GREEN RIVER — A Green River High School Speech and Debate coach is being recognized on the national level for her dedication and service to students.

Coach RaNae Johnson recently received a letter from the National Speech and Debate Association letting her know she had earned enough points for the One Diamond degree award.

“Due to your students’ speech and debate presentations, competition, and service, you have earned more than 15,000 points. Because of you, countless students have gained acces to the life-changing activity of speech and debate,” the letter states.

Johnson, who has been coaching in Green river for about six years, was excited about the news.

“I love Green River Speech and Debate,” Johnson said. “I love working with the kids. I love working with the coaches.”

Johnson specifically coaches all of the interpretation events, including drama, humor, program oral interpretation, poetry, and duo; and platform events, such as platform and oratory.

“I totally love drama if it’s done well,” Johnson said. “Really good drama is amazing to watch. And actually, really good humor is amazing to watch too.”

Johnson is passionate about drama, which is one of her favorite events to coach because students have to tap into real emotion. They show their vulnerabilities and true emotions.

“I love good drama,” Johnson said. “It’s painful to watch bad drama.”

Johnson will officially receive her diamond award and pin at the 2020 National Speech and Debate Tournament in Albuquerque, N.M., in June. Johnson said she’s looking forward to walking across the stage at nationals. She’s seen others do it and she’s proud it’s time for her to take a turn.

“You get an actual pin with a diamond in it,” Johnson said. “It’s kind of cool.”

Past Experience

Speech and debate is nothing new to Johnson. When she was in high school she participated in speech. She later got interested in coaching when her daughter decided to join the GRHS Speech and Debate team.

“I had done some volunteer coaching the year before,” Johnson said.

This volunteer work quickly turned into a paid coaching position for Johnson. She was ready for the job and the experience.

“In Wyoming, that’s the only way you ever get to see your kid is if you travel with the team,” Johnson said. “Everything is so far away and I really wanted to experience this with her as she grew and she learned to love it too.”

Johnson said it was quite the experience for her to spend time with her daughter and travel to nationals.

“After she graduated, it was kind of like ‘do I keep doing this?'” Johnson said she asked herself. “I loved it when I was doing it in high school. It really impacted the way I felt about myself, the way I viewed the world and I wanted to have that kind of impact on kids.”

She likes to help students grow socially, emotionally and watch them blossom as they go through the program.

“I’m for the long haul,” Johnson said. “Here I still am.”