking (3 national finalists in 2005 alone!). Jason now serves as the Asst. Director of Forensics at George Mason University.
Bryan McCann
Bryan McCann currently coaches the University of Texas at Austin Individual Events Team, where he is also a PhD student in Communication Studies. He was recognized in 2006 as the Outstanding First Year Doctoral Student by the UT Dept. of Communication Studies. He was affiliated with the nationally-ranked Illinois State University Individual Events team for six years as a competitor and a coach. Bryan was the 2001 National Forensics Association (NFA) National Champion in Impromptu Speaking and has placed in a combined six national finals in Extemporaneous and Impromptu Speaking at NFA and the American Forensics Association National Tournaments. He has also advanced to national out-rounds in several public address events. Bryan’s students have won four national championships in the last two years.
Stephanie Cagniart
Stephanie Cagniart graduated in 2006 from the University of Texas, where she was a four-time national champion and AFA All-American. With national titles in Extemporaneous Speaking, Communication Analysis, and consecutive championships in Impromptu Speaking, Stephanie is one of the most accomplished competitors in college forensics. A former UTNIF student from Westlake High School in Austin, Stephanie also coaches Extemp and Impromptu for the University of Texas speech team. In 2007, her students won the AFA Impromptu Speaking and NFA Extemp national titles.
Jon Carter
Jon is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he was the 2005 NFA National Champion in Persuasive Speaking and a seven time national finalist. Now a graduate assistant at Illinois State University, he was part of a staff that has been graced with 6 national titles over the last two years.
Eric Long
Eric is a graduate of Bradley University, where he was the 2002 NFA Overall National Champion and the AFA National Champion in After Dinner Speaking. Now a graduate assistant at Northern Illinois University, Eric has also served as an adjunct coach at Northwestern University and Kishwaukee College. A competitor with one of the most diverse backgrounds in every facet of forensics, his accolades transcend the boundaries between Interpretation, Public Speaking, Limited Preparation Events, Debate, and Student Congress.
Vic Silva
The 2004 NFA National Runner-Up in Extemp, Vic is currently a graduate student and coach at Arizona State University. As an Assistant Coach at Desert Vista High School, Vic has coached multiple state champions in Extemp, and was a state finalist in International Extemp while a student at Grover Cleveland HS in Reseda, CA.
Merry Regan
A three year participant in UTNIF as a student at Shadow Mountain HS in Arizona, Merry was a two-time NFL National Finalist, and was the 2005 NFL National Runner-Up in Impromptu Speaking. Only a sophomore at the University of Texas, Merry was a top 15 overall speaker and two-time national finalist (Impromptu & Informative), as well as an Extemp national semi-finalist at the 2007 AFA National Tournament.
Jillian Collum
The 2007 AFA National Champion in Impromptu Speaking, the 2007 NFA National Champion in Extemporaneous Speaking, as well as 2006 AFA National Runner-up in Extemp, an AFA All-American, and a top 10 overall speaker as both a junior and a senior, Jill was a six-time national finalist and two-year co-captain of the UT Speech Team. Jill graduates from the UT Business School Honors Program in 2007, when she will join Teach for America before heading off to law school at Harvard University.
Jessy Ohl
A student at Kansas State University, Jessy was the 2006 Interstate oratorical Association National Runner-Up to his teammate, Neal Stewart. Jessy is also the 2007 AFA National Champion in Extemporaneous Speaking, a multiple national finalist, and a top 10 speaker. Jessy joins UTNIF for the first time in 2007.
Brandon Wood
A graduate of Illinois State University, Brandon was the 2005 NFA National Champion in Rhetorical Criticism, an AFA All-American, and a multiple national finalist in Extemp. Brandon is now the Co-Director of Individual Events at Illinois State. He joins UTNIF for the first time in 2007.
Ashley Hatcher
In 2007, Ashley graduates a year ahead of schedule from the UT Business Honors Program. During her tenure at UT, she was a multi-talented performer, advancing to national elimination rounds in Informative Speaking, Impromptu, and Extemp, for which she was a national finalist in 2007. A graduate of Plano HS in Texas, Ashley was a TFA State Finalist in Extemp, among many other accolades, including a 3rd place finish in UIL Cross Examination Debate and numerous accomplishments in Student Congress!
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All staff are subject to final contractual approval by the University of Texas and passage of a criminal background check and can change without notice.
