The extemp prep room is always the same: tables littered with handwritten speech outlines, teens passionately delivering evidence to the walls like madmen, and a noticeable lack of girls.
Life is no different than a high school extemporaneous — or extemp for short — speech competition because women are not equally represented in the workplace, education or politics as their male counterparts.
In 2023, UNICEF estimated that 31% of women across the globe were denied access to education, which is 15% higher compared to men. Of the top 500 U.S. revenue-generating companies of 2025, 10.4% are led by female CEOs according to the Women Business Collaborative. As of May 2025, the Center for American Women and Politics reported that women only make up 28% of Congress, even though they make up half of the total U.S. population.
With a 2-to-7 ratio of girls to boys nationwide, extemp is one corner of the speech and debate world that is a female no-go-zone.
For men, a lack of females doesn’t affect them. But for girls like me, I have to perform well not just for myself, but to prove to everyone in the room that girls belong here just as much as boys do.
For two years, I’ve competed in extemp. I receive a question related to current events and have 30 minutes to write and memorize a seven minute speech. From the moment I see the question, my brain runs through a million different ideas. I have no time to spare. In a matter of minutes, I must determine my perspective, make the topic relevant to my audience and sprinkle in funny anecdotes to lighten the mood. It’s an impossible task, and at times it feels like I could start an electric car with the brainpower it takes to dazzle the judge.
Girls from the Paly speech and debate team often make up the majority of females in attendance for extemp at local tournaments. Aside from me and my teammates, there’s usually only one other girl from another school, which makes me wonder: Where are the ladies?
I’ve always believed it’s the lack of representation and the misogyny women face that drives them out of extemp. This is an ongoing cycle — not just in speech and debate tournaments, but in our society as a whole.
Tournaments can mimic the real world. High stakes and high pressure means people will go to the furthest lengths to win. Misogyny perpetrated by both competitors and judges has led to a staggering amount of women dropping out of speech and debate events. A University of Pennsylvania research paper published in 2020 found that female debaters are 30.4% more likely to leave speech and debate activities than their male counterparts.
According to the Student Press Law Center, one female debater received a private message from her male opponent asking her for nude photographs in exchange for conceding the round. Not only was he degrading her by equating her body to the value of winning a round, but he also failed to see her as an equal. The lack of respect for women is still deeply embedded in activities teenagers participate in, even if we choose not to confront it.
Often, women in speech and debate face more than just crude comments. One of the hardest parts of extemp are the noticeable double standards between genders in terms of appearance and speaking styles. Even small things like having a higher-pitched voice can impact girls.
During the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton faced an issue larger than misogynistic comments posted online. Part of what hurt her campaign was subtle bias, where critics called her shrill, unlikable and uninspiring, according to The Washington Post.
That’s a point Jay Newton-Small supported in her book, “Broad Influence: How Women Are Changing the Way America Works”, which addresses subtle sexism. Her book states, “When women raise their voices, people tend to get their hackles up.”
It’s no different in extemp. If I try to highlight an argument during my speech, I’m taught to use a stern and powerful voice. Some judges perceive this as too dominating, but when I try to give speeches in a less traditional, more lighthearted manner, judges say my speaking style is unprofessional compared to the monotone, traditional speeches my male peers deliver. With a saturated competition of boys giving speeches in the same style, judges become familiar with their mannerisms and patterns.
The Paly speech and debate club’s assistant director, Erin Ritchie, has dealt with this issue in both her past competitive journey and her professional career.
“When judges see that [dominant personalities] as the norm, they will see that as what’s winning and they come to embrace it without leaving room for alternative speaking styles,” Ritchie said.
It’s an impossible line to walk between appeasing your judges and conveying your own personality.
So what’s a small-town Palo Alto girl to do? Start by accepting that not everyone is right. This doesn’t mean I don’t value my judges’ feedback, but I’ve learned to take the helpful parts and leave the nasty stuff behind. I’m most comfortable and successful when I’m authentic, even when some don’t like it.
But the expectation to perform and represent a whole gender is too much for one person to tackle. That’s why we need more women to lift us up collectively. I encourage girls not to back down, but to fight back by showing up. Not just in speech and debate, but in life. Because we need you. I promise to do my part, but will you do yours?
In a society full of black dress shoes, I’ll be there in my kitten heels with bows working to disrupt the pattern.
