Since its inception in 1895 when students debated “Resolved: That the welfare of the United States will be promoted by the annexation of Canada,”public-speaking, research, critical thinking, and logic skills have been the center of focus of debate curriculum at Merrill High School. The Merrill High School Debate team has enjoyed a long-standing tradition of highly competitive debaters of which many alumni have gone on to hold influential roles in community and government, including Church Mutual Insurance CEO Gerald Whitburn and the late Richard Taylor who was a prominent New York lawyer.
Merrill students compete in two debate leagues. In past years, Merrill debaters have had to regularly travel to the Milwaukee area in order to compete in tournaments. Weekly tournaments required hotel stays, significant judging fees, missed classes. While we retained a few of our traditional traveling tournaments, recently, in conjunction with Waupaca and Hortonville high schools, Merrill Debate has created a regional league to better meet the educational, extracurricular, and financial needs of its students. Tournaments are closer and compete on Saturdays only. Students no longer miss school and find that they can commit more time and effort to the activity with better results.
Moving forward under the motto Veritas which is Latin for “truth,” the league believes that the core value of debate should be education. To create the best possible learning opportunity, a student-centered and student-driven league was created. Students conduct a pre-season Congress to present, discuss, and vote on topic resolutions for the season and set league rules and standards with the coaches as guides and facilitators. In the spirit of education, everything presented in a debate round is derived from the minds of students. Above all, the league strives to emphasize community spirit above competition by encouraging collegiality and collaboration. We hope to attract other neighboring schools that currently do not have debate programs to the league and would appreciate any administrative assistance in this regard.
This season, 5 Merrill debaters have qualified for the regional Tournament of Champions competition in December and 2 of those 5 have also received a bid to the Wisconsin State Debate Tournament.
We are also seeking permission to extend our season by participating in the Catholic Forensics League. Merrill debaters have received an invitation to compete in the Green Bay CFL’s qualifier for Nationals. If successful, Merrill debaters have the opportunity to make history by competing at a national level. The qualifier is scheduled for January 22 and Nationals will be held in Omaha, Nebraska in May.
Merrill High School is host to the regional Tournament of Champions this year on December 12. Administration, school board members, and parents are, and always have been, welcome to participate with us by volunteering to judge a round or two. No experience necessary.
Competition Debate
Debate is a class that teaches the skills necessary for academic, career, and personal success. As noted in both The Wall Street Journal (April 16, 1999) and USA Today (Sept. 29, 2004), students who participate in debate increase their chances of entering top-level colleges and universities as well as succeeding in business and a host of other careers. Of the skills debaters learn, first and foremost are research and organizational skills. A large portion of the semester curriculum is devoted to learning and investigating the topic that all debate students around the nation will argue during the competitive season. According to USA Today, “Debaters must do exhaustive research, be flexible, get the point and have the courage to discard just about everything they learn on the fly. In other words, debate teaches them to make tough choices.” Of equal importance are the skills of responsibility, teamwork, speaking, logic, and advanced critical thinking. Debate creates global citizens who are informed about their communities and their world. Students who successfully participate in debate will have the skills that employers look for, making it a college prep course as well as a course for the student who will enter the work force after graduation. It is important to note that students who participate in debate will be required to participate in statewide competitions which are held on weekends. A six tournament minimum requirement, these competitions promote student growth by allowing students to practice their debate skills and meet other people from around the state who share the same passion and drive. Students who participate in debate will be expected to maintain good academic standing and attendance and will need to follow a professional code of conduct, which includes dress code during competition, in order to actively participate in debate competition. Finally, new debaters are encouraged to attend the August workshop which prepares them on the fundamentals of debate as well as the new topic.
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