Photos From Tournament Four The Boston Debate League's fourth tournament was hosted by the Boston University Black Law Students Association and sponsored by the law firm of WilmerHale. In the novice division, Latrell Boyd defended his championship title with new partner Cherelle Arthurton. Meanwhile, Charlestown debaters Faisa Sharif and Li Hui Xie won their second Varsity title of the season. Find Your Voice 2008: Honoring the Legacy of Dr. King We were honored to have the Reverend Gregory Groover, vice chair of the Boston School Committee, as the emcee for this public debate event. Ten of the BDL's best debaters honored MLK Day with discussions of race, human rights, and non-violence at the Boston Public Library in Copley. An audience of nearly two hundred and prominent guest presenters from Harvard University, the State House, and NAACP-Boston took part in the event. Photos From Tournament Three In what is fast becoming an annual tradition, the Academy of Public Service played host to the Boston Debate League's January tournament. This third competition of the 2007/08 season was the first for a great many debaters, including the Boston Debate League's newest member, New Mission High School of Roxbury. First Annual New England Debate Classic Boston Public Schools superintendent Dr. Carol Johnson honored us with a visit to a BDL tournament hosted by Charlestown High School. She stayed for about two hours, observed several debates, spoke with students, teachers, and administrators, and commented on the academic rigor of the program. Ultimately, she inivted us to meet with her to discuss possible BPS funding for the League. This tournament was dubbed the First Annual New England Debate Classic in honor of the many students and coaches from the Rhode Island Debate League who came up to Boston for the event. Click here for photos by Rhode Island Debate League Director Will Tucker. Photos From Tournament One Josiah Quincy Upper School hosted the first tournament of the BDL's fourth season on October 20th, 2007. Forty students representing six schools competed in one of the largest and most competitive tournaments in the League's history. Photos From the 2007 Summer Debate Institute School didn’t officially start in Boston until September, but BPS students couldn’t wait to dive into debate! From August 13th to August 17th, a cadre of bright and dedicated debaters had a great time on the University of Massachusetts, Boston campus learning the ins and outs of debate and getting to know their peers at other schools. The students practiced their debating skills and learned more about their new debate topic, Resolved: That the United States federal government should substantially increase its public health assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa, while coaches got in on the action with a week-long seminar of their own. New Schedule For 2007-08 At a recent coaches’ meeting, the members of the Boston Debate League planned their most ambitious schedule to date, featuring four regular season tournaments, a City Championship event, a series of public debates to celebrate MLK Day, and plans to attend tournaments hosted by both suburban schools in Massachusetts and other Urban Debate Leagues in the New England Region. We’ll keep you posted about all of our upcoming events, but please make special note of our tournament dates. Volunteers are the backbone of the Boston Debate League, and our tournaments could not run without the help of our judges. We’ll remind you, of course, but please note these dates on your calendar: October 20, 2007: Tournament One New Judge Training Opportunities Have you been intrigued by the idea of judging a BDL debate but feared you were too inexperienced? Or did you debate in a different millennium and fear that too much has changed? Well let us put your fears to rest! The Boston Debate League will host its first ever judge training seminar on October 13th. We’re still firming up the time and location, but if you’re interested, please mark your calendar now, and we’ll get you the details ASAP. We can also bring the training to you! If you can get together at least three potential judges, we’ll send an instructor to your workplace, college, or anywhere else you’d like to meet for some on-the-spot training. These sessions will last less than two hours and will tell you everything you need to know and then some about what it takes to judge a BDL debate and why it’s so much fun! But if you don’t have time for a judge seminar, don’t let that stop you! No experience or training is required to judge in the BDL, and most of our volunteers find that it’s more fun and less difficult than they expected. New Member Schools Please join us in welcoming Brook Farm Academy and Urban Science Academy, both from the West Roxbury Education Complex, to the Boston Debate League. BFA’s team will be coached by teacher Charles Grandson IV, and USA’s team by teacher William Baga. We are very excited to have them and are already impressed with the support and dedication we’ve seen from their students, coaches, and administrators. About the Boston Debate League Joining the League The BDL currently works with six Boston public high schools: Academy of Public Service, Boston Community Leadership Academy, Brook Farm Academy, Charlestown High School, Josiah Quincy Upper School, and Urban Science Academy. Any Boston public high school is welcome to join the League; interested parties should e-mail League Director Andrew Brokos at andrew(at)bostondebate(dot)org for more information. Volunteering The BDL relies heavily on volunteers to assist with coaching, judging,and League operations. There are also open positions on our board of directors. No prior debate experience or training is required, and virtually any level of commitment can be accomodated. Please e-mail League Director Andrew Brokos at andrew(at)bostondebate(dot)org for more information about volunteer opportunities. Donations Donations to the Boston Debate Leauge are tax-deductible and always welcome. Checks should be payable to Boston Debate League and mailed to 287 Beacon St. #1R, Boston, MA 02116. Please include a return address so that we can mail you a receipt for your deduction. |
