Testimonials

Our son benefited tremendous from the debate program. It helped him gain confidence, become a critical thinker, developed his research skills and interests in learning multi disciplinary subjects. He was also able to get into a leadership position at his middle and high school debate club. Eventually, this helped him become a strong candidate for colleges, getting admission offers from multiple Ivy League colleges. He continued to use his skills in his college at Princeton University – Manoj Daga

. I judged my first debate tournament this past Saturday. It was one of my most enjoyable life experiences. I look forward to more tournaments. The students were awesome. I’m so glad I had this opportunity. Elaine G.

“I am very happy to let you know that my child has been with you since his third grade. Debate helped him to do exceptionally well in academics in his elementary and middle school years!! I thank you for your awesome support.” (Graduated middle school with the highest academic average of 103.24% and is now attending Bronx Science)

The event was a part of a partnership between the Education Department’s Middle School Quality Initiative and the New York City Urban Debate League. The competition was already a winner with IN-Tech’s parents and students as they said the skills their children learned from the extracurricular activity boosted their grades, self-confidence and social skills. “I’ve already seen the difference between elementary school and middle school and how much he’s already progressed,” said Diana Hernandez, whose son Jordan, a sixth-grader, joined the team this fall. “He was very shy in elementary school and now he’s more outgoing. He’s more [willing] to actually doing public speaking, which he never liked doing at all. He’s very excited and he’s very proud to be on the debate team.” Rosanna Mella, whose daughter Kamilah was also debating for the first time, like Jordan, said she was “very excited and proud.” Being part of the debate team has inspired Kamilah to become more interested in academics and to enjoy the reading and research that goes along with preparing for competition, Ms. Mella added. Before the club, Kamilah was primarily interested in the arts, and now her interests have expanded to science and technology, Ms. Mella said. (http://www…, https://debate…)

“NYC UDL community! Spent the weekend at Yale with a single team of 2 young debaters. I was worried that they would be all alone, but all our friends from the NYC UDL community took them in. Erik & Aubrey, you’ve not only made debate accessible to all but also created a place where a large group of diverse young people can come together as one strong community! So proud to be part of this amazing organization!”

As I sit here and read so many uninformed posts, I think (so many things, but let’s stick with the positive for now)…I am so grateful my kids spent the week at the New York City Urban Debate League. They, along with hundreds of other debaters this summer, are learning how to examine an issue from both sides, to make cogent arguments, cite evidence and most importantly care and engage in conversations that determine the course of our democracy. I have high hopes for the next generation to fix our problems, but a sincere wish that we get there before that so they can grow up in the world that they deserve. Many thanks to the NYCUDL for creating such an amazing program and all our friends in the debate community!

My daughter’s team won the title for Novice Middle School Parliamentary Debates. She told me that after the last debate, she is confident and skillful enough to pass any state test.

I’m overwhelmed with the skills my son has learned at debate camp and during the UDL season. Debate has challenged him to look at complex issues from every angle and developed his critical thinking skills as well as his ability to articulate his thoughts and arguments and back them up with factual evidence. I’m a huge fan of the NYCUDL!

During summer debate camp, I was able to witness my daughter, Isis Glover, grow in her communication and social skills.

My daughter Nicole, truly benefited from this program. She is more confident and learned a lot about tactical strategies that she is eager to use and apply at her debate club this upcoming school year. Her ability to understand the importance of perspectives, opinions, and facts has helped her to look at things in a more neutral place. I would definitely recommend this program to other children and parents.

My daughter was a newcomer to debate. The coaches and advisors were fantastic. She loved the experience and at the end of the two week camp she decided to start a debate club at her school in the fall.

My son participated in Harlem Debate Institute through HEAF and had an awesome experience. Each day he came home eager to share the knowledge he gained and the info and tools he learned about debating. He said it was a fun filled experience and is looking forward ro participating again next year. Thank you HDI for an amazing debate experience and for your amazing staff. Toni and son Jaylen

My daughter experienced the joy, power, and satisfaction of making a convincing heart-felt argument publicly—of listening and being heard—I truly believe this will change her life! (Anonymous)

This was an eye opening experience for my son honestly and I am thankful

During summer debate camp, I was able to witness my daughter, Isis Glover, grow in her communication and social skills.

Thank you for a wonderful week. My child, who was hesitant to try it for the first time, walked out at the end of the week feeling enlightened, engaged and proud. The counselors were encouraging and the topics were relevant to the issues of today. Thank you so much for the opportunity and we hope to return next year.

I also want to take a moment to thank you and your staff for an amazing year. This is our first year involved with UDL and I cannot express how much you and your staff have been of help. The amount of support we received has been unparalleled. Additionally, my students have grown so much because of your program. Some of my students have been sheltered growing up where they have. Not only has UDL introduced them to wonderful new people and teams, but it has taught them to look at the world through different lenses. This year has also allowed myself and my co-coaches to become much better at what we do. Thank you, Meredith Feigel, I.S.75 Social Studies Teacher,Debate Coach

Debate helps students who have had problems focusing academically or behaviorally because debate provides structure. When students become a debater, they become more aware about the problems that exist. Not only in their city and their state but the world. And what they learn about argumentation they will not learn typically in high school. They will learn feminism. They will learn Heidegger. They will learn Freire. As competitive as it is, some of the longest standing friends have come from debate. My first graduating students have become advocates at campuses across the country. They learned so much about themselves. And physically and and mentally they have grown. And as a teacher that is what you value most in term of any activity. – Ms. Bryce, ACORN High School

A year ago I thought debate was only for presidential hopefuls and students from the most exclusive schools. I never imagined I would become involved in coaching debate nor that 5th to 7th graders from the inner city school where I teach would be debating on sophisticated topics such as the U.S. federal government decreasing military presence in Afghanistan! With the unwavering support of Erik Fogel and his dedicated students from Bronx Law, the Family Life Academy Charter School began its first debate program for its middle school. We now have 26 students who are motivated and excited to be participating in this program. Initially, I was unsure about student’s ability to comprehend the challenging material however students have far surpassed my expectations. Despite a wide range of learning abilities, all students have benefited from participating in debate in one way or another. Some students are thriving from the new and challenging content and work hard at practicing debate skills. Others have improved their presentation and reading ability. All have learned something they would not normally have learned through standard instruction… As a teacher, coaching debate has been hugely rewarding because it has taught me that students are highly capable regardless of their ethnic background or learning ability. My students have proved there are no topics too complex or debate skills too challenging for them. I know that my students have grown in ways that will benefit them now and in the future. – Sue Chan, Middle School Teacher, Family Life Academy Charter School

I wanted to drop you a line to first thank you so much for everything that you do for my kids. They enjoy debating so much; they want to stay after school every day to research and practice. Their reading scores continue to increase, and their writing shows phenomenal growth, much higher than the average growth of other scholars in their class who are not in debate. Their engagement is insanely amazing and the rate at which they are digesting challenging current events topics and articles is astounding. Their parents are thrilled and also send their thanks. So this gets me thinking, what if school could be like this every second of every day for every scholar? – Katie Vitale, Frederick Douglas Academy

PS 161 is a K-8 school in Harlem with a vibrant elementary and middle school debate program. In partnership with the NYC Urban Debate League, the 161 Debaters participate in year round debate tournaments, workshops and practices hosted at PS 161 and around the city. For our students, the NYCUDL has provided transformative educational experiences. – Tyler Beattie, PS 161 Teacher

Our school is a partner of the New York City Urban Debate League (NYCUDL) and we highly recommend the NYCUDL for this opportunity to bring debate to more schools in the Bronx. The NYCUDL provides free debate opportunities for all our students. The NYCUDL also hosts special events for our students such as a televised debate at BronxNet television studio. The NYCUDL also supports travel opportunities for our students to travel and compete beyond the Bronx and New York City. This year we were able to host a Bronx debate tournament at our school because the NYCUDL provided everything for free including staff, meals, awards and everything else to host a successful debate tournament for our Bronx students. So we recommend Mr. Fogel and the New York City Urban Debate League for this grant so that more schools can have debate teams. – Samantha Katz, Teacher, One World Middle School (Bronx)

The New York City Urban Debate League provides free debate tournaments throughout the year for our school. We would not have a debate team without the New York City Urban Debate League and so we highly recommend the NYCUDL for this grant to continue and expand its work in the Bronx. Our students and entire school community have benefited immensely from debate. While most students are home on weekends, our debaters are busy on Saturdays all day reading, writing, researching, notetaking, questioning, and speaking on different current events each and every month! Again, we highly recommend the NYCUDLQ Thanks! – Fran Rossillo, Debate Coach and Teacher, Cornerstone Academy for Social Action (Bronx)

My name is Aylin Kuzucan and I was a NYC high school teacher and debate coach in the South Bronx. From my experience as a debate coach, I have found that it gives students an outlet to voice their frustrations with critical issues in society and to engage in an academic setting that is not present in their current classrooms. On my team, I had special education students, students with a history in the juvenile criminal system, and many other students that were trying to break the continued cycle of poverty. These students dedicated their weekends to debate tournaments and stayed after school for hours to finish researching their topics. Because of the NYC Urban Debate League, I was able to take my students to tournaments across the country, had access to free debate tournaments and camps in the city, and exposed students to academic resources outside of their school’s text books. The organizations is growing rapidly which means our funds that initially supported five schools must now support over 50. In most title I schools there are NO legal or civic education opportunities for low income schools and students. The vast majority of schools either have a basketball team for the boys and a Step/dance team for the girls. The majority of our youth experience with the law is not positive – family members in jail, negative relationships with members of law enforcement, and many of our youth incarcerated myself. So after school programs in law like debate, mock trial, moot court, public speaking – are unheard of. For further reading this is one of the many memories I have of my debaters: “Andy stood behind the podium passionately listing the reasons China would take the place of the United States as the world’s next superpower. The opposing team stood to ask questions, and Andy responded with vigor and enthusiasm, convincing the audience of his position. Andy’s partner, Sabrina, delivered the final remarks and led the room in tears as she recounted her family’s struggle to escape poverty: “without an increased concern in the lives of those in poverty, America will lose a large population of people who could help rebuild it to be the leader that it once was.”

Those who think public education is a lost cause should look no further than M.S. 50 in Williamsburg. There, Principal Ben Honoroff has leveraged his school’s Renewal resources, including additional learning time, to create a championship debate team. The debate program has not only won city-wide tournaments, but it has sharpened students’ critical thinking skills and helped them perform better on State ELA and math exams. http://www…

-NYC Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina

IN-Tech’s debate coach and Middle School Dean Wendy Spector said the skills learned from debating also help writing, research, reading and speaking skills for participants. “It’s a structured environment to prove your point, to go back and forth. We all know that teenagers love to do that [and] prove their point,” laughed Ms. Spector. IN-Tech has participated in middle-school debates for four years. In addition to boosting academic skills, IN-Tech assistant principal Jim O’Toole said, he has seen more self-confidence and increased classroom participation and social skills in students.

According to figures from the Education Department, IN-Tech students’ performance on the state English test has improved dramatically over the past couple of years. In the 2013-2014 school year, only 14 percent of middle school students at the Kingsbridge school met New York State standards on the state English test, compared to 27 percent in the city and 15 percent in the district. The following year, the number rose slightly to 16 percent, but then nearly doubled to 30 percent in the 2015-2016 school year. http://www…

Dean Wendy Spector and Assistant Principal Jim O’Toole IN-Tech Academy

“When you think about a great high school experience, you think about a student competing on a debate team, or a robotics team, or in a Google science fair context, while having a great course of study. Those things exist in our society for some students at selective high schools or in affluent suburban high schools. The commitment that our city needs to make is that every student deserves access to a high school education that genuinely prepares them for the best colleges. It means that they need to understand what it means to work at a law firm, or at the U.N., or at a tech startup, or at a university research lab.” – Principal Eric Tucker, Brooklyn LAB School, Without ‘grit’ or ‘no excuses,’ how one charter high school is preparing to send high-needs students to college

Eric Tucker Principal , Brooklyn LAB School

“Debate teaches all of the skills that I hope my students will learn: reading comprehension, research writing critically, thinking critically, civic engagement, political consciousness. I remember as a teacher our debate team lost to a suburban school in a tournament and the students who won were using this argument from Foucault. Back at school, my students came up to me and begged me over lunch to teach them Foucault. It’s this external motivator that students really want to succeed and do well. At the middle school level, I preach to the students, debate is as much about listening as it is about speaking. It’s about hearing your opponent and understanding their argument, taking notes and then refuting that argument. It’s all the common core line skills that we’re teaching in our classes about identifying arguments, citing textual evidence, using academic language. All of those are really reinforced in debate. It just makes a lot of sense to have debate be a central piece of our school.” – Principal Ben Honoroff, MS 50 (Brooklyn)

https://www…

Ben Honoroff Principal, Junior High School 50 – John D Wells

“A Silent Classroom is a classroom where there is untapped voices that are not heard. If you believe in democratic education, you have to focus on oratory…Speaking is a part of almost every classroom, but it can be easy to assume that students already know how to do things like challenge an idea or back up an argument with evidence. In reality, those oral communication skills must be explicitly taught like other core skills in school. And a well-spoken, confident young person will have occasion to use those communication skills throughout his or her life. Peter Hyman, School 21 cofounder and executive head teacher, says, “We need to elevate speaking to the same level as reading and writing.” – KQED, Mindshift, October 23, 2016

Peter Hyman School 21 cofounder and executive head teacher, School 21

I was extremely impressed by NYCUDL at the tournament I judged this past weekend, bringing a really powerful educational and voice-finding experience to so many students from a really diverse range of backgrounds, and I’m excited to judge more tournaments. To be overly sentimental, I think that sort of dialogue is empowering for the students and important for the good of the world.

“Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.”

– President Obama, State of Schools Address

“Those 4 years in debate were the educational foundation of everything I did. And I don’t mean that in some simple form…I’m saying the finest education I got from any of the institutions I attended, the foundation of my mind that I got during those 4 years of competitive policy debate; that is, 90% of the intellectual capacity that I operate with today–Fordham [University] for college, Fordham for the Ph.D., Harvard for law school–all of that is the other 10%.”

– John Sexton, President of New York University, Former NYC Debate Coach of 10 years

“The skills I developed in debate were of inestimable value in my later graduate education, in my training and research, in my government service: learning to think on my feet, or organize ideas, to take and use notes, to marshal evidence, to use my voice effectively. But the more important lessons were not these more technical ones. I was fortunate to have a debate coach who also taught that intellectual effort can be exciting; that ideas are more important than things; that pursuit of the truth is more important than winning contests; that intellectual honesty and integrity are among the virtues most to be cherished; that one need never be ashamed of idealism and strong convictions…” (Klopf, p7-8).

– Gardner Ackly, former presidential advisor

“My speech and debate experience and training at Pennsylvania State was the most important single educational experience of my life….Dialectical and communicative competencies and insights are the major educational values which result from participating extensively in forensics and debate. From my experience as a participant, coach and teacher, I believe those competencies and insights are better developed through forensic and debate experiences than any other educational experience” (Hunt, p15).

– Jerry M. Anderson, President of Ball State University

“Years of observing high school and college students in forensics have convinced me that this is one of the major contributions we in speech communication can make to the education of youngsters. It is our various forensics activities, more than in any other of our programs, that most of what we believe in and study can be brought together and passed on to each generation of students. It is in our various forensics activities that we can most effectively communicate the values that form the base of speech communication. And it is these activities that can best help our students to develop their capacities for leadership. It is no accident that such a large percentage of the outstanding leaders in our country have been high school or college debaters” (Hunt, p15).

– Sam Becker, former president, Speech Communication Association of America

“Debate not only improves one’s ability to speak publicly but improves the thinking process of the debater” (Huseman and Goodman, p226).

– Representative Charles E. Bennet of Florida

“As a Senator, my principal responsibilities are threefold: First, a Senator must do his best to reach logical policy conclusions about issues with which our nation is confronted. Second, a Senator should be able to effectively translate technical aspects of a position into language that will clearly communicate it to the public. Third, to be effective, a Senator must have the ability to persuade others to accept his policy conclusions. No aspects of my education was more useful in preparing me to meet these responsibilities than my training in speech and debate” (Hunt, p14).

– Senator David Boren of Oklahoma

“My debate experience at Bates was helpful in my post graduate study at Oxford. At all times the necessity of organizing ideas and presenting them vigorously has been pertinent to newspaper writing, asking questions at press conferences or interviewing statesmen was aided by my public speaking experience” (Hunt, p14).

– Erwin Canham, editor of the Christian Science Monitor

“I learned how to think critically, how to develop arguments, how to speak clearly, and how to research. Everything I do – teaching, writing, and advocacy – uses these skills. Perhaps less obviously, I learned word economy which has been enormously valuable. . . . in teaching, sign-posting and labeling is much appreciated by my students. In doing media interviews, the conciseness that comes from word economy is invaluable in doing soundbites. Also, very importantly, as you know so well, debate forces one to be efficient in using one’s time and prepares one for juggling the many things we all must do.”

– Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the University of California, Irvine School of Law

“As a former debater I know of the tremendous benefits which can be derived from the process of educating oneself to take part in discussions of vital national issues (Huseman and Gordon, 226).”

– Senator Frank Church of Idaho

“The principal value of debate lies in the development of logical thought processes, and the ability to articulate your positions publicly” (Huseman and Goodman, p226).

– Senator Dick Clark of Iowa

“I cannot think of any one in the country who owes more to his participation in the national Forensic League events than I do” (Freely, 1960, p121).

– Frank G. Clement, Governor of Tennessee

“Debate was the single most important activity I participated in at the Naval Academy” (Lundquist).

– Admiral William Crowe, Four Star Admiral, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Ambassador to England

“If I were to choose any single activity in college which has contributed most to my career, I would certainly choose debating” (Hunt, p16).

– Samuel B. Gould, President, Antioch College

“Debating is one of the most valuable academic exercises in which I have ever engaged. It taught me to speak on my feet, to organize my thoughts, and to defend and refute a point. All of these abilities have stood me in good stead during my career as an attorney, as judge and now, as a U.S. Senator” (Hunt, p14).

– Senator Howard Heflin of Alabama

“The group developed fellowship and team camaraderie which had important by-products for personal growth. The visits to other schools, and travel experience, the living and working together – all under the high expectations of the ‘Coach’ and his most gently administered but ever firm supervision – made for an individual development which has remained for me a high point in my educational experience. The meaning of scholarship, the ‘feel’ for the handling of ideas, the fellowship of professional service were for me but some of the outcomes of my debate experience” (Hunt, 16).

– David B. Henry, President of the University Illinois

“The wisest advice I can give to persons considering debate as an activity is: ‘participate.’ In my opinion, hour for hour, the reward for time spent debating is greater than any other activity available to the typical student… In addition to the “academic” benefits, potential participants should be alerted to the life long friendships they will develop, the opportunity to associate with competitive, creative and bright young people, as well as the favorable view of the activity taken by potential employers” (Matlon and Keel, p201).

– Thomas F. Hozduk, Los Angeles Attorney

“…I joined the debating team, which was sponsored by Mr. Virgil Parks, our Latin teacher. That’s where I developed my speaking skills and learned to think on my feet. At first I was scared to death. I had butterflies in my stomach – and to this day I still get a little nervous before giving a speech. But the experience of being on the debating team was crucial. You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can’t get them across, your brains won’t get you anywhere” (Iacocca, 16).

– Lee Iacocca, CEO of Chrysler

“It was my experience with debating and public speaking in both high school and college that led me to become a lawyer, and ultimately, a member of Congress” (Williams).

– Representative Paul E. Kanjoriski of Pennsylvania

“I think debating in high school and college a most valuable training whether for politics, the law, business, or for service on community committees such as the PTA and the League of Women Voters. A good debater must not only study material in support of his own case, but he must also, of course, thoroughly analyze the expected arguments of his opponent….The give and take of debating, the testing of ideas, is essential to democracy. I wish we had a good deal more debating in our institutions than we do now” (Freedom and Union, 7).

– President John F. Kennedy

“I truly believe I would have been as prepared for law school had I simply debated and not attended college at all. I have found that the practice of law – and I assume this is true of a large number jobs – consists basically of trying to solve problems in an organized manner…Debate placed a premium on the factors that I believe are essential to effective problem solving, including—breaking an argument down into its smallest components and then marshaling the factual data…for each element;…talking a problem through with others over a period of time that a contention or issue becomes fully perceivable;…verbally articulating ideas rather than just having a mental conception to appreciate the stresses and rewards of competition” (Matlon and Keel, 197).

– Raoul D. Kennedy, noted San Francisco attorney

“I consider [debate] the most rewarding activity that I engaged in during my school years. Quite frankly, I considered it more important in preparing me for my life as a trial attorney than any of the academic courses that were required in order for me to get both my undergraduate and law degrees” ( Matlon and Keel, p197).

– Gerald Kogan, Circuit Court Judge

“Forensics has influenced my personal and professional development more than any other activity or experience. Those who have participated in forensics often share this view. A survey of Governors, Senators, and other leaders across the country conducted by the Bicentennial Youth Debates found a high level of agreement about this key role of debate and speech activities. Debate teaches so many things – the complexity of issues, the importance of research, techniques of gathering and organizing information, analytic and verbal skills, respect for opposing views, the interaction of evidence and values, and a variety of frameworks for evaluating arguments and reaching decisions. At the heart of this is something crucial to our society – the open testing of ideas (Hunt, 15).”

– James Luck, Executive Director, Batelle Memorial Institute Foundation

“But I will tell you that, right there in the prison, debating, speaking to a crowd, was as exhilarating to me as the discovery of knowledge through reading had been. Standing up there, the aces looking up at me, the things in my head coming out of my mouth, while my brain searched for the next best thing to follow what I was saying, and if I could sway them to my side by handling right, then I had won the debate – once my feet got wet, I was gone on debating. Whichever side of the selected subject was assigned to me, I’d track down and study everything I could find on it. I’d put myself in my opponent’s place and decide how I’d try to win if I had the other side; and then I’d figure a way to knock down those points” (Malcom X, 184).

– Malcom X

There are few other activities in high school or college that are as important as speech and debate. Regardless of an individual’s academic or career goals, the ability to research a complex question, marshal arguments and present them in a persuasive and compelling way, are skills that will serve you well all your life. Both my wife and I debated in high school and college. Before I entered public life, I taught debate and speech at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, S.D. I attribute whatever political success I may have enjoyed, in large part, to the training I received as a participant in debate and speech activities (Hunt, 13).”

– Senator George McGovern, former democratic candidate for President.

“Self expression is truly an art, and its successful development requires steady practice and determination. To articulate one’s thoughts in a lucid and expressive manner – to capture and maintain the interest of an audience, whether it be in the classroom or in the United Nations General Assembly Hall – is strongly supported by the skill and knowledge one acquires from a forensic education (Hunt, p1).”

– Donald F. McHenry, US Representative to the United Nations

“As I look back upon my own experiences, when I try to single out from among the long line of college students some one group which shall stand forth as intellectually the best – best in college work and best in promise of future intellectual achievement – I cannot draw the line around my own favorite students of philosophy, nor the leaders in mathematics, nor those successful in biology; nor could I fairly award the palm to the Phi Beta Kappa men who have excelled in all their subjects. It seems to me that stronger than any other group, tougher in intellectual fiber, keener in intellectual interests, better equipped to battle the coming problems are the college debaters – the students who apart from their regular studies, band together for intellectual controversy with each other and with their friends from other colleges (Hunt, 16).”

– Alexander Meiklejohn, Former President of Amherst College

“The development of leadership in a democratic society has a very direct relationship to the art of debate. One becomes a leader by molding public opinion to support a given course of action, not by dictating such an action. This involves the ability to pinpoint the critical issues of the day, and the willingness to apply oneself to the task of research in order to assemble all considerations bearing upon those issues. It requires the ability to apply logic, rather than emotion and prejudice, to the assembled data, the courage to accept the decisions thus indicated, and the ability to present the opinions thus developed in such ways as to persuade others to a like point of view (Hunt, 13).”

– Senator Edmund Muskie, former Democratic candidate for Vice President and Secretary of State under Jimmy Carter

“One of the most important decisions in my life was when the student body of Warren Central High School in Indianapolis decided I should not be a varsity cheerleader. It meant my weekends were free. For the next three years, I spent most Saturdays on the road with the largest National Forensic League chapter in the country. While the fifteen-year-old girl inside of me still mourns the lost letter sweater, the adult Jane is grateful to NFL for something much more important a – career” (Hunt, 14).

– Jane Pauley, NBC television journalist

“Throughout my public life I have been very grateful for my early experience in formal debates. I believe the encounters are a valuable means of developing in our leaders of the future the ability to express themselves clearly and forcefully on the pressing issues of the times (Huseman and Goodman, 226).”

– Representative Claude Pepper of Florida

“Debate trained me to analyze and articulate the complex national problems that confront our country today. Too, it was a tremendous help in campaign debates for my House and Senate seats…My intercollegiate debate training was the most valuable experience that I had at Penn State. I derived benefits from it far beyond the normal extracurricular activity that it encompassed” (Matlon and Keel, 198).

– Richard S. Schweiker, former Senator and Representative from Pennsylvania and Secretary of Health and Human Services

“No college freshman can project 25 years to decide what he needs to learn – subject matter is easily forgotten and in today’s world, the knowledge explosion makes constant learning an inevitability. But all adults today need to be able to communicate with clarity, to articulate ideas, to reason, to separate key facts from the barrage of ideas we all are exposed to every day. No single activity can prepare one better than debating – the ability to think on one’s feet, to form conclusions rapidly, to answer questions logically and with clarity, to summarize ideas are all processes which forensics activity develop and develop” (Hunt, 14).

– Helen M. Wise, former President, National Education Association

“I used to think one of the most powerful individuals in America was the person who could select the annual high school debate topic. Think of the power to set the agenda, and determine what millions of high school students will study, read about, think about, talk about with friends, discuss with their teachers and debate with their parents and siblings over dinner.”

– Donald Rumsfeld, former Secretary of Defense

“There is not the slightest doubt that by vicious use of propaganda, preying upon the racial and nationalistic hatreds of the peoples of the world, this universe could very shortly again be transformed into a seething cauldron of infuriated nations.”

– Ralph Bunch while on his College Debate Team. Bunch was a high school debater, college debater and Debate Team President. He became the first African American to gain a PhD in political science from an American university, first African American recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, worked for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II (predecessor to the CIA), Undersecretary General of the United Nations, instrumental in creating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UN Chief Mediator of the Arab-Israeli conflict after his predecessor was assassinated, his treaty would be modeled decades later in the truce between the Bloods and Crips in Los Angeles, Peace negotiator in the Congo, Yemen, Kashmir, and Cyprus, Chair of the Political Science Department of Howard University, Civil Rights Movement and March on Washington, and the list goes on and on.

“I realized it [public-speaking] was a skill and a gift,” Robbins told me. “And that the skill and the gift combined could do some beautiful things. I’ve now been practicing it for 39 years.”

– Tony Robbins, Motivational Speaker

“The number one reason people are ineffective speakers is because they’re focused on themselves. If you’re focused on yourself, then you can’t possibly connect with the audience,”

– Tony Robbins, Motivational Speaker. “Remarkably, Tony Robbins—who grew up in an unstable household caring for his alcoholic mother—didn’t recognize his own ability to move people with words until a high school debate teacher, Mr. Cobb, recognized his skill. The teacher told Robbins, “I have never seen anybody who can stand up and speak with no notes, look around to kids who won’t listen, and mesmerize them with just raw communication.” He handed Robbins a speech called “The Will To Win” and made this challenge: If Robbins read the speech and connected to it, he would have to agree to compete in a persuasive oratory competition. If it didn’t move him, Robbins could simply return the speech. Robbins read it and cried his eyes out. He entered the competition and won first place. He won a second speech contest, and a third…”

“Every protest, every dissent whether its an individual academic paper or parking demonstration is unabashedly an attempt to forge an identity in a particular age…”

– Former High School Debater Hillary Clinton, College Graduation Speech

“Clinton’s remarks transformed her, virtually overnight, into a national symbol of student activism. Wire services blasted out her remarks, and Life magazine featured a photo of her, dressed in bold striped bell-bottoms. Clinton soon caught the attention of leading figures of the left, including civil rights activist Vernon Jordan and her future mentor, Children’s Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman…”

– Hillary Clinton’s College Graduation Speech. Hillary Clinton was also a former High School Debater.

“On stage or in the movies, I could do whatever I wanted to, I was free.”

– Gene Wilder, High School Debater, Washington High School, Milwaukee

Lamar Alexander, Governor of Tennessee and Republican candidate for President

Samuel Alioto, US Supreme Court Justice

Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary General

Michael Bloomberg, New York City Mayor

Stephen Bryer, US Supreme Court Justice

Tom Brokaw, News Anchor

Jackson Browne, singer and songwriter

Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the University of

California, Irvine School of Law

Marsha Clark, noted prosecutor

Johnny Cochran, noted defense attorney

Bill Clinton, President of the United States

Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State

Jimmy Carter. President of the United States

Harry Connick Jr., Singer and songwriter

Admiral Crowe, Four Star Admiral, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Ambassador to England

Alan Dershowitz, noted attorney and Harvard law professor

Mark Fabiani, Special Counsel to the White House

Thomas Foley, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

Bob Graham, Governor of Florida and U.S. Senate

John Graham, Director, Institute for Policy Studies at Harvard

Phil Gramm, U.S. Senator and Republican Candidate for President

Dr. Henry Heimlich, inventor of the Heimlich manuever

Arianna Huffington, conservative TV commentator

Lee Iacocca, CEO Chrysler

Lady Bird Johnson, former First Lady of the United States

Lyndon Johnson, President of the United States

Barbara Jordan, U.S. House of Representatives

Ed Koch, New York City Mayor

John F. Kennedy, President of the United States

Gerald Kogan, Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court

Allan Lichtman, political commentator and analyst

Martin Luther King Jr., Civil Rights Leader

Richard Lugar, U.S. Senate and Republican candidate for President

John Major, Prime Minister of Great Britian

Nelson Mandela, First Black President of South

Africa, Civil Rights Leader, Nobel Peace Prize Winner

Michael Mazarr, Analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Editor of the Washington Quarterly

George McGovern, U.S. Senate and Democratic Presidential Candidate

Zell Miller, Governor of Georgia

Richard Morris, Current Political Advisor to

President Clinton

Edmund Muskie, U.S. Senate, Candidate for Vice President and Secretary of State

Richard Nixon, President of the United States

Jane Pauley, news anchor

Brad Pitt, Holywood Actor

Michael Punke, Director of the Center for

Competitive Trade

Ann Richards, Governor of Texas

Tom Ridge, Pennsylvania Governor and Director of the Department of Homeland Security

Susan Rook, News Anchor for CNN

Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States

Franklin Roosevelt, President of the United States

Karl Rove, Deputy Chief of Staff and Republican Party political consultant

Robert Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury

Antonin Scalia, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

John Sexton, President of New York University

Ted Sorenson, Presidential speechwriter

Michael Stipe, lead singer of REM

Nadine Stroessen, President of the American Civil Liberties Union

Sonya Sotomayor, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Larry Summers, Economic Advisor to the World

Bank, President Obama and President Clinton

G. Maxwell Taylor, Joint Chiefs of Staff

Margaret Thatcher, First Female Prime Minister of England

Ted Turner, Founder and Owner of CNN

Laurence Tribe, Preeminent Constitutional Law Scholar

John Wayne, Actor

James Q. Wilson, Political Scientist and Government Scholar

Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States

Oprah Winfrey, Talk Show Host

Albert Wynn, U.S. House of Representatives

Malcolm X, Civil Rights Leader

Gene Wilder, Actor, Comedian, Director