Fall 2024 is open for application!
A long time ago…
We are not your typical academy. We are not your typical instructors.
People often ask us what our name means. “Nova” is a star at its brightest. “42” is co-founder Mike Kyle’s favorite number and the answer to the question, “What is the answer to life, the universe and everything?”
Nova 42 is more than just an after-school speech and debate academy--it is an educational sanctuary building the leaders of tomorrow. Based in Pasadena, California and founded in April of 2012, Nova 42 has guided the communication and leadership skills of thousands of students who have gone on to make names for themselves in their schools, jobs and communities. From its unique status as a flexible purpose corporation dedicated to giving back to the community, to its commitment to creating a life-changing learning environment, Nova 42 has sparked the intellectual curiosity in and passion for public speaking in children and teens for over 12 years. Come find out why our students love it here so much, and why it is such a fun, magical place for them. Yes, it's not just the free candy but the comfy sofas and "nerd-chic" decor!
First, Nova 42's dedicated owners, Mike Kyle and Jung Park Kyle, bring their creative sensibilities and razor-sharp minds to building a fun, exciting place of learning that students call their second home.
Outwardly casual, Nova 42's owners nevertheless work hard behind-the-scenes, bringing their years of business acumen, experience in the world of acting and public speaking and real-world savvy to create one of the most well-respected and fun speech and debate centers in the world. Having won hundreds of awards in speech and debate himself, CEO and Head Debate coach, Mike Kyle, brings over 30 years business and corporate experience, his Pacific Northwest congeniality, innovative entrepreneurship and award-winning speech and debate skills. COO and Head Speech coach, Jung Park Kyle, is a Harvard graduate with a concentration in English and American Literature and Languages, a licensed California attorney and professional actress, and brings to Nova 42 her expertise in performance arts, organizational skill-building and creativity. Together, with the one and only Ted Kim and the amazingly talented Danny Glasgow, Nova 42's small but mighty full-time staff is powerful, knowledgeable and dedicated to every student's happiness and success in communication and responsible for building some of the top debaters and speakers in the country!
Second, Nova 42 is different from other speech and debate academies because of its innovative curriculum and approach to learning.
The foundation of Nova 42's teaching is built upon its 4 core pillars of learning: (1) critical thinking; (2) presentation; (3) interpersonal communication; and (4) leadership. Upon these 4 pillars, Nova 42 creates learning objectives every semester for all of its students, whether in 2nd grade in our Little Novas program or 12th grade in our high school program. With these learning objectives in mind, Nova 42 creates dynamic, interactive lessons that allow students to gain a deeper understanding of their communication power and the world around them. While we cannot disclose those lessons due to confidentiality and protecting our work product, we are happy to discuss them with you over-the-phone or set up a tryout for your child to experience a class directly if they are accepted into our program.
Third, Nova 42 has built an intertwined and complementary competition track designed to enhance and build upon the skills taught in classes.
Many academies only train students in tournament skills which leads to a superficial understanding of communication as well as a stressful focus on "winning at tournaments." At Nova 42, the focus is on communication skills for success in life. With this kind of focus, Nova 42 students become charismatic and thoughtful speakers who also tend to do well at tournaments. Nova 42 students often glow and stand out at tournaments due to their sense of confidence, dynamic energy and vibrancy of joie du vivre. While we never prioritize trophies, we do celebrate the numerous wins of our students.
Simple as it sounds, Nova 42's founders and coaches care tremendously about their students, often becoming their mentors and biggest cheerleaders. Nova 42 is honored that so many students stay at Nova 42 for years, bringing in siblings, and often coming back from college or graduate school to visit Nova and hang out. Nova 42 is dedicated to finding out what makes our students tick. We want to know more about them and we challenge them to grow and improve. We also expect them to show up and do their best. Nova 42 is not a babysitting center nor a place to learn communication skills passively. We expect our students to do their best in class and at tournaments, and in return, they blossom and grow in a way that no other learning can provide.
Meet the owners
MIKE KYLE
MIKE KYLE
MIKE KYLE
Co-Founder / CEO / Head Debate Coach / Sole Interior Designer of Nova 42's "Nerd Chic" Decor
An accomplished public speaker for most of his life, Mike began his competitive speaking career at the age of 12 when he was invited to attend a high school speaking competition on behalf of South Salem High School. Mike was awarded a debate schola
Co-Founder / CEO / Head Debate Coach / Sole Interior Designer of Nova 42's "Nerd Chic" Decor
An accomplished public speaker for most of his life, Mike began his competitive speaking career at the age of 12 when he was invited to attend a high school speaking competition on behalf of South Salem High School. Mike was awarded a debate scholarship to Arizona State University and continued winning speech and debate tournaments in college. Graduating Magna Cum Laude from ASU with a B.S. in Engineering, Mike also became a notable and sought-after public speaker in the Printing and Marketing industry, speaking at industry events. Mike also has an extensive background in performing in musical theater and singing in his high school jazz choir. Few people know that Mike won an opera scholarship for college and even fewer people know that Mike can often be found teary-eyed as he proudly watches his students present amazing speeches or show off their newfound confidence. It is no wonder that Jung often refers to him as the heart and soul of Nova 42. Mike began realizing his dream of mentoring students in speech and debate in 2011. In a relatively short time, Mike and his students became a force to be reckoned with in the speech and debate world. Mike’s training has helped his students represent their own high schools and win top awards by using his unique method of research, critical thinking, character development and argumentation style. Mike and Nova 42 have been awarded the Select 100 top alumni award from Arizona State University 4 years in a row. Mike has trained some of the top traditional LD'ers and Impromptu Speaking competitors in the southern California area. He is very proud of one of his students for becoming the 2023 MS National Champion in Impromptu Speaking. Mike has always encouraged his students to become great storytellers and even greater human beings. Coach Mike loves what he does and truly cares about each and every student at Nova 42 Academy. When not building Godzilla dioramas, Mike can be found decorating yet another wall at Nova 42 with dragons or ordering full-size UFO inflatables for Nova 42 Open Houses.
JUNG PARK
MIKE KYLE
MIKE KYLE
Co-Founder / COO / Head Speech Coach / Official Lion Tamer of Tiger Moms
Jung graduated in 1992 from Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges cum laude, B.A. General Studies, with a concentration in English and American Literature and Language. During college, she acting in a major PBS special and ABC Afterschool Special, earning her entry into SA
Co-Founder / COO / Head Speech Coach / Official Lion Tamer of Tiger Moms
Jung graduated in 1992 from Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges cum laude, B.A. General Studies, with a concentration in English and American Literature and Language. During college, she acting in a major PBS special and ABC Afterschool Special, earning her entry into SAG-AFTRA, the professional union for actors from her very first acting role. Jung also received her J.D. from UC Davis School of Law in 1996 and opened her own law office in 1998 in San Francisco. Jung is a professional comic and actor who has trained with some of the best acting coaches in the country and trained in sketch and improv comedy in the Second City LA training program. She can be seen in TV co-star roles on Grey's Anatomy, Good Trouble, American Crime Story: Impeachment, and in films such as Ambulance as well as miscellaneous national commercials. Jung is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and the Television Academy and acting coach and manager of Mike's and her youngest son, Liam Kyle, a professional actor who can be seen on Netflix's Home Team, Disney+'s The Santa Clauses seasons 1 and 2, Apple TV+'s Best Foot Forward and Nickelodeon/Paramount+'s live action Fairly Oddparents: Fairly Odder. Jung loves teaching her interpretation students great acting techniques and uses her unique coaching methods to help her students win 2018 MS Nationals in Humorous Interpretation, 2023 MS Tournament of Champions in Informative Speaking, as well as coaching some of the top students in Informative Speaking, Original Oratory and Interpretation in the country. Jung practices what she preaches and is able to show her students how to demonstrate top public speaking skills that have depth, gravitas, humor and inspiration. A skilled writer, Jung has also placed in the top levels of various prestigious screenwriting contests. Jung is proud to be working on her Directing Certificate from UCLA Extension. When not reminding students to show up for class, Jung can often be found drinking coffee at the front desk, writing long emails which parents politely call "detailed."
Meet COACHES TED and DANNY G
TED KIM
DANNY GLASGOW
DANNY GLASGOW
TEACHER, HEAD PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE COACH, HEAD CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE COACH, HEAD IPPF COACH, SPAR DEBATE COACH and just...TED.
What is something no other academy can offer but Nova 42? The unique vibe that is Ted Kim, teacher and debate coach extraordinaire at Nova 42. Ted is one of the most beloved coaches at Nova 42, with his stoic but c
TEACHER, HEAD PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE COACH, HEAD CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE COACH, HEAD IPPF COACH, SPAR DEBATE COACH and just...TED.
What is something no other academy can offer but Nova 42? The unique vibe that is Ted Kim, teacher and debate coach extraordinaire at Nova 42. Ted is one of the most beloved coaches at Nova 42, with his stoic but caring demeanor and relentless dedication to helping students be and achieve their best. There is simply no one else like Ted and every day, Nova 42's founders count their blessings that Ted is part of Nova 42. One of the best math teachers out there, Ted can explain complicated concepts and principles in easy-to-follow and understandable ways. His approach to teaching and coaching debate incorporates his logic, an outstanding academic approach and a dry sense of humor. His approach to Public Forum, Congress and IPPF allows students to both understand the process and skills required, but also to comprehend the content and context of the topic. Ted has parents and students alike raving about his ability to teach and coach and his caring nature!
DANNY GLASGOW
DANNY GLASGOW
DANNY GLASGOW
TEACHER, SPEECH COACH, HEAD HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION and STORYTELLING COACH, SCREENWRITER and FILM BUFF EXTRAORDINAIRE
After losing his life in the blizzarding Ardennes forest of France during World War II, Danny Glasgow was reanimated and reprogrammed by O.S.S. for the sole purpose of molding young minds in the ways of forensics. If you'r
TEACHER, SPEECH COACH, HEAD HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION and STORYTELLING COACH, SCREENWRITER and FILM BUFF EXTRAORDINAIRE
After losing his life in the blizzarding Ardennes forest of France during World War II, Danny Glasgow was reanimated and reprogrammed by O.S.S. for the sole purpose of molding young minds in the ways of forensics. If you're thinking to yourself that sounds like a bunch of bologna, congratulations–the truth is Danny just leads with his playful side and likes to see who's paying attention. All joking aside, Danny was first introduced to the world of speech & debate as a shy middle schooler. Throughout high school, he competed at the local, state, and national levels, focusing most of his attention on the oral interp side of the activity, where he began to grow a deep appreciation for literature. He graduated from the University of Texas in Arlington with a Bachelor's in English and later from Hollins University with an MFA in Film Studies. He's logged over 13 years as a teacher at various schools. Additionally he has written for studios such as RiverRock Films and periodicals such as Cinema of Change. He is thrilled to be part of the Nova 42 team, and nothing makes him smile bigger than helping young speakers discover their voices and realize their dreams.