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College Debate News

College Debate: Best of the Decade
March 06 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
In the past 3 decades, Bill Southworth has conducted a survey of coaches and judges active throughout the decade. Here are the results of his poll for the past decade.

Students speed talk for the win at debate
March 03 2010 by PD Staff
Debaters from universities across the Northeast gathered all day Saturday and Sunday to compete in Binghamton University's Regional Debate Tournament.

Baylor Debate Team Wins District 3 Championship
March 03 2010 by PD Staff
Members of the Glenn R. Capp Debate Forum, Baylor University's nationally ranked debate team, captured the District 3 championship over the weekend, with senior debater Alex McVey earning recognition as tournament's top individual speaker.

Debate team competes for sixth national championship
February 27 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
When Dylan Quigley was a freshman in high school, he joined the debate team to prepare for a career in politics. His career choice has since changed, but Quigley is still debating.

MSU debaters earn bid to national tournament
February 18 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
The Missouri State University debate team is one of only 16 two-person teams nationwide to earn a first round at-large bid to the 2010 National Debate Tournament, MSU said today.

UTSA debate team ranks sixth in nation among 250 institutions
January 29 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
-Roadrunner debaters had a great holiday break, competing in two back-to-back tournaments at the University of North Texas (Denton) and UT Dallas. By the end of six days of debate, UTSA was ranked sixth in the nation among more than 250 college and university debate teams.

Governor speaks up for Towson debaters
January 25 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
Baltimore Sun
Gov. Martin O'Malley said Tuesday that it would be "ludicrous" for Towson University to cut funding for its highly successful debate program because of overall cuts to the state university system.

The Fate of Debate
January 25 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
The Tower Light
Because of uncertain funding, the Speech and Debate Team will soon be seeing a number of changes in their group.

This team talks its way to the top
January 19 2010 by PD Staff
Baltimore Sun
Towson University debaters have always been a scrappy bunch compared to their rivals from Harvard, Wake Forest and Northwestern.

National champion debate team threatened by budget
January 12 2010 by PD Staff
KoamTV
University of Kansas officials say budget problems might prevent the university's national championship debate squad from competing against other top teams.

Debate coach changed students' lives
January 05 2010 by Stefan Bauschard
They called him "The Duck." As I reeled from the shock of the untimely death of my good friend Scott Deatherage, that was the biggest surprise.
The Duck?! I had never heard that until I began reading the hundreds of e-mails, texts, and Facebook missives spreading the news that Scott was gone.

Scott Deatherage Passes Away
December 25 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
I am sorry to pass along the very sad news that Scott Deatherage, the longtime Northwestern Director of Debate, was rushed to the hospital last night in Chicago. His condition is very grave and he remains in the ICU. His family is with him and they have asked to pass this information along.
At this time of year please keep our Northwestern friends in your thoughts and prayers.
Gordon Stables

UR Debate Union has exciting season
December 08 2009 by PD Staff
The UR Debate Union has its roots in the early days of the University — it was founded the day before the school was even created in 1850. More than 150 years later, the team is thriving, complete with new coaches, members and victories.
“One major accomplishment we’ve had is winning the University of Vermont Tournament,” publicity manager and sophomore Nicholas Stevens. The club brought about 40 debaters to the Vermont, the largest group they’ve ever taken to a tournament.
The club has grown this year, as they were actually able to retain the crowd that packed the room at this year’s General Interest meeting. More members and new coaches have helped the team’s success.

UW Debate Coach to Teach at Iraq Workshop
December 08 2009 by PD Staff
Dec. 7, 2009 -- University of Wyoming debate coach and Director of Forensics Matt Stannard will teach at the Iraq Debate Academy and Mesopotamia Debating Tournament Dec. 13-17 in Duhok, Kurdistan, Republic of Iraq.
He is among eight faculty members selected to teach at the workshop, including debate scholars and coaches from Slovenia, Wales, Iraq and the United States.

Forensics Society Moves From CALS to ILR
November 26 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
Cornell Sun
The Forensics Society, an organization where students participate in intercollegiate debate competitions, was recently moved from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to the College of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Full Tuition Scholarships Available
November 25 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
Scholarship Opportunities for Policy Debaters at Western Connecticut State University
Western Connecticut State University’s Roger Sherman Debate Society is pleased to announce that we are offering a very limited number of full tuition scholarships for policy debate through the University’s Honors Program. WCSU has a competitive debate environment within the Northeast providing both regional and national travel schedules for competition.

KSU debate team ranked 9th
November 19 2009 by PD Staff
CJ Online
MANHATTAN -- A Kansas State University student from Topeka and his debate partner are ranked 21st in the nation on the university's team, which is ranked ninth nationwide based on a poll of coaches from across the country.
Derek Ziegler, of Topeka, and Elizabeth Mendenhall, of Olathe, have had multiple top-10 finishes, including placing ninth among 145 teams at the University of Kentucky tournament. It was the highest finish by a K-State pair at a national-caliber tournament in the current varsity season.

Debate team to host regional tournment
November 17 2009 by PD Staff
The UCA Debate Team will host a regional debate tournament on campus March 13-15.
The tournament will be headquartered in Thompson Hall, along with some in Irby Hall. At least six other schools from Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi and Texas have committed to attend the tournament. This is the first debate that will be held on the campus after the team's re-organization last year.

163 teams from Northeast schools to debate nuclear weapons at WestConn this weekend
November 13 2009 by PD Staff
Some of the best students from the Northeast will showcase their research and argue the U.S. nuclear weapons policy in a two-day event in Danbury this weekend. Western Connecticut State University's award-winning Roger Sherman Debate Society will play host to and compete against 21 visiting college teams in Warner Hall on the university's midtown campus.

Not debatable: NU team has national draw
November 12 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
From the Northwestern Debate Society’s success at tournaments this fall and its continued efforts to recruit top high school debaters, team coach Dan Fitzmier said the tradition of NU’s debate excellence doesn't appear to be ending.
NU debate won its first tournament of the year at Gonzaga University in September and closed out the Wayne State University Motor City Classic College Debate tournament in October. Debate Society program coordinator Luke Hill said teams of debaters also placed at tournaments held at Georgia State University, the University of Northern Iowa and the University of Kentucky. Fitzmier said the team’s performance since September has been “fantastic.”

A Date With Debate
October 15 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
The Harvard Policy Debate Team was founded over a century ago, but they’re still pushing boundaries today.
By MARK J. CHIUSANO, Crimson Staff Writer
The Harvard Policy Debate Team, originally called the Harvard Debate Council, was founded in 1892. This was the year the Johnson County War erupted between small farmers and large ranchers in Wyoming, and the year Homer Plessy sat in the wrong seat on a train and prompted a landmark Supreme Court case. These are things that debaters might know because they can never tell when their opponents will bring up the way mass media affected rebellions in the West, or why the Supreme Court isn’t a reliable source for expanding nuclear disarmament.

Baylor Debate team resumes success, prepares for next tournament
October 01 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
Baylor's debate team is currently ranked fifth in the nation and is excited for a successful season and hopeful for a national championship.
"We are currently ranked highest since 1997," said Dr. Matt Gerber, director of the debate team and assistant professor in the communications department.

UW Debate Team Ranks High on List of Invites to Tournament
September 03 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
Sept. 3, 2009 -- A University of Wyoming policy debate team has been invited to the prestigious Las Vegas Round Robin tournament scheduled Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Ted Olson & Debate in the NYT
August 19 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
At the time, the South was riven by racial strife, and during a college debate trip to Texas, Mr. Olson got his first close-up view of blatant discrimination. Lady Booth Olson, a lawyer whom Mr. Olson married in 2006, said he still tears up when telling how a black teammate was turned away from a restaurant in Amarillo. Mr. Olson “tore into the owner,” insisting the team would not eat unless everyone was served, recalled the team’s coach, Paul Winters. “If he sees something that is wrong in his mind, he goes after it,” Mr. Winters said.

FSU student to take part in DC debate
August 18 2009 by Stefan Bauschard
Tanesha Slaughter, a member of Fayetteville State University's debate team, will debate five other students as part of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities on Aug. 31. Presidents and chancellors from HBCUs nationwide will attend the event.
Popular Planet Debate Files
- PF: February 2010 (Lobbying)
- PF: Afghanistan (January 10) -- updated 12/26/09 -- 179 pages
- PF: March 2010 (Affirmative Action)
- L-D: N-D 09: Mandatory Immunization
- PF: Failed States (November)
- L-D: J-F 10: Sanctions
- Topicality Strategy Guide -- Poverty
- PF: Merit Pay (December)
- LD: S-O 09: Testing
- PF: Poverty v. Environmental Protection (October)
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