Five stellar Coronado High School students undertook the daring task to participate in the annual Four Way Test Speech Contest held by Rotary Club of Coronado, with two of the five advancing to the next level of competition. Freshmen Sierra Burton, Emma Lund, and Dante Salata, along with upperclassmen Lance McKenzie and Nicholas Desena each prepared a five- to seven-minute speech on a contemporary issue of importance to them while employing the Rotary Four Way Test to prove their point. The students then delivered their speeches to a packed house of Coronado Rotarians and guests at the Coronado Cays Yacht Club during a recent weekly meeting.
Addressing subjects as varied as Generative Artificial Intelligence, suicide rates among autistic youth, inequities in the College Board AP Test program, as well as eco architecture and climate change, each student argued their case about how the Four Way Test applied to their topic.
Created in 1932 by Chicago Rotarian Herbert J. Taylor, the Four Way Test was adopted by Rotary in 1943. Now translated into more than 100 different languages, the tests ask four pertinent questions about things that individuals think, say, or do:
Is it the TRUTH?
Is it FAIR to all concerned?
Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
CHS freshman Dante Salata drove home the point that Generative Artificial Intelligence can pass this test of ethics, if employed responsibly, coming in first place in the competition. Looking toward the future, Dante explains that he’d one day like to be a pilot, noting that, “Giving speeches is important. You want to think that your pilot on the PA knows what he is doing.”
Second place went to Nicholas Desena, speaking about inequities that exist in the current College Board AP Test program, stressing that not all high school students have the option to even take AP classes, and for some of those who do, the AP Test registration fees are cost prohibitive.
Upperclassman Lance McKenzie delivered a compelling speech urging the development of suicide prevention strategies for autistic youth, citing the statistic that 1% of young people are diagnosed with autism, yet their suicide rate is 11% of that same population.
CHS freshmen Sierra Burton and Emma Lund both delivered speeches pertaining to climate change, with Sierra arguing that “climate change” is, in fact, the truth, because it is happening today. Yet this phenomenon is certainly not fair, does not promote goodwill, and is resoundingly not beneficial to all. Emma Lund provided an exposé explaining how eco architecture, which challenges architects to produce smart designs that use available technologies to ensure that structures generate minimal harmful effects to the ecosystem and communities, conforms to all principles of the Four Way Test.
Rotary Club of Coronado convenes every Wednesday for a luncheon at noon, followed by a meeting and an insightful, informative, and captivating presentation by a speaker. With more than 250 members in the Coronado Club, this group raises thousands of dollars every year that are donated to myriad local organizations as well as important global issues and causes. To learn more about Rotary Club of Coronado or inquire about membership visit: www.coronadorotary.org.
