Biography
^ Family wedding photo, 2015.
Pronouns: he/him/his
Since 1997, Adam has worked in the fields of communication and theatre education, as well as public relations, government affairs and politics. Since 2014, he has been full-time Executive Director of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Speech & Dramatic Arts Association (formerly Wisconsin High School Forensic Association), a nonprofit organization that sponsors programming in middle and high school speech, debate, theatre, and film. In 2018, he was appointed to a four-year term on the National Federation of State High School Associations' (NFHS) Speech, Debate, and Theatre Advisory Committee. In 2018 and again in 2022, he was elected to the National Speech & Debate Association (formerly, National Forensic League) Board of Directors.
In 2022, he was honored with the 2021 NFHS National Citation Award for Speech, Debate, and Theatre Education, one of the highest honors in his field, and the first honoree from Wisconsin.
Adam is Curriculum Coordinator for Congressional Debate with the nonprofit Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshops, as well curating CongressionalDebate.org. He also previously coached with Cypress Creek High School in Texas.
Adam previously was Programs & Education Coordinator for the National Speech & Debate Association. There, he coordinated development of an international public speaking and debating curriculum, which he helped implement in the People's Republic of China, where he taught for a semester (fall 2013). From 2008 to 2015 he coached speech/forensics and taught Public Speaking at Ripon College. He also ran and developed the National Middle School Tournament from a modest, self-contained event to the large-scale one paired with the high school National Tournament. He also organized the National Congress, Student of the Year program, and a number of other educational partnerships. "In each leadership effort," he said, "I aimed to be as inclusive as possible, to overcome barriers coaches and students face, particularly from traditionally marginalized groups."
For 11 years, Adam directed the speech and debate program at Rufus King International School in Milwaukee, WI, serving in leadership and service roles in a number of professional organizations. He also taught International Baccalaureate Theatre and served on the Board of Directors for the Milwaukee Shakespeare Company.
An author of several books, articles and guides, Adam also has led several professional development sessions, as well as academic presentations on the benefits of speech, debate, and theatre education. See Publications and Presentations on my CV/Resume page.
Adam holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication -- Public Campaigns from Carroll University, and was licensed to teach at Marquette University. Additionally, he has taken several graduate-level courses, including on the "Teaching for Understanding" framework with Harvard Graduate School of Education's Project Zero think tank.
Adam was married in August 2015, in the First Congregational, United Church of Christ Church in Ripon, WI, immediately next door to Ripon College's East Hall, where the National Forensic League was founded in 1925. He lives in Minneapolis, MN with his husband, Scott Baker -- a professor of Educational Studies and former speech and debate coach -- and their son, Ethan.