TIFA Leadership

Chip's main interests in the communication discipline fall into the speech and rhetoric category. Besides teaching classes in the speech discipline, Chip coaches the school's nationally competitive forensics team. Traveling around the country with some of the school's most gifted students is rewarding for him and he enjoys the opportunity to teach and mentor in a one-on-one environment. Chip serves as the president of the Tennessee Intercollegiate Forensics Association and was recently elected to be a councilman at large by the National Forensics Association.

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Vice President

Erin Blankenship is a lecturer for the Department of Communication at East Tennessee State University. She teaches Public Speaking, Argumentation and Debate, and Introduction to Communication Studies. She has her B.A. and M.A. from The University of Alabama.

Erin participated in a competitive forensics program for two years, and helped coach that program during her time in graduate school. She currently helps coach the ETSU Speech and Debate Team.

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Jason Stahl is the director of forensics at Belmont University.  He received his undergraduate degree at Georgetown College competing with their forensics program throughout his education.  Afterward, he received his MA in communication at Western Kentucky University where he served as a graduate assistant to the WKU forensics program.  Despite a short break teaching algebra at a high school in northern Kentucky, he continued his studies at LSU with an emphasis in organizational communication, also serving as the LSU director of forensics.  He currently teaches in the Belmont department of communication studies with courses including public speaking, debate, and social networking.  He also is an advisor to the Belmont University Enactus program, a group that promotes philanthropic concepts through entrepreneurial means.