Founders of the AFA

The following members of the American Forensic Association joined the Association of Directors of Speech Activities, which was the immediate forerunner of the AFA, prior to December 10, 1949.  Meeting at three meetings at the annual convention of the Speech Association of America, the group founded the American Forensic Association and drafted its first Constitution.  Those meetings occurred at the Stevens Hotel (now the Chicago Hilton and Towers) on South Michigan Street in Chicago, Illinois, in December 1949.

• Ottis J. Aggertt

• H. L. Ahrendts, Kearney State College, NE

• J. Jeffrey Auer, Oberlin College, OH

• Charles T. Battin, College of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA

• Raymond Beard

• Paul F. Blackburn, Loyola University, Los Angeles, CA

• Gifford Blyton, University of Kentucky, Lexington

• Robert S. Bradley, S.J., Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA

• Richard C. Bland, Stetson University, DeLand, FL

• Paul Brandes

• Winston L. Brembeck, University of Wisconsin, Madison.

• Adeline Brockshire, Fairmount High School, Fairmount IN

• E. C. Buehler, University of Kansas, Lawrence

• Hulda Burdick, Muskegon High School, WI

• W. Arthur Cable, University of Arizona, Tucson

• Glenn R. Capp, Baylor University, Waco, TX

• Hugo A. Carlson, Augustana College, Sioux Falls, SD

• Paul Carmack, Ohio State University, Columbus

• Eugene C. Chenoweth, Indiana University, Bloomington

• Brother C. Cornelius, FSC, Christian Brothers Academy, Syracuse, NY

• Lionel Crocker, Denison University, Granville, OH

• H. Barrett Davis, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA

• Lt. Lawrence Dean, Valley Forge Military Academy, Wayne, PA

• Elnora Drafahl, New York State Teachers College, Albany

• Wayne Eubank

• William W. Evans, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD

• Thorrel B. Fest, University of Colorado, Boulder

• Austin J. Freeley, Boston University, MA

• J. V. Garland

• Hal W. Goetsch, Blair High School, WI

• Ellen H. Gould, Alabama College for Women, Montevallo

• Rev.  R. J. Grennan, Champion High School, Prairie du Chien, WI

• Annabel Hagood, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa

• Hugo Hellman, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI

• George F. Henigan, George Washington University, Washington, DC

• George Holm, Kent State College, OH

• Ben W. Hope

• James N. Irby, Jr., Spring Hill College, AL

• Bruno E. Jacob, Ripon College, WI

• Lt. Col. Chester L. Johnson, United States Military Academy, West Point, NY

• Carroll P. Lahman, Pasadena College, CA

• Chris R. Layton

• Paul E. Lull

• Ralph Y. McGinnis

• James McMonis

• Robert C. Martin, Lake Forest College, IL

• Charles Masten, Kansas State Teacher's College, Emporia

• J. Edmond Mayer, Alhambra High School, CA

• Ralph Micken, Illinois State Normal College, Normal

• Edd Miller

• Glen Mills, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL

• Eugene C. Moulton, Carroll College, Waukesha, WI

• William G. Nagel, Washington High School, Massilon, OH

• Lloyd R. Newcomer, Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA

• Alan Nichols, University of Southern California, Los Angeles

• Egbert Ray Nichols, University of Redlands, CA

• E. Ray Nichols, Jr., University of Oregon, Eugene

• Lawrence. E. Norton, Bradley University, Peoria, IL

• Clarence L. Nystrom, Wheaton College, IL

• Karsten J. Ohnstad, Ripon College, WI

• Guy Eugene Oliver

• Donald Olson, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

• David Potter, University of Akron, OH

• Samuel Prichard, University of Maine, Orono

• W. Charles Redding, University of Southern California, Los Angleles

• Maude Ross, Miami High School, OK

• A. Westley Rowland, Alma College, Alma MI

• Ralph N. Schmidt, Utica College, NY

• Ervin H. Schwierburt, College of Idaho, Caldwell

• Forrest L. Seal, DePauw University, Greencastle, IN

• Franklin Shirley

• Malcolm O. Sillars, Iowa State College, Ames

• Solomon Simonson, New York State Teacher's College, Fredonia

• George L. Sixby, Arkansas State Teacher's College, Conway

• Paul W. Smith, Pasadena City College, CA

• Leonard Sommer, University of Notre Dame, IN

• I. H. Sparling, Eureka College, IL

• C. Wharton Talley, University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale

• Gordon Thomas

• Wayne N. Thompson, Chicago Undergraduate Division, University of Illinois

• William H. Veatch, Washington State College, Pullman

• Seymour M. Vinocur, University of Washington, Seattle

• Grace Walsh, State Teacher's College, Eau Claire, WI

• Otis M. Walter, Jr., University of Houston, TX

• J. C. Wetherby, Duke University, Durham, NC

• Hudson F. Wilcox, Enid High School, O