26 March 2002
|
News
from Vermont Debate AKA The Voice of Edwin is the weekly newsletter
of the Edwin Lawrence Debate Union at the University of Vermont, an
endowed co-curricular program which trains students in debating and
sponsors national competition and community events. The newsletter is
published every Tuesday during the school year and infrequently at other
times. Alfred C. Snider is the Director. 802-656-0097 voice, 802-238-8345
mobile, 802-656-4275 fax, asnider@zoo.uvm.edu
email, and http://debate.uvm.edu/ldu.html
web site. |
| Shawn Wilkerson and Aaron Fishbone
represented UVM at this year's NDT |
In debate, as many of us know, a little bit of difference makes all the difference. And so it was for Aaron Fishbone and Shawn Wilkerson at this year's National Debate Tournament held at Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield, MO. The NDT requires teams to qualify and features the best 78 two-person policy debate teams in the USA. Having failed to qualify at the District 8 tournament held at Marist College, Aaron and Shawn were nevertheless extended an invitation based on their yearlong record through a process called "second round bids." While their 3-5 record put them above most other teams receiving second round bids, it was still a disappointment for UVM's two hardworking debaters.
The first day did them in, where they lost their first three debates and it was difficult to rebound after that. Still, the difference between a 3-5 record and a 5-2 record (good enough to reach the elimination rounds) was composed of just two ballots out of the total of 24 ballots available (8 debates with 3 judges in each debate). They lost 2-1 debates to Rochester, Emporia, and Michigan State, and a swing of just one ballot in any two of those rounds would have put them into the elimination rounds. But it was not to be.
The team spent elimination round day scouting for CEDA Nationals and getting citations for new evidence to research. Disappointment, yes, but it isn't over until it's over.
The
final tournament of the 2001-2002 debate season looms the weekend after
next. Because of healthy donations from supporters, UVM will be sending
the largest contingent of any school to the Cross Examination Debate Association
National Championship to be held at the University of California at Fullerton,
and which will be attended by over 220 two person debate teams. The size
of the tournament is up substantially from previous years, which has changed
the schedule of the tournament. The LDU had scored very inexpensive group
fare tickets to the West Coast, but now with the schedule change they will
be arriving on Thursday evening and then debating right away the next morning,
not the kind of start we would want but unavoidable at this point.
Students attending include seniors Aaron Fishbone, Shawn Wilkerson, Charles Hoag, Casey Gervais, Abigail Trebilcock, and Claudia Greenman. Also on the trip will be Anthony Pagan, Lana Langsweirdt, Edwin Owusu, Sheila Limprevil, Jillian Marty, Brian Cole, Jill Witney, and Teresa Hill. Jackie Massey will lead the coaching crew along with Alfred Snider and outside judging-coaching assistance from longtime friends of the program Eric Marlowe and Regina Paulose.
<=== | 2001 CEDA Nationals crew in Tennessee |
NDT sweepstakes can be found
at http://www.whitman.edu/offices_departments/rhetoric/ndt/00zoverall.htm
CEDA sweepstakes can be found at http://esc.wichita.edu/ceda/ceda0102.htm
NDT SWEEPSTAKES RACE |
CEDA SWEEPSTAKES RACE |
|
1. Northwestern
University 543
2. University of Rochester 525 3. Liberty University 485 4. Emory University 482 5. Michigan State University 446 6. University of California-Berkeley 444 7. Dartmouth College 433 8. University of Vermont 427 9. Whitman College 425 10. Mary Washington College 403 |
1 Northwestern
160 24
2 Rochester 154 44 3 Emory SE 152 25 4 Michigan State 146 20 5 Whitman 132 39 6 Liberty 131 29 7 Dartmouth 130 23 8 Berkeley 127 17 9 Vermont 124 22 10 Southern California 117 29 |
By the way, the American Debate Association rankings have us at #8.
Last year UVM entered the only team from the USA to attend the Torneo Hispanoamericano de Debate held at Universidad Diego Portales in Santiago, Chile. This year the UVM team has been invited back, and UVM coach Snider has been invited to present a workshop on judging and assist with the management of the tournament. The tournament will be held at Universidad Interamericano in San Juan, Puerto Rico on May 6-11, 2002. Last year's event was truly groundbreaking, as for the first time UVM students debated in a second language at an international tournament, to the acclaim of the Spanish speaking teams who were deeply impressed by Americans who understood that to be truly international debate must occur in a variety of languages. "They are so used to Americans demanding that all debates be in English that they were impressed by our willingness to put ourselves at risk in a second language. The team performed well, receiving several standing ovations during the competition," said coach Snider. "This year, we hope to do even better."
Retiring UVM coach Jackie Massey will be attending the tournament. Friend of UVM debate and famous Spanish language debate coach Rodrigo Rojas of Universidad Diego Portales, now pursuing a Fulbright at New York University, has agreed to help coach the team before the tournament.
UVM COACH INVITED TO PAIR AND TABULATE NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL SPEECH AND DEBATE CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
4800
contestants will attend the National
Forensic League's 2002 National Championship in Charlotte, NC in June,
competing for national titles in three different kinds of debate and individual
speaking events ranging from original oratory to dramatic interpretation to
impromptu speaking to storytelling. The one thing they will have in common
is that their pairings and results will be administered by LDU coach Alfred
C. Snider. A complex event which lasts an entire week, it is the largest speech
and debate tournament in the world.
This last weekend the NFL flew coach Snider to Wisconsin to meet with tournament organizers to discuss procedures, software, and administrative issues. After two intensive days of discussion coach Snider agreed to take on the task. "I love organizing tournaments, and this is the biggest one there is, so I might as well give it a try," said Snider on his return. Snider has worked in the policy debate tab room at the tournament the last two years and takes on this task with a very serious approach. "The chance for error and misadventure are high, but the challenge is there. I will do my best and hope for the best. I was impressed by the people who will be working with me," was his reaction.
TRAVEL
WITH THE LDU...
The program that the New York Times called "Boot camp for the brain and for free speech as well," [August 9, 2002, p. A12] returns for a 20th summer on the UVM campus. The World Debate Institute last year attracted over 300 people from more than 15 nations for high intensity training for two weeks. WDI will offer a two week high school policy workshop, a one week national high school leadership workshop, a college policy debate workshop, a college parliamentary workshop, an international debate workshop, as well as coach training programs.
For more information, go to http://debate.uvm.edu/wdi.html.
FROM
THE SQUAD MEETING...
EVENTS
COMING UP....
RESEARCH ASSIGNMENTS
FLASHPOINT
TELEVISION SHOW
SQUAD
MEETING
2001-2002 SEASON |
WINS |
LOSSES |
% |
PREVIOUS |
414 |
360 |
53 |
NDT |
3 |
5 |
|
TOTAL |
417 |
365 |
53 |
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