Astoria student wins Diocese’s public speaking contest

Mia Lopez of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy with her teacher, Celeste McCarthy

An Astoria student took home the top prize in the Catholic School Public Speaking Contest, hosted by the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Mia Lopez, an eighth-grade student at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy, won first place in the 2019 Sister Peggie Merritt Memorial Oratorical Contest.

She presented actor Denzel Washington’s “Fall Forward” speech.

Eighteen students from Catholic schools throughout Brooklyn and Queens competed in the public speaking contest at Our Lady of Mercy in Queens. Students presented speeches by notable icons, including Winston Churchill, Shirley Chisholm, Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, Princess Diana and Steve Jobs.

Topics included eating disorders, teen suicide, gun control, civil rights, equal rights and the March for Life.