COMMUNITY
DEBATE
USA DEBATE: From Dallas to Denver, Training for Success in World Schools by Anh Cao
(left to right) Arham Habib, Abbey Xu, Anh Cao, Jack Johnson, Elyse Dewbre, Miles Wang, Liana Schmitter-Emerson, Rohit Jhawar, Roopa Irakam, Cassandra Berlin, James Hu, and Genevieve Cox.
E
njoying Denver’s stunning mountain vistas, the USA Debate Team reveled in recent training that was a perfect blend of wholesome bonding and challenging debates. On October 18, members of USA Debate flew to Colorado from all corners of the country. As the students trickled in one by one, we worked on cases for an upcoming tournament in Germany. After lunch, the team held an impromptu round over government ownership of culturally significant art. With the help of coach Aaron
48
Timmons and assistant coach Danny DeBois, the team unpacked our quarterfinal round from this past year’s World Championship and gained new perspective on round strategy. When the team returned to the hotel to enjoy some late-night Shake Shack, we played a game of “Are you smarter than a fifth grader?” Much to our dismay, it turns out we are not, flunking questions such as, “Can you name three NFL teams?” On our second day in Denver, the team donned cozy USA Debate
ROSTRUM | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019
sweatshirts and did multiple impromptu drills and two practice rounds. The returning members faced off in a lively debate against USA Grey—comprised of alumni Ishan Bhatt (’19), Danny DeBois (’14), and Ella Michaels (’18)—about the LGBT+ movement’s stance on whether or not being LGBT+ is a choice. After a jam-packed day, the team returned to the hotel to tackle casework. However, Mr. Timmons and Ishan Bhatt had a surprise planned. They threw an impromptu s’mores party, and we
enjoyed each other’s company—although some of us were better at burning marshmallows than roasting them. To conclude the intense training weekend, our third day consisted of additional casework and more rounds. With the help of alum Piper Doyle (’18), who hosted us at the University of Denver, we watched a collegiate British Parliamentary final round over ethical consumption. We cheered on the leader of the opposition (and member of the extended USA Debate family) Nicholas Aranda.