RI Urban Debate League Sends 4 Students to Nationals
Friday, April 13, 2012
RI's best urban debaters head to DC to compete at nationals this weekend: Walker Mayer, Rachel Mernoff (front), Grace Cole, Genesis Sanchez.
The two teams — Walker Mayer and Rachel Mernoff, from Classical High School; and Grace Cole and Genesis Sanchez, from La Salle Academy and Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex, respectively — will be coached by Brown University undergraduates Joe Rosner and Will Phillips.
The four debaters qualified for the Championship in a RIUDL-run National Qualifying Tournament on March 3rd at Davies Career and Technical High School in Lincoln, RI. The National Championship will bring together the best debaters from the nation’s Urban Debate League’s (UDLs) for the weekend event.
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“The tournament and its associated weekend activities really confirm the vibrancy and success of the urban debate movement,” said Ashley Belanger, RIUDL’s Executive Director. Highlights this year include a keynote address by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and a public “Great Space Debate” before NASA leaders at the National Air and Space Museum.
“The Rhode Island Urban Debate League empowers urban students to expand their minds and project their voices through debate,” said Belanger. “We help equip students with the academic skills, leadership abilities, and ambition to succeed in high school and graduate well-prepared for college, employment, and engaged citizenship.”
RI Urban Debate League: vibrant + growing
Recently, RIUDL partnered with the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex (JSEC, Providence Public Schools) to allow students to be eligible to earn academic course credit for their rigorous after-school experience in RIUDL. The 2012 “Expanded Learning Opportunity” pilot is part of the Providence After School Alliance’s (PASA) citywide expanded learning initiative to broaden opportunities for student success. Footage from the National Championship will be uploaded to RIUDL's page on www.hubprov.com to document the experience of debater Genesis Sanchez.
“We’ve been making great strides at RIUDL to expand opportunities to allow students to make debate a part of their high school curriculum,” said Belanger. “Studies show that students who participate in debate are more likely to graduate high school and have the necessary preparation to help them succeed in college and beyond.”
In 1999, the Providence Urban Debate League (PUDL) was founded through a Royce Fellowship at the Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown University. Beginning as a pilot program at Classical, Feinstein, and Hope High Schools, the League continued to expand to Mount Pleasant and Woonsocket High Schools, and was renamed as the Rhode Island Urban Debate League (RIUDL) in 2003.
RIUDL incorporated as an independent, non-profit organization in 2010 and began receiving “strengthening” support from the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues (NAUDL). Currently, RIUDL is physically housed by the Swearer Center at Brown, and engages 12 schools, 5 school districts, and over 150 students.
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