The Webster Club has a rich and storied history at Marquette University High School. While the exact date of its founding remains uncertain, the club has been in existence since at least 1941 and has been a staple of the Marquette High experience for the last six decades. Thousands of students have become a part of the Webster Club fraternity, joining their peers throughout the generations as distinguished representatives of the school’s speech and debate program.
This section of our website chronicles the team’s glorious past. From the early years of the Webster Club to the dynasty of the 1970s to the current decade, an abundance of historical information has been collected and archived in order to pay tribute to those that came before and to provide current students with a better sense of their club’s incredible tradition. Perhaps no other high school speech and debate program in the country can lay claim to the same degree of distinction as the Webster Club, and that is something that the current membership cherishes.
This website currently contains complete rosters of Webster Club students and coaches dating back to the 1996-1997 season. From the 1940s to the early 1990s, information is more sporadic; information is constantly being added but there are still significant gaps in our archive’s coverage. Nonetheless, many years’ pages provide coach listings, student rosters, highlights from the season, and photographs from The Flambeau, the exceptional Marquette yearbook. Information about each year’s debate topic and about the locations of the national tournaments is also available.
If you would like to contribute materials or resources to the Webster Club Historical Archive, please contact Bill Batterman. The materials used in the creation of this archive have come from a variety of sources including generous alumni. If you can help fill in the gaps or supplement our coverage of the Webster Club’s historical record, please consider doing so.
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Comparatively less is known about the Webster Clubs of the 1940s, but the teams of this decade were extremely successful. Marquette received charter number C0530 from the National Forensic League in 1943 and was the largest Chapter in the Southern Wisconsin district in 1945 and 1947.
The 1950s: Growing Into A Powerhouse
The students of the 1950s were blessed by the leadership of Rev. Thomas Curry, S.J., one of the most successful coaches of his generation and for whom the distinguished scholarships are named. The Webster Club won the Southern Wisconsin District Trophy four times during the decade and qualified thirteen students to the National Forensic League National Tournament.
The 1960s: Building the Foundation
The Webster Clubs of the 1960s were immensely successful and their hard work laid the foundation for Marquette’s dynastic run throughout the next two decades. With several national qualifiers in both speech and debate, the Webbies of the 1960s were blessed with three of the most iconic moderators in the club’s history: Rev. Harold McAuliffe, S.J., Mr. James Ecks, S.J., and Mr. James Copeland. The latter arrived in time for the 1968-1969 school year after a successful tenure at Battle Creek High School in Michigan that included a National Sweepsatkes Championship in 1966. Copeland’s arrival signaled the beginning of the most successful dynasty in high school forensic history.
Any discussion of the greatest high school speech and debate teams in United States history must begin and end with the Marquette squads of the 1970s. The Webster Club won an unprecedented seven consecutive National Forensic League National Sweepstakes Awards between 1971 and 1977, but this highly visible achievement is only the tip of the iceberg. Marquette students won four individual NFL National Championships during the decade and brought home at least one state championship in every season. The Hilltoppers closed out the first National Tournament of Champions, closed out the Barkley Forum at Emory University, won the National Catholic Forensic League Tournament, and dominated the major national invitationals. The world of high school speech and debate has never seen a better decade of dominance by a single squad.
While the run of NFL National Championships came to an end in the late 1970s, the Webster Club nonetheless finished in the top five every year from 1980 to 1986, twice claiming the crown. The departure of long-time moderator James M. Copeland in 1986 brought the dynasty to an end, but Marquette remained a speech and debate powerhouse for the duration of the decade.
The 1990s: A Time of Transition
No longer the dynasty it was during the 70s and 80s, the Webster Clubs of the 1990s were nonetheless incredibly successful. Consistently among the most dominant squads in the state of Wisconsin, Marquette qualified 71 students to NFL Nationals during the decade including at least one student in every category.
The 2000s: Continuing the Tradition
The Webster Club’s tradition of excellence has continued into the current decade. With 41 qualifiers to NFL Nationals in the first seven years of the new millennium, Marquette has once again solidified its status as one of Wisconsin’s most successful speech and debate schools. The 2000s also saw the return of the Webster Club to the National Tournament of Champions at the University of Kentucky, the nation’s premiere debate championship. After qualifying only one team during the 1990s, the Hilltoppers have qualified four during the past seven years.
Rev. Thomas Curry, S.J. Forensic Excellence Awards
Established in 1998, the Rev. Thomas Curry Forensic Excellence Awards are a tribute to Father Curry and his tremendous commitment to the students of Marquette University High School. Father Curry served as a past moderator of the Webster Club and is described by our benefactor as “the epitome of refinement, warmth, intelligence, and priestly dedication.”
A complete listing of recipients is available beginning with the inaugural 1998-1999 season.
WDCA & WFCA Scholarship Recipients
In addition to the prestigious Rev. Thomas Curry Forensic Excellence Awards, Webster Club students who excel at their respective events are eligible to earn scholarships from the Wisconsin Debate Coaches’ Association and the Wisconsin Forensic Coaches’ Association. These prestigious awards honor students who achieve academic and competitive excellence while demonstrating integrity and a commitment to the forensic community.
A complete listing of WDCA & WFCA Scholarship Recipients from Marquette is available dating back to the founding of each award.
The Moderators: Coaches and Coaching Honors
The Webster Club has been led by a group of remarkable individuals whose coaching has helped guide Marquette’s squad into the speech and debate record books. A year-by-year listing of the Webster Club’s coaches as well as a list of some of their accomplishments is available dating back to the 1940s.