The Debate team is often overlooked as a club of students who like to argue. While some of the members may like to argue, the club is not just about arguing.
According to Mrs. Bergeson, a first time sponsor of the club, “It’s fabulous for building basic communication skills, not even just public speaking skills … It really just teaches life skills and not only that, it also looks really good on a resume or a scholarship application.”
On January 15th and 16th, the team went through a tournament at Samford University in which Mughda Makashi won tenth place speaker award while freshmen Jordan Cosby and Andrew Smith won quarter finalist awards. Their next tournament will be held in Vestavia Hills on February 22nd and 23rd and the two pairs that will be sent are predicted to do very well.
Another event that has helped define the relationship between Bob Jones and James Clemens are the monthly mock debate between the two schools’ teams. Tournaments cover mainly political issues like if China’s up rising will undermine the U.S., issues of the Middle East, and other whole world issues as explained by team member Shannon Lambert. As for the upcoming mock debate between J.C. and B.J., “We’re thinking of topics like ‘which super heroes are better: Those who have their powers from a science experiment gone wrong, or those who get them from wealth and innovation,” says Mrs. Bergeson.
The mock debate is not yet set in stone but is estimated to be held around the end of March. “I think it’d be great for those who are interested in debate but don’t know what it’s all about if they wanted to come and see one of the mock debates,” says Mrs. Bergeson. The specific date has not yet been decided but will be posted on Patriot Pages when that information becomes available.
