Join us at the summer institute for trophies, celebrations, and a chance to speak your mind on the most important issues facing our world today.

It is less than two weeks before the BAUDL’s Third Annual Summer Institute @ Westlake Middle School (2629 Harrison Street in Oakland) officially begins.  From August 9 - 13, youth from across the Bay, regardless of whether they have debated are not, are welcome to attend this exciting series of workshops, activities, and, most of all, the summer debate tournament occurring on the last days of the Institute!  Registration is not required — come as you are, and bring friends and family! If you are new to debate, you have much to look forward to.  We will show you the power of debate and how your individual voices can be heard on some of the most important issues of the generation.  If you are a veteran debater, the week will be a space to perfect your skills and will serve as an introduction to an incredible new topic on military power.

Our award-winning staff has worked hard to prepare you for our third season.  Much is awaiting you on August 9 - 13 at Westlake Middle School (2629 Harrison Street): Meeting debaters from San Francisco and Oakland, learning about the world and how you greatly contribute to it, polishing speeches, mastering evidence, argumentation, and persuasion.  No experience, no registration form, no reservations required.

Click here to view the official BAUDL Summer Institute Flyer!

A curious Natassija Jordan (right) was among the dozen students attending the Gonzaga Debate Institute.

Fifteen Students Awarded Scholarships to Prestigious National Debate Camps!

Beginning in mid-July, 15 of the BAUDL’s most dedicated debaters traveled to attend the Cal National Debate Institute at the University of California, Berkeley and the Gonzaga Debate Institute (GDI) in Spokane, Washington – two of the most prestigious debate camps in the nation.  The excursions, made possible by scholarships funded generously by the Julia Burke Foundation, will be filled with lessons in debate theory, technique, and critical thinking, and have already generated serious excitement among the students.  Downtown High School coach Anne Marie Grace recounts the reaction one of her students:

“When he opened the envelope he sat for about 10 minutes (literally) with a big grin on his face and his hand on his chest…In the car on our way back he was asking questions about Washington weather and musing aloud about how he would need to get a back pack for his stuff. Then he burst out, “Oh no! I don’t have a passport!”

With all such logistical problems well-resolved, our students were on their way on July 11.

The BAUDL Summer Institute @ Westlake Middle School, August 9-13

Funded by the Julia Burke Foundation and free of charge to all Oakland and San Francisco Unified School District students, the BAUDL will host its Third Annual Summer Institute.  Boasting a staff of award-winning BAUDL alums, community advocates, lawyers, and decorated college debaters, the five days will focus on everything from debate basics to the 2010-2011 Resolution:  The United States federal government should substantially reduce its military and/or police presence in one or more of the following:  South Korea, Japan, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, and Turkey.

Mission High School coach Tadd Scott (left) celebrates with Novice Champions Janny Ye and Alinah Torno at the Skyline High School Tournament.

This year marked the BAUDL’s second in existence and the first of its ambitious plan to expand across the Bay to introduce debate to San Francisco high schools.  BAUDL and the San Francisco Unified School District agreed to launch debate teams in three high schools – Mission High, Balboa High, and Downtown High – to join those already operating in 12 high schools in Oakland. In each of these new schools, debate has caught on strongly.  Our expansion into San Francisco helped us reach our goal of reaching 250 students participating in our programs this year.

San Francisco Unified’s schools were hardly intimidated by their relative inexperience compared to their cross-bay competitors.  The team from Mission High ended the year by winning the Novice Division Championship in the last regular-season tournament. Better yet, Zachary Delle and Alan Lin from Balboa High qualified as one of the two teams representing BAUDL at the Chase National Urban Debate Championship tournament held in New York City, and came home from that tournament with an impressive 3-3 record.  With results like this after only a year of debating, we are excited to see what our San Francisco debaters will achieve in the future.

With Tanesha Walker, Rashid Campbell (above) advanced to the final round at Nationals.

In April, four students and their coaches traveled to New York City to compete against the top teams from 24 urban debate leagues representing cities across the country in the annual Urban Debate National Championship.  The team from Oakland, made up of EXCEL’s Tanesha Walker and Skyline’s Rashid Campbell, reached the tournament’s final round to be crowned runners-up of the national championship bracket for the nation’s youngest urban debate leagues.  Along the way, they dispatched successful teams from Atlanta, Dallas, and Memphis, ultimately meeting the eventual national champions from Denver in the tournament’s final round.

Rashid, who has earned a full-ride scholarship to debate at Oklahoma University next year, had already earned a 14th-place speaker’s gavel trophy for his unique oratory skills which were on display through the six 84-minute debates held over the first two days of the tournament.  Rashid remarked to his coach and BAUDL staff on his way home from the tournament that the weekend had been the “greatest experience of my life!”  EXCEL coach Sebastian Castrechini further adds his perspective on the tournament experience:

Rashid quickly built up a reputation as the one who raps during his speeches, and Tanesha and Rashid were able to build his raps into an argument about how important it is to include the voices of common people — the people for whom this year’s topic is trying to solve — into policy discourses.  I think that is a great example of what [Skyline Coach Chris Scheer] talked about in terms of our kids finding a place where they can fit in the world of academics.  Another incredibly valuable piece of the experience was getting to interact with other debaters and coaches from around the country.  Tanesha found another person who will be going to UCLA, and they both connected with Ed Lee to figure out a way to start a policy debate team there.  They built friendships (as well as rivalries) with the other debaters and even exchanged contact information with some of their judges who offered to talk through ideas for arguments with them.  I think being tapped into that network of people is going to be invaluable to them finding future opportunities.  Even aside from their success, I was thrilled that the two of them got to be a part of this, which they both did so much to earn.

Former Executive Director Blake Johnson (Far Right) with the Fremont Federation of High Schools Debate Team.

For the past two years, the BAUDL has operated under the dedicated leadership of founding Executive Director Blake Johnson.  After countless hours of service, Blake will be handing over the reins of the BAUDL to pursue a law degree.  The BAUDL will be sorry to say goodbye to such a talented leader and friend; still, his departure comes with our assurance to all of our supporters that nothing will change with respect to the BAUDL’s mission and programming.

Along these lines, we are excited to announce an expansion in our organizational capacity: we have launched a nationwide search for two full-time positions, an Executive Director and a Program Director.   We encourage you to spread word of our search widely to qualified candidates.  For more information about these positions, please visit our Join Us page!

In the meantime, BAUDL is pleased to announce that Dmitri Seals has accepted an offer to serve as interim Executive Director while we conduct these searches.  In addition to his role as a founding member of the BAUDC Board of Directors, Dmitri led the push to establish the urban debate league in Oakland, and has been deeply involved in all aspects of the program from its inception.  Through the innumerable volunteer hours he has dedicated to this organization - among other things spearheading teacher professional development, volunteer training, and program evaluation for the league - he has proven both his devotion to the BAUDL mission and his skill in advancing that mission.

Mission High School will be at the Party in the Park. Will you?

It’s been a long summer, so the wait is finally over: The Bay Area Urban Debate League will be reunited on Saturday, July 10 from 5:30 to 7:30 PM @ Snow Park (19th and Harrison Streets, Oakland).  Coming off the success of our Winter Social in January where bowling met brilliant debaters, our summer event only aims to be bigger and better.  The Party will feature free food, great conversation that has become associated with BAUDL debaters, appearances by talented alums and, most of all, incredible company that includes new and returning students.  We highly encourage attendance by BAUDLers of the past and present (and their families and friends) along with coaches, volunteers, supporters - the whole BAUDL community.  It will be a great time to (re)connect with all of those who have made this League the incredible movement that it is today.

For more information, contact info@baudl.org!  We look forward to seeing you on July 10 from 5:30 to 7:30 @ Snow Park!

Yami from Cal Prep flexing the power of his voice.

From August 9^th to August 13^th an important event will take place: the Third Annual Bay Area Urban Debate League Summer Institute hosted by Westlake Middle School (2629 Harrison Street in Oakland). The institute has much to offer: Some of the most talented, dedicated staff members in the country ready to teach debate at all levels, a beautiful campus, prizes for those who attend including iPods and gift cards and, most important of all, the youth of the Bay. We will have the privilege of hosting over 100 of the Bay Area’s most talented students from more than a dozen schools in Oakland and San Francisco in an effort to harness your brilliance and turn it into a dialogue on the most pressing issues of our time. Best of all, this event is available at no cost – it is free for all Bay Area youth who attend public high schools in Oakland and San Francisco.

Poster for the Summer Institute - download it, print it, share it!

Whether you are a fresh face debating for the first time or a decorated veteran debater, the Bay Area Urban Debate League Institute will provide training on the fundamentals of debate, resources that are specific to our new topic, strategies on argumentation, and a chance to debate, tournament-style, before our first competition in October 2010! It is also a forum to exchange knowledge with fellow debaters and meet friends. For coaches, this is a chance to equip each school with all that is needed (training, materials, and pedagogical strategy) to start strong teams in the fall.

We’ve got charismatic guest speakers, bus passes, iPods and gift cards, research packets, and a roster of instructors who are eager to make this league and its participants the best debaters in the country. You’ve surely got questions. Feel free to contact us at info@baudl.org. We’ll be there from August 9^th to August 13^th at Westlake Middle School (2629 Harrison Street in Oakland) and we hope (and know!) that you will be, too. If you want to join us this summer, we will reserve your spot: please print out the brochure below, and mail it in to 1020 Peralta St, Oakland, CA 94607.

Click here to download the official Bay Area Urban Debate League Summer Institute Brochure!

]]> http://baudl.org/2010/05/summer-and-the-baudl-summer-institute-is-upon-us/feed/ http://baudl.org/2010/05/second-annual-league-championship/ http://baudl.org/2010/05/second-annual-league-championship/#comments Fri, 14 May 2010 07:15:57 +0000 http://baudl.org/?p=647

BAUDL Debaters from Across the League Show Off Their Hardware

On Saturday and Sunday, May 15 and May 16, some of the best and brightest young minds on both sides of the Bay will travel to Fremont High School in Oakland to speak out on hot political topics and find out who will be this year’s champions of the Bay Area Urban Debate League.  As the first round begins a little after 9AM on Saturday, all the pride and glory of a long debate season will begin to come to a head, as students roll out arguments they have painstakingly researched themselves, endure the heat of cross-examination, give passionate rebuttals, and more.

You are invited to come out and join us!  In particular, we are still looking for volunteer judges to give these young people an active, supportive audience as they speak their minds - if you can give a moment of your time, please send an email to

Media Debater Brandon Sneed writes about the trials and triumphs of being a debater in his local column.

In a recent edition of Green & Gold, a publication produced at Media College Preparatory High School, Media debater Brandon Sneed writes about his experience at the UC Berkeley tournament in February.  Berkeley, considered to be one of the most prestigious and most difficult tournaments open to high school debaters in the country, was Sneed’s first National showing!  Sneed writes about his experience at length in his column at Green & Gold, emphasizing that being a BAUDL debater has its valleys, but very definite, rewarding peaks.  Sneed explains:

Nevertheless, debating on poverty, especially with students from wealthier communities, has taught me a lot. It has taught me never to give up even when it seems pointless to carry on; it’s made me strive harder to succeed, not only in debate but life in general.

Green & Gold, sponsored by Lisa Shafer, one of the biggest supporters of BAUDL in Oakland, also features many BAUDL debaters in a reporting capacity (including Juan Ramos, one of our Public Debaters!).  Click here to download a copy of Green & Gold.

Click more to read Brandon’s article in its entirety!

Debating topic with rich lessons

By: Brandon Sneed

Last summer, I flew to Austin, Texas, on a debate scholarship through the Bay Area Urban Debate League. It was the first time I had been on an airplane, and, quite frankly, I was afraid at first, but I eventually got over it.

I arrived on the University of Texas campus for debate camp. After the dorm attendant gave me my room keys, I walked through the halls and noticed every individual

in the debate camp had in their possession a laptop. Everyone except me and other debaters from our league.

It wasn’t the last time I would feel underprivileged. Ironically, the whole camp was studying for the national debate topic of the year – poverty.

In one of my debate courses, the teacher asked why I did not bring a laptop. I lied, “I left it at home” just to save myself from the embarrassment.

As the class continued, the teacher taught as if we were required to have a laptop by passing around a flashdrive to give us debate evidence. Again, I was at a disadvantage

During our research, I had to study epistemology, which is the study of knowing. Many debaters knew what epistemology and many other political topics meant. I did not; however, I wasn’t completely at a loss.

I did research on my own time about our governmental structure. During study time, I was sent to the lab where I researched and printed some evidence while other campers already had the necessary tools right in the classroom. I might have not have the same resources as the wealthier participants, but I didn’t let that stop me.

I came back to Oakland and debated the topic of poverty with students more like me in my own debate league. It was a more even playing field.

But just this month, I again experienced debating against students with more resources at a national tournament at the University of California, Berkeley. People from all over the United States came to debate poverty.

In the debate rounds, I saw a guy with a portable printer that folds up. I did not even know they existed. Many students read evidence from their laptops and even researched political events happening at the moment to help them gain an edge over me and my partner.

Again, we debated about poverty and at one point I got angry, almost screaming “You don’t know anything about poverty, you’re wealthy!”

I asked my opponents whether they were wealthy before the debate started hoping to gain an advantage. It did not work.

The technological tools they had – and their stronger educational background – were too much for me and my partner. We lost many rounds.

Nevertheless, debating on poverty, especially with students from much wealthier communities, has taught me a lot. It has taught me never to give up even when it seems pointless to carry on; it’s made me strive harder in order to succeed, not only in debate, but in life.

Watch BAUDL Executive Director, Blake Johnson, debate as a part of the famed Oklahoma CJ!

As we speak, nearly $11,000 dollars has been raised to support the Bay Area Urban Debate League through “The Bay Area Urban Debate League Presents…The 2010 Pro Debate Tournament Sponsored by Boston Properties.”  It is not too late to support a team or donate to the overall cause!  Visit the official Pro Debate website for more information!

As we speak, participants in the Pro Debate Tournament are debating it out at the Oakland Marriott City Center (1001 Broadway)! Official pairings are posted below — be sure to stop by our Silent Auction (win gift certificates, hotel vouchers, massages, two nights in Tahoe and much more!) and witness our final round and award ceremony.  It all begins at 5:30 PM.  Visit the official Pro Debate website for a full schedule of events!

Wheel 1:

Berkeley BW (Michael Burshteyn & Craig Wickersham)
Debate What! (Ede Warner & Tiffany Dillard-Knox)
School of Athens RJ (Jason Regnier & PaulJohnson)
Serius Biznis (Alexis Litzky & Stephanie Eisenberg)
Tripod v. 2.0 (Michael Klinger & Jonah Feldman)

Wheel 2:

Debate Realness With A Twist (Deven Cooper & Rashad Evans)
doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!? (Sam Iola & Jake Ziering)
eDebate All-Stars (Jon Sharp & Michael Hester)
Oklahoma CJ (Blake Johnson & Connor Cleary)
The Maoists (Jordan Mills & Issac Peck)

Wheel 1:

Round 1
Berkeley BW v. Debate What!
JUDGES: Steele, Odekirk

School of Athens RJ v. Serius Biznis
JUDGES: Reid, Rekhi

BYE: Tripod v. 2.0

Round 2
Debate What! v. Tripod v. 2.0
JUDGES: Rekhi, Reid

Serius Biznis v. Berkeley BW
JUDGES: Garen, Heidt

BYE: School of Athens RJ

Round 3
Tripod v. 2.0 v. School of Athens RJ
JUDGES: Maag, Turoff

Serius Biznis v. Debate What!
JUDGES: Zagorian, Rebrovic

BYE: Berkeley BW

Round 4
Tripod v. 2.0 v. Serius Biznis
JUDGES: McCollum, Gordon

School of Athens RJ v. Berkeley BW
JUDGES: Osborn, Alvarez

BYE: Debate What!

Round 5
Berkeley BW v. Tripod v. 2.0
JUDGES: Hines, DeLong

Debate What! v. School of Athens RJ
JUDGES: Gordon, Smelko

BYE: Serius Biznis

Wheel 2:

Round 1
Debate Realness With A Twist v. doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!?
JUDGES: Rebrovic, Vincen

eDebate All-Stars v. The Maoists
JUDGES: DeLong, Heidt

BYE: Oklahoma CJ

Round 2
doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!? v. Oklahoma CJ
JUDGES: Zagorian, Odekrik

The Maoists v. Debate Realness With A Twist
JUDGES: Alvarez, Murillo

BYE: eDebate All-Stars

Round 3
Oklahoma CJ v. The Maoists
JUDGES: McCollum, Durkee

Debate Realness With A Twist v. eDebate All-Stars
JUDGES: Steel, Rekhi

BYE: doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!?

Round 4
The Maoists v. doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!?
JUDGES: Washington, Turoff

eDebate All-Stars v. Oklahoma CJ
JUDGES: Smelko, Rebrovic

BYE: Debate Realness With A Twist

Round 5
doubtwecarebutheywhynot?!? v. eDebate All-Stars
JUDGES: Osborn, Alvarez

Oklahoma CJ v. Debate Realness With A Twist
JUDGES: Polin, Turoff

BYE: The Maoists