The Boston Globe recently launched a series of articles examining the life stories and careers of the MA candidates for the US Senate. In the first part, we learn about how high school debate shaped Elizabeth Warren’s world view, earned her a scholarship to George Washington University, and helped her develop the skills to think critically about complex policy issues that would go on to shape her career. Read the entire article here.
News and Events
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Tournament 5 Ends With an Overwhelming Success.
Hundreds of students from around New England squared off at the Boston Debate League’s fifth tournament of the season. The competition pitted students from the Rhode Island Urban Debate League against local teams, producing some of the best debates of the season. The Department of Communication and Journalism at Suffolk University hosted half of the competitors on their campus, giving students a first-hand look at a college campus. Boston University’s Black Law Student Association sponsored the English High School site and brought a host of volunteers to judge and mentor the debaters. The Boston Debate League would like to thank both tournament hosts, along with the dozens of community supporters who lent their time to judge. The event would not have been possible without them.
At English High School, Boston Latin Academy had quite a tournament, claiming the championship trophy, the second place team spirit award, and the top two spots in the varsity division. Brighton High School won the spirit award and was the tournament champion runner-up, with senior Nicolas Cathcart taking home the top varsity speaker award. New Mission also sent teams to the final round in both the novice and junior varsity divisions. Full results HERE.
Over at Suffolk University, Rhode Island’s Classical High School had a banner day, taking the top two novice team awards along with the spirit award and runner-up tournament championship trophy. Excel High School was named the tournament champion and advanced two teams to the quarterfinals. Other notable performances include East Boston’s run to the final round of the junior varsity division and Josiah Quincy Upper School’s appearance in the final varsity round for the second tournament in a row. Full results HERE.
The middle school division again broke its record for participation, with 86 students competing at the tournament. That averages to a whopping 17 students per school, a truly impressive achievement in the first year of the middle school debate in Boston. The Eliot School won the tournament championship and spirit award, narrowly edging out Timilty Middle School, which was previously undefeated. Eliot took the three top junior varsity spots, while Timilty took top honors in the novice competition. TechBoston’s Janet Joseph was named the top novice speaker, while Eliot’s MeronAdhane won the same award in junior varsity.
Of course, all debaters at this tournament had their eyes on the City Championships, happening in just three weeks. There, the top teams in the league will be determined and the BDL will determine its representative at the Urban Debate National Championships. Don’t miss your last chance to see the debaters in action! Sign up to judge today!
JAN
30
2012 Winter Season starts with a bang!
The Boston Debate League returned from its long winter break with a bang. Over 300 debaters proved that a few weeks of extra practice can really pay off, drawing rave reviews from the scores of volunteers who came out to judge the debates. The event, split between TechBoston Academy and East Boston High School, marks the fourth tournament of the BDL season and kicks off the final push toward the City Championship in early March. Don’t miss the action when the debaters descend upon Boston University Law School and Suffolk University in two weeks. Sign up to judge today!
The BDL would like to extend its sincere gratitude to the coaches and administrators of East Boston High School and TechBoston Academy. Without their time and energy, the event would not have been possible. Similarly, the community’s outpouring of judging support was truly inspirational, allowing coaches to observe their debaters and students to hear feedback from sources ranging from team parents to local lawyers to league alums. Andrew Brokos, the BDL founder, returned to town for the tournament and showed that taking a break from debate doesn’t decrease your passion for the activity or ability to run a smooth tournament.
For the first time ever, the middle school tournament included a junior varsity division. Lanezja August from the Timilty was named first place junior varsity speaker and also took home the top team award with her partner Jenna Carter. Rachel Gover of the Eliot took second speaker and second place team alongside schoolmate Ruquiya Mohamed. In the novice division, Eliot claimed the top two team awards and Melissa Louis-Dhon defended her home territory at TechBoston by being named the top novice speaker. TechBoston also took home the Spirit Award for bringing the most students, with Timilty being named runner-up. The schools switched rankings for the top award, with Timitly taking the crown.
In the TechBoston High School tournament, Excel High School solidified its place as one of the premier teams in the city, taking home the championship trophy and second place in the Spirit category. Latin Academy was the runner-up tournament champion, while New Mission claimed the Spirit award for most students. Jennie Vo of TechBoston was the top varsity speaker and her teammates won the novice division, suggesting the benefits of home field advantage apply to debate tournaments as well. Danielle Cadet and Lucibel Delgado from Excel were the varsity champions, and Fatah Aden and Elvis Alvarado won the junior varsity division. Full Results HERE.
Over at the East Boston site, Brighton ran the show, claiming the tournament championship and Spirit award. East Boston was close behind, being named the runner-up in both major event categories. Charlestown was the talk of the tournament and took the top four spots in the novice division, making further debates unnecessary after the quarterfinals. Leroy Chan and Mohamed Nouri of Josiah Quincy Upper School won their first varsity competition of the season, defeating Nicolas Cathcart and Meybel Lopez from Brighton. In junior varsity, Brighton edged out East Boston for the top spot. Full results HERE.
Congratulations to all participants. The BDL is looking forward to more of the same on February 10 and 11th!
JAN
30
Boston Debate Director Recognized at National Barkley Forum in Atlanta
Steve Stein is welcomed into the Gold Key Society, one of the
most prestigious communities in the forensics world
This past weekend, history was made for the Boston Debate League (BDL) at the Barkley Forum for High Schools at Emory University in Atlanta. Steve Stein, the league’s Executive Director, was welcomed into the prestigious Gold Key Society for his commitment to urban education and success in building a large and effective urban debate league here in Boston.
Stein is a former nationally competitive high school and college debater who pursued a career as a high school teacher and debate coach. At Chattahoochee High School in Alpharetta, GA, Stein built one of the largest and most successful high school teams in the country. Since Stein joined the BDL in 2008, the organization has grown by leaps and bounds. He has boldly aimed to double student participation, and he has done just that in each of the last three years. So far this school year, over 500 Boston Public School students have participated in the life-changing activity of debate, and thousands more benefit from a program to train teachers in all subjects to use debate activities in their classroom to increase the engagement and rigor of their teaching.
“There are a lot of things that Steve Stein could have done with his many talents, and he chose to serve as a teacher, and then go on to impact thousands of urban students through his work with the BDL,” says Tim Averill, a member of the BDL Advisory Council and 1989 inductee to the Key Society for his coaching at Manchester High School.
“Anyone who meets Steve immediately recognizes his enthusiasm for debate, and it’s contagious,” says John Isaacson, the BDL Board Chair and former national college debate champion at Dartmouth. Isaacson adds, “He holds the core belief that debate is for everyone. Steve has sold us all the idea that competitive debate, in classrooms and after school, can transform the educational experience in a school when it hits a critical mass of students.”
Every year, Emory University honors high school students and teachers for their commitment to excellence in forensics. One of the most celebrated events is the presentation by the Key Society, an exclusive group of coaches honored for their successes. The first urban debate leagues started in Atlanta in 1985 and The Barkley Forum was a pioneer in the growth of this movement.
JAN
23
10 GBPDL Schools Compete in Snowy Weston
On the snowy morning of Saturday, January 21st students from the Greater Boston Policy Debate League traveled to Weston to compete in our first tournament of 2012. JV and Varsity teams from 10 high schools competed at Weston High School for 3 rounds in what turned out to be a very competitive tournament (Pictures HERE).
In Varsity, the hybrid team of New Mission’s Darien Amado and Boston Latin Academy’s Henry Chavez won the tournament championship over Weston’s Jamie Emery and Aubrey Kief who also went 3-0 at the tournament. In third place was the hybrid team of TechBoston’s Osaruese Odeh and Dorchester Academy’s John Thatch. Boston Latin Academy’s Henry Chavez earned top speaker with Danielle Cadet placing second, and Aubrey Kief earning third.
In Junior Varsity, the hybrid team of Excel High School’s Chianne Arthur and Dorchester Academy’s Dahana SaintCry won the JV championship with Weston’s Jacqueline Chen and Irene Liaw placing second, and with the hybrid team of Brighton’s Tanjil Mustafa and Boston Latin Academy’s Tajahane Francis placing third. Excel’s Chianne Arthur earned top speaker with Dorchester Academy’s Dahana SaintCyr placing second, and Brighton’s Tanjil Mustafa placing third.
The Boston Debate League would like to extend its deepest gratitude to Weston High School’s Debate Coach Jim Murphy, his debaters, and all school staff who made the tournament possible. Want to see why so many local students are willing to wake up before 7am on a Saturday? Volunteer at our next tournament! Sign up HERE.
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You Learn How to Fight With Your Words
Check out this story from the Jamaica Plain Patch
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