Richard Dempsey

After attending MDJC-South, I went to Illinois State University on a debate scholarship. I served as a teaching/ research assistant and debate coach while finishing graduate school. Eventually I had to get an actual job and have spent the rest of my career as a teacher/coach at a great variety of institutions. I worked at both the high school and college levels. I ended up spending most of my years in Illinois, but also worked around the country in both rural and urban settings. I am semi retired but continue to teach part time in Madison, WI.

School coincidence: This is not really a funny or entertaining story, but just an antidote about how life often turns back on itself. While at CP I was on the debate team are various times. My partner for several competitions was Marty Remland (he was far the better debater). Both of us ended up debating in college and ran into each other often. We both had scholarships to Illinois Schools. We both eventually went into academic careers. Those careers crossed at Ohio University where Marty served as a teach and the head debate coach. When he decided to pursue teaching full time he found me again and let me know the OU job would be open. I applied and became the Director of Forensics (speech not medicine). Marty remained on the staff and we often sat around and laughed about how two guys with some 3 x 5" index cards representing Coral Park would some day work together to direct a major university speech/debate program. I warned you it was not funny; but still serendipitous.