Tradition
Western Debate has a long history on the campus.
With an established track record of success and
support Debate has been a part of Western campus
culture for a majority of the institution's history.
Western is well known in the college community,
being host to the 1991 CEDA National Tournament,
as well as regular host of the William O. Douglas Speech Tournament
which
honors one of the state’s native sons.
Students from Western are recognized across the
country not only as tough competitors but also as
friendly and thoughtful people.
Opportunity
Personal choices abound in the Western program:
What style of debate, what tournaments to
attend, what level of involvement you want. As
a program funded by the students of Western, the
primary goal of the program is to serve its student
participants.
Connection
College debate can be an exciting world, but it
does not exist in a vacuum. The Western program
recognizes that after your competitive experience
you should have the skills and knowledge to contribute
to society, not just compile an impressive victory
record. There is a commitment to connect the competitive
experience to personal advocacy goals, and to
create opportunities outside of the tournament
format for service and advocacy on campus and
in the community. Connection also exists on the
team, creating colleagues and friends you will
have for life, bonded together through a shared
experience and cooperation.
Program Philosophy
The activity of debate is a unique opportunity
for students to exert personal control over their
intellectual development. A successful debater
is one that can think for themselves and still
be a part of the greater community of persons
and ideas and be involved in the conflicts and
agreements that exist. As a means to affirm and
develop this attribute Western’s program
will provide opportunities for students to take
part in the choices that effect their participation
and competitive experience. These decisions involve
colleague choice, tournament selection, and argument
selection. The coaches are available for consultation
and guidance on these matters, but ultimate responsibility
lies with the student. The coaches will take responsibility
for issues of team management and organization,
and make sure that the access to the privileges
of the team are based on the merit of effort. There is a goal to operate within a framework
of consensus for squad level decisions, and to
make sure that student input and discourse are
elements in the decision making process.
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It’s
Practical
There are many good reasons for including debate
experience as part of your higher education. Employers
will look for practical skills in their employees.
Those applicants that can demonstrate and ability
to think on their feet, express complex ideas
verbally, and be able to not just identify problems,
but solve them, will be in the highest demand.
All of these skills are not just developed in
college debate, but honed to a fine level of ability.
Debate is not just a resume item. Debate is a
real and recognizable skill that employers notice.
Even in college you will notice how debate helps
you organize assignments and papers for other
classes, and the transfer of knowledge between
what you learn in debate and what you are learning
in your coursework.
It’s
Preparation
Debate is important for those considering post-graduate
education. For those considering law school, a
majority of law school deans identify debate as
an important preparation for the rigors of legal
study and practice. Those considering a graduate
education in a variety of disciplines will find
that not only does debate provide a critical preparation
in almost any discipline, but that debate experience
can translate into graduate teaching and coaching
assistantships that help cover the costs of a
masters or doctorate degree. Not to mention the
contacts that are created by interacting with
persons from all across the nation that may be
involved in the graduate program you are interested
in pursuing. Western Debate alums are lawyers,
educators, business people and activists.
Unlock
Personal Power
Debate is an important personal development tool.
The ability to think critically and interact with
the information avalanche that is the present
is a real priority. Debate will not just teach
you about ideas, but how to research and discover
ideas in an ever changing body of knowledge where
the ideas and facts are in constant flux. The
world doesn’t stop after high school, it
gets distinctly more interesting, and college
debate lets you in on it like nothing else. No
matter what you do, you will need to think about,
and know, information related to your career,
society, and causes of interest. Debate is a
powerful
key that unlocks personal power and competence.
Debate:
an Intrinsic Good
Western Debate offers a unique opportunity to
interact socially with other inquisitive minds,
not just on the campus at Bellingham, but with
peers and noted scholars from across the country.
Debate is the basis for a unique student centered
intellectual community that appreciates and rewards
individuals who think ideas are important and
that thinking is fun, not a chore to be
avoided. No other campus activity offers you the
chance to use your brain and explore ideas in
the fun and functional ways that debate can.
It’s
A Limited Time Offer
Unlike many other pursuits or interest you have,
once you graduate from college, there are no more
opportunities for structured academic debate.
After graduation you can always find some people,
or join an adult league to shoot some hoops. There
are always some people to get together and jam
with to fulfill your musical interests. There
will be plenty of reasons to get together to socialize
and have fun. But there is no more debate. College
is your last chance to take part in the thrill
and the competition in a challenging and fun academic
setting.
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Community
Service Component of Western Debate
In addition to competitive activities the team
is involved in service opportunities both on campus
and in the community throughout the academic
year. Projects include opportunities to work with
the Seattle Debate Foundation, Urban Debate Leagues
across the country, community broadcasting projects,
on-campus forums, conference planning and mentoring projects.
“Let’s
Talk” Open Forum Series
The 2001-2002 school year saw the introduction
of the “Let’s Talk” campus discussion
series dealing with campus, community, national and international
issues. This forum provides a chance for students
and community members to learn more about topics
and to voice their opinions while also listening to
others. Generally about 4 forums per quarter are
held on a variety of issues. Past topics have
included: the War in Iraq, Tuition
Increases, Drilling for oil in ANWR; the Mid-East
conflict, Campus Safety, Reproductive Rights,
the Bellingham Waterfront Project, Civil Liberties
and the USA Patriot Act, etc.
Debate Club Co-Op Presentations
The team has an Associated Students recognized
“Debate Club” component that is available
to provide specialized presentations on topics
of interest. This past year the club presented
a pre-visit debate about the impact of Ralph Nader’s
candidacy and participated in a forum on Affirmative
Action admissions policies.
CASCAID:
Community Advocacy Support Center
The newest community service program of the team
is a chance for debaters to serve as Fellows or
Interns for a community outreach advocacy training
center. Utilizing the training of debaters to
help community members in speaking out and participating
in the policy making process.
Women’s
Debate Institute & Bellingham Debate Cooperative
Western is proud to have served as host for these High
School programs. The Women’s Debate Institute
program helps to provide training and empowerment
for women participating in debate. The Cooperative
is a program to provide the summer institute experience
at reasonable cost to students.
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Director
of Forensics, Dr. Steve Woods
Steve joins the program most recently from William
Jewell College in Liberty, MO. Steve earned his
doctorate from Florida State University in Rhetoric/Communication.
His dissertation was “The Rhetoric of the
Endangered Species Act” and looks forward
to continuing research on issues of environment
and public advocacy.
As an undergraduate Steve debated for Kansas
State University, participating in both CEDA and
NDT policy debate. After graduation, he joined
the coaching staff while earning his masters.
After four years at Florida State as a graduate
assistant he took his first full time teaching
position at the University of Vermont as a lecturer
and co-director of debate. Steve then moved on
to William Jewell College, directing the program
for five years.
Steve brings more than 20years experience in
college debate and speech to Western as both a
competitor and coach. At this point he has been
to tournaments, workshops, or conferences at 74
campuses in 25 states. Highlights include a team
in the national finals, and a top speaker while
at FSU, and three consecutive years of top twenty
finishes while at Vermont (20th, 10th, and 5th).
Steve looks forward to working with the students
of Western and working toward not only competitive
success, but development of community involvement
and public advocacy programs.
Assistant Director of Forensics, Korry Harvey
Korry Harvey rejoins the academic debate community
after working in the private sector as perhaps the
only known luddite director of web operations
for a nutritional products firm. The temptation
of a Northwest location and a topic involving
the issues facing indigenous peoples proved too great, and
he departed the redrock wonderland of Utah for
the moist greenery of the Fourth Corner.
Korry enjoyed a great deal of
success as an undergraduate debater, including
qualifying for the National Debate Tournament as a
first-year debater and being recognized as the second
speaker in the country at the 1993 CEDA National
Tournament while debating for Weber State
University, and the winning of two national
championships at the 1993 and 1995 DSR-TKA National
Tournaments while debating
for Weber St. ('93) and the University of Alaska-Anchorage
('95). On the
other side of the ballot, Korry was selected as
the "2006-07 Judge-Educator of the Year" for the
Northwest Forensics Conference. Korry brings
a keen intelligence, and equally important, a
passion for meaningful interaction in the community--
he serves on the Board of Directors for the
Whatcom Human Rights Task Force, and is the
co-founder of UP FRONT (United Parents for a
Brighter Future).
As a teacher, Korry has been a
recipient of the WWU "Student Choice" Award in
2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. He teaches the Argumentation
courses as well as the new "Civil Controversy"
course that was created by the Associated
Students' Diversity Task Force. He also created,
and facilitates, the award-winning "Let's Talk"
Discussion Forum, and has presented academic work
at international conferences in Turkey, Holland,
and Slovenia.
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Assistant Director of Forensics, Paul Bingham
Bio coming soon. In the
meantime... Paul joins the WDU from Lewis & Clark
College, where he was the 2005 NPDA National
Champion.
Assistant Director of Forensics, Darryl Stein
Bio coming soon. In the
meantime... Darryl joins the WDU from UC-Berkeley, where he was
a Finalist at the 2006 NPDA.
“As a Senior I can say that debate has been
the most educational experience for me and has
helped me not only with the classes I take, but
also with my interactions with friends and co-workers.”
-Jessica, Class of 2003; started debating in College
“WWU debate is an excellent way to establish
a new and diverse community in the intellectually
challenging college atmosphere.”
–Matt, Class of 2002
“College debate is amazing. Take high school
debate and make it 100 times better, and you’re
close. What can I say? It’s awesome.”
-Dean, Class of 2004
“Debate is far more than a line in your
resume, or a way to overcome a public speaking
phobia. It’s one of the best opportunities
a student can have: to explore new ideas and new
ways of expressing them, to meet a variety of
diverse scholars, and to engage in the process
of education as both a teacher and student.”
-Amy, Class of 2002; scored in top 1% of LSAT
exam.
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