PORTAGE — James Menchinger, a retired Portage Northern High School teacher and current forensics team assistant coach, has been named to the National Forensic League Hall of Fame and will be inducted on  June 14 in Dallas.

He will be the first Michigan coach to receive the honor.

Menchinger will receive his Hall of Fame award from the NFL president and be introduced by past NFL director, James Copeland, a former championship coach at Battle Creek Central High School.

During his 50 years of teaching and coaching, Menchinger led three teams to Class A or Class B state forensic championships and won two novice state championships. 

He has also guided more than 70 students to the NFL National Tournament, four Veteran of Foreign War’s State Champions, two national champions in the optimist oratorical and a national champion in the roundtable oratory competition.

Menchinger also has earned five Diamond awards, the most of any coach in Michigan. Each award represents more than 2,000 speech performances or debates during five or more years.

Menchinger began his relationship with the National Forensics League at Portage Northern, earning charter status in 1973. He has also served as a final round judge at the nationals multiple times.

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