Every year, 7,000 high school students battle it out at the NSDA Nationals, one of the world’s most intense and grueling championships in public speaking. These students — aspiring presidents, Supreme Court Justices, entertainers and influencers — know just how essential words are to shape opinion, shift perspectives and inspire action.

Yet competitive speech is a mystery to many people. Few know it exists, unless they’ve participated in it or know someone who has (some think of it as “Debate Club”). And even then, they might not realize that a growing number of  teens, teachers and parents from every ethnic and socio-economic demographic are responding to the crisis in public school education by sacrificing everything for this “sport,”  which puts a prize on communication and critical thinking skills, and allows students to unleash powers of persuasion and eloquence they didn’t know they possessed.