June 8, 2022 | By Kelly Cody
Tournament season has been a whirlwind. As we finally transition into the summer months, it’s hard to believe that the 2021-2022 debate season has come to a close and we have to wait a few months until we get to see our wonderful BDL volunteers in action once again. Though we’re sad to go into volunteer-hibernation as we internally gear up for next school year, we’re excited to start planning and to continue stewarding relationships with our local volunteers!
Let’s take a look at the substantial impact (and substantial fun) that BDL volunteers had this past year!
This past season, BDL hosted a grand total of eight tournaments. Four of these tournaments were Tournament Takeovers that surrounded different careers, exposing students to the fields of education, law, and celebrating HBCU Alumni and Black & Latinx Professionals. Our FANTASTIC volunteers facilitated a grand total of 1,694 debate rounds and donated approximately 3,388 hours. No debate about it – that’s a lot!
During tournaments, debaters have been supported by volunteers from many of our partner organizations: Boston Cares, South Asian Affinity Bar Association of Greater Boston, Boston Bar Association, Playworks, Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, One Brick, Debate Spaces, Bentley Mock Trial, Boston University, State Street, Vertex, JP Morgan Chase Adelante & BOLD groups, Boston While Black, ZS Cares, Red Sox Scholars, Santander Bank, and Northeastern University’s Service Learning.
We have to say goodbye to many things and people as we transition out of an old debate season and into a new one: graduating debaters, old debate topics, etc. but luckily, we can always count on seeing our wonderful volunteers return from year to year.
Stay tuned for our new official debate season calendar, new volunteer opportunities, and new networking opportunities as the summer comes to an end. Tournaments will officially begin again in November!
Want to be a part of our volunteer community? Check out our Volunteer Page.