Adelphi Debate Brown and Gold 2014

Brown and Gold 2014, hosted on March 1 and 2 by the Adelphi Debate Society, was an incredible success. We wish to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all who were involved in making our competition a dynamic and overwhelmingly positive experience, namely our CA Joseph Damiba of Cornell, and our DCAs, Hannah Herman of King's and Mahnoor Misbah, Adelphi Debate Society's President. We also wish to congratulate King's LO, the winning team of Brown and Gold 2014. Looking forward to seeing everyone again next year!

Very grateful to our CA and DCAs for all of their hard work and dedication
Mahnoor Misbah, Joe Damiba, Hannah Herman

Updates

Congrats to all debaters who have recently traveled to tournaments!

 












Binghamton Northeast Regional Opener 2013
A very strong showing here by both Adelphi teams, but unfortunately no one reached out rounds :(
The team of Jennifer Lin and Alexa Savino was 7 speaker points from breaking into open semi-finals, just missing the mark after debating in the top room for the last prelim round. They finished 9th overall.
The team of Jonathan Sclar and Jake Pisani was also very close, finishing in the top 20 teams!
All speakers did phenomenal, with Jennifer Lin just missing the 7th way tie for a speaker award, placing 11th speaker overall and just 1 point away from getting into the top 10. Partner Alexa Savino was right on her tail, just 4 speaker points lower and placing 18th overall. Both Jonathan Sclar and Jake Pisani also did very well, ranking in the top 35 speakers of the tournament!
Kudos to our novice Meghan Cody, who came along to judge, and engaged in the debate tradition of singing, dancing, telling long-winded stories, and playing games like 20 questions on the 4.5 hour bus ride. We're super glad to have you!

Yale IV 2013
As the toughest tournament in the U.S., the Yale IV is incredibly competitive and while both Adelphi teams performed to the best of their ability, neither team came close to reaching the out-rounds. However, it was a fantastic learning experience for all attendees. While both teams (Jennifer Lin and Alexa Savino & Jonathan Sclar and Jake Pisani) failed to rank as well as they would have liked, all attendees enjoyed the tournament, especially observing the quarterfinals rounds. We had lots of fun, as shown by the photos below: (Kudos to our president, Mahnoor Misbah, for joining us to judge and taking such great pictures!)

Light the Night Walk for Leukemia

As part of our community service initiative, the AUDS participated in a walk at Eisenhower Park to benefit those diagnosed with, recovering from, and researching potential cures for Leukemia. We were honored to represent our university to spread awareness of such an important cause.

UVM Huber Debates 2013

Teams from the AUDS performed incredibly well at Vermont in early November, with our novice team (Meghan and Kevin) coming home with impressive rankings and our vets (Mahnoor, Jenn, Jon, and Jake) doing the same. Feedback provided by adjudication panels made the experience both constructive and enjoyable, with a well-run tournament becoming a valuable learning experience and a fantastic opportunity for team bonding. Congrats to our newest judge, Danielle, on doing a fabulous job!

April 2014--Adelphi University Relay for Life

AUDS raised over $1500 for the American Cancer Society! Thank you to all of our debaters who worked so hard to amass contributions.

Let's hear from the team!

AUDS members share their unique perspectives regarding their most recent and helpful experiences on the circuit:

Reflections on the 2013-2014 Academic Year

August 2013--Debate Boot Camp in Vermont: 

Treasurer Jon Sclar's account:

          Two of my fellow debaters and I went to the University of Vermont for a week-long debate training camp. We sat through lectures taught by some of the debate world’s finest as well as competing in eleven debates (Eleven!), each of which helped us to grow enormously as debaters. Let’s not forget to give some love to the city of Burlington, Vermont. It’s a beautiful city and I’m not surprised that the State was ranked #1 in quality of life and most physically fit. There’s never a dull moment and the scenery is incredible. If you’re looking for a top-notch debate academy (that’s also free) and a great place for outdoor activities look no further than Burlington, Vermont.

VP Jenn Lin's Thoughts on NADA –

            Leaving New York City on a beautiful and clear August Saturday morning, I wasn’t sure what to expect at the weeklong North American Debate Academy, held at the University of Vermont. We had a rough start: the three of us got lost as soon as we arrived in the quaint little town of Burlington and we were starving and fatigued from spending almost 7 hours cooped up in a packed double decker bus. After waiting almost an hour for a taxi to take us to our hostel and walking past our hostel on the busy and crowded Main Street, we were relieved to finally put our bags down. Unfortunately, our adventure had just started. We discovered the difference between a hostel and a hotel pretty quickly: 8 cots in one room in the form of bunk beds, no actual walls or doors, thin shower curtains separating your sleeping space from the rest of the hostel, and shower stalls reminiscent of college dormitories’ communal bathrooms (albeit a lot cleaner).

            While our living conditions may have been less than ideal, I grew to like the cozy atmosphere of the hostel and reminded myself I wasn’t there for vacation, but to become a better public speaker. I was surprised to meet so many debaters from all over the world, including two of the girls in my “room” at the hostel. One had traveled down from Toronto, Canada and the other hailed all the way from Doha, Qatar. There were debaters who had spent countless hours driving from South Carolina, flying from Abu Dhabi, and even a visitor from Melbourne, Australia who had debated with Monash (the current world champion, taking home the title in Berlin this past January). It was a humbling experience to spend time with these dedicated students, especially my partner for the week, who worked harder than anyone else I met at NADA. He was studying at Duke, having come far from his home in Singapore, and I learned more from debating with him than I could have imagined possible.

            The schedule for the week was pretty much the same for each day: two lectures in the morning, a debate, followed by a long lunch break, another lecture, and a debate to close out the day. Many of the lectures were interactive and consisted of debate drills, which I enjoyed. They worked on a variety of techniques, some more difficult than others, such as speaking without notes, speaking for a full minute on a random topic, answering all POIs presented to you, and making a speech specifically on a topic unfamiliar to you. Some motions were more entertaining and some more serious, but the variety was important to me because I have a tendency to like practicing motions in areas that I am familiar with.

            I also got to chair a round, which is far more exciting when there are world-class speakers in the room. I hate to sound clichéd, but there is no better way to describe the staff at NADA than the crème de la crop. They included the coaches of UVM, Cornell, La Verne, and former debaters from UVM and Hart House, some of the most renowned schools in the BP debate circuit. I was even honored by getting individualized feedback from my favorite person at UVM (those of you who know me, know who haha I won’t give any names on the internet) and it was scary that someone not from my debate family at Adelphi knew my speaking style enough to give that level of personalized critique.

            And as hard as it is to take criticism and be surrounded by people you feel outclassed by, I wouldn’t have traded that week for any other debate experience. It was truly remarkable to be in an environment where everyone wanted to help those around them reach the same goal: become a better speaker and more aware of the world around us. It was unforgettable.

Adelphi Debate Brown and Gold 2013

Here are the results from Adelphi's Annual Brown and Gold Debates 2013!
(Apologies from the Adelphi Debate Society, we realize they are long overdue.)

Congrats to the winners of the Brown and Gold Debates 2013: Bard GB, consisting of Lee Gensler and Ian Busher!

The other finalist teams were Kings CH, Grove City MS, and Grove City PB.
The top speaker of the Brown and Gold Debates was Josh Craddock of Kings CH.

Our adjudication team included CA Josiah Peterson of St. John's University, formerly of Kings College, and DCAs Misbah Hyder of St. John's University and Adelphi Debate Society's own former VP Colleen Fasone.

 
Motions
1. THW introduce non-violent public shaming as a regular form of punishment.
2. THB people should prioritize buying domestically produced products.
3. THB that late night comedy shows have a bad influence on politics.
4. This House regrets Valentine's Day.
5. THW incentivise the production of green technology over fossil fuels.
6. THW place the full burden of rebuilding after a natural disaster on the property owners.
Semi-Finals (approximate): THW redraw African national boundaries along tribal lines.
Finals:  If it were to be discovered, THW keep conclusive evidence confirming or denying the existence of God hidden from the public.


Team Tab After Round 6

Position	Name	Total rank	Total speaker							Rank R1	Rank R2	Rank R3	Rank R4	Rank R5	Rank R6
1	King's CH	16	954							3	3	1	3	3	3
2	Grove City MS	13	928							3	2	3	0	3	2
3	Grove City PB	13	923							2	2	2	2	2	3
4	Bard GB	12	933							2	3	2	2	2	1
5	STJ SA	11	920							2	2	3	1	1	2
6	King's DL	11	918							3	0	2	3	0	3
7	Kings PH	10	925							3	3	0	3	1	0
8	King's BD	10	918							1	3	0	2	3	1
9	HWS DS	9	896							0	2	3	1	2	1
10	STJ BA	9	890							0	0	2	2	3	2
11	HWS CD	8	905							1	2	0	2	3	0
12	King's HR	8	893							1	0	3	3	0	1
13	King's MF	8	892							1	1	2	1	0	3
14	King's SP	8	887							3	1	1	0	0	3
15	STJ PG	8	876							0	3	1	1	1	2
16	STJ FG	7	893							2	1	3	0	1	0
17	Bard FC	7	878							1	1	0	3	2	0
18	King's McBen	7	875							0	1	1	1	2	2
19	King's PR	5	869							2	0	1	0	1	1
20	STJ GC	0	849							0	0	0	0	0	0

Speaker Tab After Round 6

Pos	ESL Pos	Name	Team	Total points	Average	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5	Round 6
1		Josh Craddock	King's CH	480	80.00	78	82	78	81	82	79
2		Noah Heinz	King's CH	474	79.00	78	80	77	80	81	78
3		Lee Gensler	Bard GB	469	78.16	78	78	78	78	80	77
4		Kyle Marchini	Grove City MS	466	77.66	78	76	80	77	77	78
5		Hannah Herman	Kings PH	465	77.50	78	79	77	78	77	76
6		Ian Busher	Bard GB	464	77.33	75	77	78	79	79	76
7		Allen Sheie	Grove City MS	462	77.00	77	76	79	75	77	78
7		Ryan Brown	Grove City PB	462	77.00	75	80	77	76	76	78
7		Shama Ams	STJ SA	462	77.00	78	77	78	76	76	77
7		Greg DuBois	King's DL	462	77.00	79	73	78	78	77	77
11		Dan Pugh	Grove City PB	461	76.83	76	79	77	77	75	77
12		Tim Perdew	Kings PH	460	76.66	78	77	76	77	77	75
12		Rachel DeJong	King's BD	460	76.66	76	78	75	76	79	76
14		Sanjam Seti	STJ SA	458	76.33	76	77	77	77	74	77
14		Stephanie Brewster	King's BD	458	76.33	75	78	75	76	79	75
16		Elisa Lambert	King's DL	456	76.00	77	72	79	77	75	76
17		Emily Saeli	HWS DS	453	75.50	74	75	77	76	76	75
17		Ted Cheng	HWS CD	453	75.50	76	76	75	76	76	74
19		Adrian DeVuyst	HWS CD	452	75.33	74	77	75	75	77	74
20		Kash Ballagan	STJ BA	451	75.16	74	73	76	75	77	76
21		Laurel Recsetar	King's HR	449	74.83	76	76	77	77	73	70
21		Kathleen Farah	King's MF	449	74.83	73	77	76	75	74	74
23		Elkhansaa Farhane	STJ FG	448	74.66	76	75	79	75	72	71
24		Liam Pezzano	STJ PG	446	74.33	71	76	76	74	76	73
25		John Sailer	King's SP	445	74.16	76	75	76	71	72	75
25		Logan Gomez	STJ FG	445	74.16	75	72	79	74	73	72
27		Sarah Hicks	King's HR	444	74.00	76	75	75	76	71	71
28		Scott Davis	HWS DS	443	73.83	71	73	76	74	75	74
28		Will Malson	King's MF	443	73.83	72	76	75	75	73	72
30		Karen Penica	King's SP	442	73.66	77	74	75	70	72	74
31		Brian Aguilar	STJ BA	439	73.16	74	70	72	72	76	75
31		Isabel Filkins	Bard FC	439	73.16	69	75	73	76	75	71
31		Annie Cockrell	Bard FC	439	73.16	71	74	73	75	77	69
31		James Bentson	King's McBen	439	73.16	71	74	73	73	75	73
31		Serenity Richardson	King's PR	439	73.16	73	72	74	73	74	73
36		Heather McCray	King's McBen	436	72.66	71	71	72	73	75	74
37		Manny Ghotra	STJ PG	430	71.66	68	74	75	70	73	70
37		Abagail Poit	King's PR	430	71.66	69	71	74	72	72	72
39		John Chen	STJ GC	425	70.83	72	72	70	70	70	71
40		Rommel Good	STJ GC	424	70.66	70	72	70	70	73	69