Mountain View High seniors Stephen Hess, left, and Prashant Rai won Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District its first National Forensic League Academic All-American Award.

Stephen Hess and Prashant Rai of Mountain View High School are the first students in the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District to receive the National Forensic League’s (NFL) Academic All-American Award.

Both seniors compete across the country in Lincoln-Douglas Debate as members of the MVLA Speech and Debate Team. Because of their winning records, the team is now ranked seventh in the nation. Nationally, Prashant is ranked fifth, and Stephen 33rd. In the West, Prashant is ranked second and Stephen sixth.

Only about 300 high school debaters achieve the annual NFL Academic All-American award. Those who do must be recommended by their school principal for character, leadership, and commitment. They must earn a GPA of 3.7 or higher and score at least 2,000 on the new SAT. They must also accumulate 750 NFL points through competitions and public-speaking activities.

Stephen and Prashant have each earned more than 1,000 NFL points, qualifying them for the NFL’s Degree of Outstanding Distinction.

So far this season, Prashant won the Greenhill Round Robin in Dallas, was a quarterfinalist in the Greenhill Fall Classic, took second place at the St. Mark’s Heart of Texas Invitational, and was a semifinalist at the Glenbrooks Invitational in Chicago. Stephen was a double-octofinalist at the Greenhill Fall Classic and the Glenbrooks Invitational.

Both students have a full load of advanced placement courses, edit the school newspaper and plan to attend graduate school after college.

Stephen said the debate milieu is “like a different planet.” He values its intellectural rigor. “It’s an incredible educational experience … to engage a subject you couldn’t otherwise, but it takes away from your schoolwork,” he said.

Prashant appreciates the networking opportunities afforded by two tournaments a month. “You meet a lot of people who’ll be very valuable to know when you get older,” he said.

For more information on the MVLA Speech and Debate Team, visit mvhs.ca.campusgrid.net/home/For+Parents or contact Terese Tricamo at 380-1253 or ttricamo@hotmail.com.