USA Debate
About USA Debate
In addition, 15 students have been selected to the USA Debate Development Team. This group of students will train and practice with USA Debate coaches and alumni to learn more about World Schools Debate.
Since 2013, the National Speech & Debate Association has assumed responsibility for the USA Debate Team, choosing the best debaters in the country to represent the United States in international competition.
Team USA features a highly accomplished and dedicated coaching staff. These coaches have deep roots in the content and style of World Schools Debate and work with the team to acclimate the debaters to the event.
The mission of USA Debate is to join the global promotion of free and civil discourse, foster international cooperation and education, as well as demonstrate competitive excellence and national pride.
Although the World Schools Debating Championship will not be held live in Mexico this summer, we still want to congratulate the five USA Debate team members selected to represent the United States of America: Anh Cao, Elyse Dewbre, James Hu, Jack Johnson, and Liana Schmitter-Emerson.
More Information
Apply to be a Member of the USA Debate Team 2020-2021
Eligible applicants are citizens (dual citizenship acceptable) or students who have obtained permanent residence status for a minimum of two years. Per WSDC rules, all applicants must be current residents of the United States who will be attending a secondary diploma-granting institution, are no younger than 14 years of age, and have not reached their 20th birthday in July 2021. Candidates must also be current and active student members of the NSDA at an active member school.
April 15 – Stage One application opens
Students submit required data using an online form, upload coach/administrator recommendations, and record a video on the motion provided below. (Click here for a preview of the Stage One questions you will be required to answer in the online application.)
Stage One Video Task
Please upload a speech of no more than four minutes (including intro/framing/ONE argument/conclusion) responding to the motion: This House would require classes moved online during a time of crisis to be graded on a pass/fail system. Students may choose side Proposition or Opposition. The argument may be one that would be presented in either the first or second speech.(Click here for helpful tips about creating an unlisted YouTube video.
June 1 – Stage One application deadline. The online form closed at 11:59 p.m. CT.
June 24 – Auto-qualifiers in WS, USX, IX, Congress, LD, PF, and Policy are invited to apply as part of Stage One. No video task is required for auto-qualifiers. However, they must upload coach/administrator recommendations as part of the application. Click here for a preview of the Stage One questions you will be required to answer in the online application. (Note: The link to the online application form will be emailed to eligible auto-qualifiers.)
June 29 – Stage One auto-qualifier application deadline. The online form closes at 11:59 p.m. CT.
July 6 – Stage Two applicants announced
July 16 – Stage Two video task deadline
July 30 – Stage Three applicants announced
August 6 – Stage Three video task deadline
August 17 – Finalists announced
August 19-23 – Interviews for national team applicants
August 27 – USA Debate national team announced
September 15 – USA Debate members arrive in Dallas for training at Greenhill
Please email info@speechanddebate.org with specific questions.
The USA Debate Team represents the diversity of our nation. The National Speech & Debate Association wants to ensure all students have full access to the opportunities available as they compete for USA Debate, without being limited by individual economic circumstances. Thanks to a variety of supporters like you, the students on the team are given the educational experience of a lifetime. Your tax-deductible gift allows the U.S. to continue to showcase the best and brightest young people to the rest of the world.
If you or your company would like more information about becoming an official sponsor of USA Debate, please contact us.
Sponsorship levels include:
- Competition supplies and materials for one debater
- Training sessions with the USA Debate coaches
- International competition for one student on the team
- World Championship for one student on the team
- International competition for entire USA Debate Team
- World Championship season for entire USA Debate Team
2018-2019
Coaches: Aaron and Cindi Timmons
Team Manager: Cindi Timmons
Team Members: Ishan Bhatt, Michael Bole, Maddie Butler, Anh Cao, Elyse Dewbre, Emily Grantham, Jack Johnson, Ranen Miao, Leila Saklou, Liana Schmitter-Emerson, Luke Tillitski, Brian Zhou
Greenhill – Dallas, TX
1st Place – Brian Zhou, Ishan Bhatt, Anh Cao
2nd Place – Leila Saklou, Luke Tillitski, Jack Johnson
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Ranen Miao
- 2nd Place – Ishan Bhatt
Cornell University – Ithaca, New York
1st Place – Anh Cao, Ranen Miao, Liana Schmitter-Emerson
3rd Place – Michael Bole, Maddie Butler, Elyse Dewbre, Luke Tillitski (hit USA Team in semis)
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Anh Cao
- 2nd Place – Ranen Miao
- 3rd Place – Michael Bole
- 5th Place – Liana Schmitter-Emerson
EurOpen – Stuttgart, Germany
2nd Place – Leila Saklou, Michael Bole, Luke Tillitski, Brian Zhou
3rd Place – Emily Grantham, Ishan Bhatt, Ranen Miao, Jack Johnson
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Leila Saklou
- 2nd Place – Luke Tillitski
- 5th Place – Brian Zhou
- 8th Place – Emily Grantham
Winter Holiday Open – Zagreb, Croatia
2nd Place – Leila Saklou, Michael Bole, Elyse Dewbre, Anh Cao
3rd Place – Emily Grantham, Ishan Bhatt, Maddie Butler, Liana Schmitter-Emerson
Speaker Awards
- 3rd Place – Leila Saklou
Harvard-Westlake – Los Angeles, California
Close-Out Finals –
- Michael Bole, Ranen Miao, Brian Zhou, and Maddie Butler
- Anh Cao, Elyse Dewbre, and Liana Schmitter-Emerson
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Liana Schmitter-Emerson
- 2nd Place – Anh Cao
- 3rd Place – Elyse Dewbre
Harvard World Schools Invitational – Cambridge, Massachusetts
2nd Place – Emily Grantham, Luke Tillitski, Elyse Dewbre, Liana Schmitter-Emerson (advanced over USA Team in semis)
3rd Place – Michael Bole, Brian Zhou, Jack Johnson, Ranen Miao
Quarters – Leila Saklou, Ishan Bhatt, Anh Cao
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Liana Schmitter-Emerson
- 3rd Place – Emily Grantham
- 5th Place – Ishan Bhatt
- 14th Place – Leila Saklou
- 16th Place – Anh Cao
- 18th Place – Luke Tillitski
- 19th Place – Jack Johnson
World Schools Debating Championships – Bangkok, Thailand
5th Place – Ishan Bhatt, Anh Cao, Emily Grantham, Leila Saklou (captain), Luke Tillitski (2nd seed, advanced to Quarters)
Speaker Awards
- 5th Place – Ishan Bhatt
- 9th Place – Anh Cao
- 11th Place – Luke Tillitski
Assistant Coach: Danny DeBois
2017-2018
Coaches: Aaron and Cindi Timmons
Team Manager: Cindi Timmons
Team Members: Shreya Agarwala, Shreyoshi Das, Piper Doyle, Emily Grantham, Ranen Miao, Ella Michaels, Nikhil Ramaswamy, Leila Saklou, Brian Zhou
Alfred “Tuna” Snider World Schools Debate Tournament – Cornell University – Ithaca, New York
1st Place – Shreyoshi Das, Ranen Miao, Leila Saklou
2nd Place – Piper Doyle, Emily Grantham, Nikhil Ramaswamy
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Ranen Miao
EurOpen – Stuttgart, Germany
1st Place – Piper Doyle, Emily Grantham, Ella Michaels
3rd Place – Shreyoshi Das, Ranen Miao, Leila Saklou
Winter Holiday Open – Zagreb, Croatia
Quarters – Shreyoshi Das, Shreya Agarwala, Nikhil Ramaswamy
Quarters – Emily Grantham, Leila Saklou, Brian Zhou
International World Schools Debate Tournament – Ljutomer, Slovenia
1st Place – Ella Michaels, Nikhil Ramaswamy, Ranen Miao
Quarters – Piper Doyle, Shreya Agarwala, Brian Zhou
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Nikhil Ramaswamy
- 2nd Place – Ella Michaels
Harvard World Schools Invitational, Cambridge, Massachusettes
Quarters – Shreya Agarwala, Emily Grantham, Ranen Miao, Brian Zhou
Octos – Ella Michaels, Shreyoshi Das, Piper Doyle, Nikhil Ramaswamy, Leila Saklou
World Schools Debating Championships – Zagreb, Croatia
6th Place – Ella Michaels (captain), Shreyoshi Das, Nikhil Ramaswamy, Emily Grantham, Leila Saklou
Speaker Awards
- 12th Place – Ella Michaels
Assistant Coaches: Danny DeBois and Aditya Dyar
2015-2016
Coaches: Aaron and Cindi Timmons
Team Manager: Cindi Timmons
Team Members: Milan Amritraj, Nik Angelopoulos, Sonya Huang, Amit Kukreja, Julia Lauer, Josh May, Nikhil Ramaswamy, Liz Yount, Matthew Zheng
Winter Holiday Open – Zagreb, Croatia
1st Place – Milan Amritraj, Josh May, Liz Yount
3rd Place – Nik Angelopoulos, Amit Kukreja, Julia Lauer
International World Schools Debate Tournament – Ljutomer, Slovenia
2nd Place – Nik Angelopoulos, Amit Kukreja, Julia Lauer
3rd Place – Milan Amritraj, Josh May, Liz Yount
World Schools Debating Championships – Stuttgart, Germany
Milan Amritraj (Captain), Sonja Huang, Amit Kukreja, Josh May, Liz Yount
2014-2015
Coaches: Aaron and Cindi Timmons
Team Manager: Cindi Timmons
Team Members: Milan Amritraj, Nik Angelopoulos, Sara Evall, Nicky Halterman, Jane Irons, Abigail, Marone, Mitali Mathur, Tiana Menon, Amelia Miller, Jasper Primack, SunHee Simon, Matthew Zheng
EurOpen – Stuttgart, Germany
Quarters – Milan Amritraj, Nik Angelopoulos, Nicky Halterman, Abby Marone
Quarters – Mitali Mathur, Jasper Primack, SunHee Simon, Matthew Zheng
International World Schools Debate Tournament – Ljutomer, Slovenia
1st Place – Nicky Halterman, Jasper Primack, SunHee Simon
2nd Place – Milan Amritraj, Nik Angelopoulos, Sara Evall
World Schools Debating Championships – Singapore
10th Place – Nicky Halterman (Captain), Nik Angelopoulos, Mitali Mathur, Jasper Primack, SunHee Simon
Speaker Awards
- 6th Place – Nicky Halterman
2013-2014
Coaches: Aaron and Cindi Timmons
Team Manager: Cindi Timmons
Team Members: Nik Angelopoulos, Danny DeBois, Sara Evall, Daniel Garrison, Shania Hunt, Jane Irons, Tiana Menon, Amelia Miller, Lily Nellans
International World Schools Debate Tournament – Ljutomer, Slovenia
1st Place – Danny DeBois, Sara Evall, Amelia Miller
2nd Place – Nik Angelopoulos, Daniel Garrison, Jane Irons
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Jane Irons
World Schools Debate Academy
1st Place – Danny DeBois, Sara Evall, Tiana Menon
Speaker Awards
- 1st Place – Danny DeBois
World Schools Debating Championships – Bangkok, Thailand
Nik Angelopoulos, Daniel Garrison, Mitali Mathur, Tiana Menon
2019-2020 Calendar – National Team
September 2019
- 12-15 – Greenhill – Dallas, Texas (mandatory training)
October 2019
- 18-20 – Harvard University – Cambridge, Massachusetts
November 2019
- 12-20 – EurOpen – Stuttgart, Germany
December 2019
- 11-16 – Winter Holiday Open – Zagreb, Croatia
January
- 16-20 – Harvard-Westlake – Los Angeles, California
- 26-February 3 – Taiwan/Singapore
March
- 5-9 – Harvard World Schools Tournament – Cambridge, Massachusetts
April
- TBD
May
- TBD
June
- 14-21 – National Speech & Debate Tournament – Albuquerque, New Mexico
July
- 4-11 – Training for the World Schools Debating Championships – Colorado Springs, Colorado
- 17-31 – World Schools Debating Championships – Mexico City, Mexico
For the latest updates, follow #usadebate on Twitter.
Thank You!
The Lanier Law Firm is an official sponsor of the USA Debate Team.
Thank You to Our Generous Supporters
Tom Rollins
Simon Greenstone Panatier Bartlett, PC
Thank You!
Throughout the school year, The Blake School (Minnesota), Greenhill School (Texas), Harvard-Westlake School (California), Taipei American School (Taiwan), and Holy Cross School (Louisiana) provide invaluable training opportunities for the USA Debate Team. Thank you for your support!
2020-2021 National Team
Genevieve Cox
Senior – W.B. Ray High School – Texas
Genevieve is a returning member of the USA Debate Team as well as the President of her team at Ray. This is her 7th year competing in Congressional Debate and Extemporaneous Speaking. In Congressional Debate as a Freshman she placed 8th at Blue Key, 2nd at UT and broke to Semi-Finals at the TOC. As a Sophomore she finaled at Yale and Emory, placed 6th at Blue Key as well as the NCFL Grand Nationals and the Senate at the NSDA Nationals. As a Junior she championed the Glenbrooks and Harvard tournament, was the runner up for the TOC, and placed second at the TFA State Tournament. She has 30 lifetime TOC bids. She has also been playing piano since she was 2 years old, having performed in Carnegie Hall 6 times. In her spare time she enjoys drinking boba and watching detective documentaries. She feels incredibly honored for this opportunity to represent her country on the USA Debate Team.
Cameron Kettles
Junior – Greenhill School – Texas
Cameron has been involved in debate for six years, competing primarily in World Schools Debate. As a member of the 2019-2020 USA Debate Development Team, she co-championed the Delores Taylor Arthur School World Schools Invitational and reached quarterfinals at European, Greenhill, and Blake. Her freshman year, she championed Hockaday and Isidore Newman and placed third at the TFA State Tournament. She was also ranked 5th speaker at the 2019 NSDA National Tournament in World Schools. As a sophomore, she championed the NSDA National Tournament in World Schools with her district/school team, the University of Texas Tournament, Jesuit, and placed second at the Harvard-Westlake Tournament where she was also the top speaker. Outside debate, she serves as the content editor of her school paper, The Evergreen, and is an active member of her school’s Project Dialogue Club and Political Action Club. In her free time, she enjoys bike riding, backpacking in the Texas deserts, drinking coffee, and playing with her dog, Blue. Cameron is excited for an amazing year with USA Debate!
Jason Luo
Senior – Westlake High School – Texas
Jason has been involved in speech and debate at Westlake High School since his freshman year, competing primarily in Public Forum Debate. In his three years of competition, he’s qualified for and broken at TFA State, NSDAs, and the TOC, finaling at the most recent Tournament of Champions, finishing as the top speaker at the Harvard National Forensics Tournament, and reaching late outrounds at many other competitive national tournaments. Beyond competition, he cares deeply about accessibility in debate and has created numerous educational resources and run multiple free debate camps designed to promote a more inclusive model of debate. Outside of debate, he works with various political campaigns around Texas, has been involved in various non-profits providing assistance to populations heavily impacted by the Covid-19 Pandemic, and volunteers at the Children’s Association for Maximum Potential to support individuals with special needs. In his free time, Jason enjoys playing video games, writing short stories, and eating soup noodles. He’s very excited for a phenomenal year with the USA Debate team.
Kaitlyn Maher
Senior – The Potomac School – Virginia
Kaitlyn has competed in debate her entire high school career, primarily in Congressional Debate and World Schools. She captains her school’s speech and debate team. In Congressional Debate, Kaitlyn placed 3rd at the 2020 Tournament of Champions and has made numerous semifinal and final rounds at Harvard, Yale, Emory, Princeton, Durham, Bronx, NSDA Nationals in the Senate, and more. Kaitlyn competed on behalf of the USA Debate Development Team for two years, during which she won first place and top speaker at the Delores Taylor Arthur Invitational, championed the Bluebonnet Invitational, and finaled at the Blake Tournament. In her junior summer, Kaitlyn was awarded a U.S. State Department National Security Fellowship to study Mandarin in China. She also sings and acts professionally. Since becoming the Youngest Top 10 Finalist on America’s Got Talent at age four, Kaitlyn has performed for presidents, toured internationally, and starred in numerous feature films, TV shows, and national commercials. She serves as an Artist Ambassador for Compassion International, an organization which aims to combat global child poverty. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with family, volunteering at her church, dabbling in other languages (currently Arabic), writing music, having spontaneous dance parties, and scouting out restaurants that serve escargot. Kaitlyn feels tremendously grateful and excited to compete with Team USA this year!
Jonathan May
Senior – Palisade High School – Colorado
Jonathan is entering his senior year of speech and debate as co-captain of his school team, competing primarily in Extemporaneous Speaking and World Schools Debate. Most notably, he placed 17th at the 2019 NSDA National Tournament in World Schools, finished in the top 8 of the Harvard-Westlake Debates, and was a finalist at the CHSAA State Tournament in Domestic Extemp. Additionally, Jonathan competed on behalf of the USA Debate Development Team for the 2019-2020 season. While debating with the Development Team, he was a member of the top finishing American team at the 2020 Bluebonnet International World Schools Invitational, co-championed the 2019 Delores Taylor Arthur International World Schools Invitational while simultaneously placing 5th speaker, and reached the quarterfinal round of the Blake Tournament. When he is not debating, Jonathan is an avid cellist, and has performed as the principal cellist of various multi-state and national orchestras. In addition to performance, he leads community outreach efforts that provide after-school music education to elementary schoolers in his area. In his spare time, he can be found skiing, hiking, or watching Parks and Recreation. He is looking forward to an incredible year with USA Debate!
Guyberson Pierre
Senior — A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts — Florida
Guyberson has been involved in forensics since his freshman year, competing in Congressional Debate and World Schools Debate. He currently serves as co-debate captain of his school’s speech and debate team. In Congress, Guyberson has championed The Tradition at Cypress Bay and has made final rounds at Nova Titan, Florida Blue Key, Sunvitational, Harvard, NCFL Nationals, and NSDA Nationals, among others. In World Schools, Guyberson championed the Florida State Tournament and received 3rd at the 2020 NSDA National Tournament with his district team. Outside of debate, Guyberson leads his county’s Youth in Government delegation, works on the business section of his school’s nationally-recognized yearbook, is an officer for Class Council, and studies Latin—even placing at regional competitions. Additionally, Guyberson has attended legislative recaps with elected officials in his local community and is an ambassador for When We All Vote where he helps to register voters. In his free time, he loves listening to music, drinking boba, and spending time with friends and family. He is incredibly honored to represent his country and is looking forward to an amazing year with Team USA!
Ria Raj
Senior – Laurel Upper School – Ohio
Ria has been involved in speech and debate since her sophomore year, participating in International Extemporaneous Speech and World Schools Debate. In Extemp, she was a quarterfinalist at George Mason University, finalist at Bethel Park and earned a bid to the Tournament of Champions. In 2020, Ria was a four-time local tournament champion earning the highest number of bids in Cleveland for International Extemp. In Ohio, she was a state quarterfinalist and alternate to nationals her novice year and a state semifinalist in 2020. Ria earned a position on Cleveland’s World Schools Debate team, winning international runner-up at the 2020 NSDA National Tournament. Outside of speech and debate, Ria serves as her school’s Diversity Fellows co-chair, senior class secretary, and on the Model United Nations leadership board. She focuses her time most heavily on social justice reform, as content-editor of the Laurel Political Review, Asian culture society president and co-founder of her school’s March for Our Lives chapter. Additionally, Ria conducted a three-year research project on political awareness levels in high schoolers and independently wrote a current event curriculum. Ria has volunteered her time teaching English at Us Together, a refugee resettlement agency and tutoring students in reading at Citizens Leadership Academy, an inner-city school for lower-income families. In her free time, she loves dancing, listening to music, playing instruments, reading the news and traveling with her family. Ria is excited for an amazing year with USA Debate!
Liana Schmitter-Emerson
Senior – Campbell Hall – California
Liana is returning for her third year with USA Debate and has been involved in speech and debate at Campbell Hall Episcopal for five years, primarily competing in World Schools Debate, Congressional Debate, Public Forum Debate, and Extemporaneous Speaking. During her freshman year, Liana also competed as a member of the USA Debate Development Team. Her competitive accomplishments in World Schools Debate include reaching octofinals of the 2020 World Schools Debating Championships, finals at the European Open (placing as third speaker), semifinals at the Winter Holiday Open in Zagreb, championing the Harvard World Schools Tournament (placing as top speaker), championing the Alfred Tuna Snider World Schools Tournament, and championing the Harvard Westlake World Schools Tournament twice, in addition to others. In addition to serving as captain of her school team, she is a three time qualifier for CHSSA State and the NSDA National tournament, where she reached finals in Public Forum Debate in 2020 and finals in Congressional Debate in 2019. Outside of debate, Liana serves on her school’s Academic Honor Board, volunteers as a tutor for students experiencing homelessness, and enjoys spending time with friends and family. She is incredibly grateful to be working with USA Debate again this year!
Ashley Shan
Junior – Greenhill School – Texas
Ashley has been involved in speech and debate since her freshman year, primarily competing in World Schools Debate. As a sophomore, she placed first in World Schools at NSDA Nationals, second at Harvard-Westlake, reached quarters at Greenhill and Blake, and placed 5th at TFA State. Outside of debate, Ashley is the president of her school’s East Asian Affinity Group, Model United Nations team, Project Dialogue Club, and Political Action Club, as well as an avid photographer and musician, playing violin, viola, drums, and guitar. When she isn’t debating, Ashley enjoys writing articles, participating as a representative of the Dallas Youth Commission and Human Rights Commission, and volunteering as a judge at local middle school tournaments to encourage youth advocacy. In her free time, Ashley enjoys exploring local cafés, curating playlists for every occasion, and spending time with family. Ashley is incredibly honored to represent the United States in the activity that has given her a voice and is looking forward to a great year with Team USA!
Rodrigo Trujillo
Senior – Alief Elsik HS – Texas
Rodrigo is a senior at Alief Elsik High School where he is the President of the Speech and Debate team. Though he’s competed in almost every debate event, he found himself particularly interested in Worlds School Debate and Extemporaneous Speaking. Competing in Worlds School, Rodrigo has made it to Semi-finals of the TFA State tournament as a Junior, Quarter-finals of UT Longhorn Classic, and placed first in the CASE Houston City Championship. In 2020, Rodrigo competed at TFA State and NSDA Nationals in Domestic Extemp and Worlds School Debate. Outside of the world of debate, Rodrigo works with the Houston City Council to organize rallies for the youth. In his free time, Rodrigo enjoys ramen, watching multiple animes at a time, listening to music and the ‘Philosophize this!’ podcast. He is incredibly honored to be a part of such a phenomenal team and is excited for a great year!
Miles Wang
Junior – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts – Florida
Miles is a returning member of the USA Debate team and competes in World Schools Debate and Congressional Debate. In World Schools Debate, Miles placed 3rd at the Winter Holiday Open in Zagreb (8th individual speaker), 1st at the Harvard-Westlake World Schools tournament, 2nd at the Greenhill Fall Classic, as well as reaching elimination rounds at Harvard and VWSDC. As a sophomore, he led teams to 1st place at the Florida Varsity State Tournament and 3rd at NSDA Nationals (having received 3rd the year prior). In Congressional Debate, he placed 3rd at the Florida Blue Key Invitational (finaling the previous year) among reaching other out rounds. Miles also serves as co-debate captain of his school’s speech and debate team. Outside of debate, he is a co-president of Artists Reaching to Society (ARTS) Club, an editor on his school’s newsmagazine The Muse, on the officer boards of Mu Alpha Theta and Key Club, and a student attorney at PBC Youth Court. In his free time, Miles enjoys reading science fiction books, listening to music, and spending time with family and friends. He is looking forward to the upcoming year with Team USA!
Abbey Xu
Junior – St. Paul’s School – New Hampshire
Abbey is a returning member of USA Debate and she has been actively participating in speech and debate since 6th grade, competing in primarily World Schools and Public Forum. In World Schools, she was a grand finalist at NSDA Nationals as a freshman in 2019, an octo-finalist at Prague Spring in the Czech Republic and a quarter-finalist at AWSDC 2019 held in Thailand. Abbey championed the World Schools division at Harvard-Westlake and at the Greenhill Fall Classic. She also broke into quarters at the Winter Holiday Open 2019 and ranked 6th as an individual speaker. Outside of debate, Abbey is a member of her school’s varsity volleyball team and leads the Justice and Social Equality for Asians club. Abbey enjoys volunteering as a judge and instructor at youth tournaments to reach out to her local debate community. In her free time, she enjoys exploring cities, trying cool food and finding new R&B artists to listen to. She is excited for another great year with USA Debate!
Leadership Team
Aaron Timmons
Co-Head Coach from Greenhill School in Addison, Texas
Aaron Timmons is the Director of Debate at Greenhill School in Addison, Texas. He is a lifelong educator and in 2000 was named one of the “top debate coaches of the 20th century” by the National Speech & Debate Association. Aaron has coached multiple state and national champions in both Lincoln-Douglas and Policy Debate, in addition to a National Public Policy Forum Champion. Aaron is one of three coaches with champions in Lincoln-Douglas and Policy Debate and is the only coach in history to have multiple winners in each event. He has taught and/or directed debate workshops and trainings at Harvard University, Stanford University, Northwestern University, and the University of North Texas, among others. Aaron is also the co-founder of the Global Debate Symposium, held at Colorado College in Colorado Springs. He is a member of the National Speech & Debate Association Hall of Fame, Tournament of Champions, and the Texas Forensic Association.
Cynthia Timmons
Team Manager and Co-Head Coach from Greenhill School in Addison, Texas
Cynthia Timmons lives in Dallas, Texas, and has been involved in debate for more than 40 years. Retired from 30 years in public schools where she coached dozens of national and state champions while winning numerous coaching awards, she has also served the speech and debate community in national and state leadership positions, in professional development training, and in summer institute work. In addition to serving as Co-Head Coach, Cindi is also the Team Manager. She is a member of the National Speech & Debate Association Hall of Fame as well as the Texas Forensic Association Hall of Fame. She is actively engaged in promoting the cause of women in debate and teacher professional development. Internationally, Cindi is an elected board member of WSDC, Ltd. and a two-term member of the WSDC Tournament Executive Committee. She has also served the international community on the Motions Committee for 2015. Having previously hosted three National Speech & Debate Tournaments in Dallas, she is preparing to host the best of the United States again in 2019. In her spare time, she loves reading and writing. Most importantly, she is a wife and the mother of two.
Read “Exploring Cultural Competence in the World Schools Debate Community” by USA Debate Team Manager and Co-Head Coach Cindi Timmons
Dr. Sandra J. Berkowitz
Assistant Coach from The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Sandy Berkowitz is an Assistant Debate Coach at The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She has also been a college professor of Communication Studies, where her research interests include the connections between debate and critical thinking, gender and social practices, and critical cultural discourses. Sandy has coached for more than 30 years and is a recipient of the 2015 Minnesota Coach of the Year Award. She has coached at both the high school and college levels and has had award-winning students in Public Forum, Policy, Lincoln-Douglas, and Congressional Debate, as well as Oratory, Extemporaneous Speaking, Informative, and Rhetorical Criticism. Sandy has taught and/or directed at several summer workshops including those at Harvard, Dartmouth, the University of Southern California, and Wayne State University.
Shane Stafford
Assistant Coach from The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Shane Stafford is the Director of Debate at The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has coached for more than 30 years in all debate and speech events with multiple national and state champions and finalists in Public Forum, Policy, Lincoln-Douglas, and Congressional Debate as well as Oratory and Extemporaneous Speaking. Shane is the recipient of many awards, including the 2015 Minnesota Coach of the Year. Shane has coached at both the high school and university levels of competitive debate. He has taught and/or directed at several summer workshops, including those at Harvard, Dartmouth, Georgetown, and the University of Southern California.
In Memoriam
Dr. Alfred “Tuna” Snider
Former Coach from the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont
Dr. Snider was the Edwin W. Lawrence Professor of Forensics at the University of Vermont. He had degrees from Brown University, Emerson College, and the University of Kansas. He taught courses in debate, argumentation, persuasion, and rhetorical analysis. He was the Director of the World Debate Institute and the Lawrence Debate Union. Dr. Snider conducted formal debate training in more than 40 countries and trained debaters from more than 55 nations. Dr. Snider published six books on debating in the last seven years and during his career edited or wrote more than 50 volumes about debating and for debaters.
USA Debate Alumni
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2019
Cassandra Berlin
Hawken upper School - Ohio
Cassandra has been involved in speech and debate since her freshman year and currently serves as a team officer, looking to expand the team’s community outreach through volunteerism. Cassandra has competed in five different events, but primarily competes in Congressional Debate. In Congressional Debate, she was a semifinalist at the Tournament of Champions and Harvard and a finalist at Emory. Cassandra has won several tournaments in Ohio and placed in the top ten at Ohio’s State tournament as both a sophomore and junior. Cassandra championed the 2019 NSDA National Tournament in World Schools Debate with her district team and was ranked as the 21st speaker at the tournament. Outside of debate, Cassandra serves on her school’s Senate and leads the Finance Club. She tutors at a local after school community center and has become involved with the nonprofit Teaching Cleveland, which inspires community and political engagement. In her free time, Cassandra enjoys practicing yoga, reading memoirs, cooking, and riding roller coasters.
Anh Cao
Bentonville High School - Arkansas
Anh is a returning member of USA Debate and participates in World Schools Debate, Congressional Debate, and International Extemporaneous speaking. As a junior, Anh was selected as a member of the 2019 US World Championship Team in Bangkok. At WSDC, Team USA placed 5th, and Anh took home a top 10 speaker award. Anh’s teams have championed the 2018 Greenhill Fall Classic and the 2018 Cornell University Alfred Tuna Snider Tournament (where she also won top speaker). Anh has advanced to finals at the Winter Holidays Open in Croatia and the Harvard-Westlake Debates in Los Angeles. Additionally, Anh is the reigning double state champion in Congressional Debate and International Extemporaneous speaking. As a sophomore, she also reached state finals in Varsity Public Forum. Outside of debate, Anh is the president of her school’s Young Democrats chapter and an active member of French Honor Society, where she has been recognized as a two-time Gold Medalist in Le Grand Concours National French Contest. In her free time, Anh enjoys drinking coffee, listening to podcasts, and most of all, spending time with family. Anh is looking forward to a great year with Team USA!
Elyse Dewbre
Northland Christian School - Texas
Elyse is a captain of her school’s debate team and has been involved in speech and debate since her freshman year. Although she competes in a variety of events, her passion is Extemporaneous Speaking and World Schools Debate. As a member of Team USA in the 2018-2019 season, she finaled at the Harvard World Schools Tournament, closed out the Harvard-Westlake Debates and finaled at the Winter Holiday Open in Croatia. In 2018, she championed the NSDA National Tournament in World Schools with her district team; in 2019 she reached semifinals of the Tournament of Champions in Extemporaneous Speaking in Chicago and Kentucky. Aside from debate, she serves as the president of the Student Council at her school, plays varsity tennis and is the president of her class’ National Honor Society. In her free time, Elyse spontaneously buys people pet betta fish, drinks way too much iced coffee, and is constantly searching for cinnamon bun Oreos
Arham Habib
Monte Vista High School
Arham has been competing in speech and debate tournaments since 8th grade, primarily in Lincoln-Douglas Debate and Extemporanrous Speaking. He was 2nd at the CHSSA State Tournament, 7th at the Glenbrooks Invitational, and 9th at NSDA Nationals. Additionally, he enjoys teaching speech and debate to students at his local elementary and middle schools, and created an initiative to link low-income students from Pakistan to scholarships and opportunities to express their voices in an international platform through speech and debate. Outside of debate, Arham collaborates with his school district’s Board of Education to offer unique educational opportunities to students in the Gifted and Talented program, is a member of the Danville Youth Council, and has worked under Congressman Mark DeSaulnier to develop a variety of legislation. In his free time, he enjoys playing basketball, going on hikes, reading mystery novels, and listening to the Freakanomics Podcast. He’s looking forward to a phenomenal year with USA Debate Team!
James Hu
Mira Loma High School
James has been involved in speech and debate at Mira Loma for his entire high school career, mainly competing in Extemporaneous Speaking and World Schools Debate. His most notable accomplishments in Extemp include championing the 2019 Stanford Invitational in National Extemp (NX), placing second at the same tournament in International Extemp (IX), championing the 2018 James Logan Invitational in IX, placing third at Arizona State University, semifinaling at the Berkeley Invitational, quarterfinaling at the Extemp TOC as a sophomore, and reaching the Top 30 round at NSDA Nationals. James has also competed on behalf of the USA Debate Development Team for two years. As a member of the Development Team, he has reached the final round at the Alfred Tuna Snider Tournament at Cornell University and the Blake Tournament, while also reaching elimination rounds at Harvard, Greenhill, and Holy Cross. He was also second place speaker at the 2019 Harvard World Schools Invitational. Outside of debate, James is an enthusiastic officer for his class, where he helps put together Homecoming floats, plan class events, etc. In his free time, James loves to swim and make daily trips to the West-Coast native coffee chain—Dutch Bros. He is unbelievably excited for an amazing year with USA Debate!
Roopa Irakam
Watchung Hills Regional High School - New Jersey
Roopa has been involved with speech and debate since 7th grade, competing primarily in Congressional Debate and World Schools Debate. She currently serves as the co-captain of her school’s speech and debate team alongside her twin sister. Roopa has made it to numerous semifinal and final rounds in Congressional Debate including at Yale, Harvard, Emory, Sunvite, Bronx, the Tournament of Champions, and NSDA Nationals in the Senate, along with being the champion of the Princeton Tournament. As a member of the 2018-2019 USA Debate Development Team she broke to multiple out rounds with her team including at Cornell, Blake, and Harvard, as well as breaking to elimination rounds at NSDA Nationals with her NJ District Team. Outside of debate, Roopa is an avid Girl Scout and Indian Classical Dancer, completing her Bharatanatyam Arangetram. She currently serves as her school’s student body President and as the Chairperson of the Somerset Healthcare Foundation Youth Board at her local hospital. She is passionate about giving back to her community and promoting healthy living, along with coaching other students in speech and debate. In her free time, she loves running, hiking, skiing, archery, reading the news, trying new cuisines, and traveling with her family. Roopa is excited for an amazing year with USA Debate!!
Rohit Jhawar
John F. Kennedy High School – California
Rohit has been involved in debate since his freshman year, primarily in Congressional Debate. Most notably, he won the 2019 NSDA tournament in Congressional Debate-Senate. He also championed the Stanford Invitational, took 2nd at the California State Tournament, and took 4th at the Tournament of Champions and UCBerkeley Invitational, along with finaling at Blake, ASU, Emory, and more. He has been president of his team for 3 years, and also coaches debate over the summer. Outside of debate, he is president of his school’s Latin Club, coaches youth basketball, and plays varsity soccer. He hopes to one day practice medicine clinically and ultimately teach it as a professor. In his free time, he likes playing basketball, listening to rap music, and cooking. He’s excited for a great year ahead with USA Debate.
Jack Johnson
The Blake School in Minnesotta
Jack is a returning member of the USA debate team as well as a captain of his team at Blake. Last year, Jack and his partner won the Tournament of Champions and the NDCA national championship in Public Forum debate. Additionally, he placed in the top 10 at the NSDA national championship, finished as the top speaker at the University of Kentucky National Opener, and championed the King Round Robin, finishing the year as the highest-ranking Junior in the country. His competitive accolades in World Schools debate include reaching semifinals at Harvard (after advancing to the Octofinal round the previous year), finals at Greenhill, and semifinals at the EurOpen tournament in Germany. When he isn’t debating, Jack writes for his school newspaper, Spectrum, and volunteers alongside the Miracle League to help support disabled youth by organizing and coaching recreational baseball games. In his free time, Jack enjoys spending time with friends, vacationing with family, playing video games, and binging Netflix. Jack can’t wait for another incredible year with Team USA!
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2019
Ishan Bhatt
Harvard University
Michael Bole
Emory University
Maddie Butler
Indiana University
Emily Grantham
Ranen Miao
Washington University in St. Louis
Leila Saklou
Luke Tillitski
Yale University
Brian Zhou
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2018
Shreya Agarwala
University of Texas at Austin
Piper Doyle
University of Denver’s Daniels College of Business
Shreyoshi Das
Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania
Ella Michaels
Harvard University
Nikhil Ramaswamy
University of Chicago
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2017
Aditya Dhar
Harvard University
Colette Faulkner
Pepperdine University
Gaurav Gawankar
George Washington University
Ellie Singer
Yale University
Sarah Lanier
Baylor University
Joshua May
Cornell University
Liz Yount
The George Washington University
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2016
Milan Amritraj
University of Southern California
Nikolas Angelopoulos
Stanford University
Sonya Huang
Wharton School – University of Pennsylvania
Julia Lauer
Harvard University
Amit Kukreja
Rutgers Business School
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2015
Sara Evall
Duke University
Sara recently graduated from Duke University with a B.A. in Refugee and Migrant Studies, magna cum laude, in May 2019. She received distinction for her senior thesis, which she wrote based off of primary research she conducted in Jordan. Her thesis was entitled: “The Deprivation of the Right to Work as a Barrier to Autonomy for Iraqi and Syrian Refugees in Jordan.” Highlights of her time at Duke included working closely with resettled refugees in Durham and spearheading sexual assault prevention efforts.
Nicky Halterman
Oxford University
Jane Irons
Yale University
Abigail Marone
The George Washington University
Mitali Mathur
Georgetown University
Tiana Menon
Harvard University
Amelia Miller
Harvard University
Jasper Primack
University of Chicago Law School
SunHee Simon
Stanford University
USA Debate Alumni – Class of 2014
Danny DeBois
Harvard University
Daniel Garrison
Loyola University
Shania Hunt
University of California, Los Angeles
Lily Nellans
London School of Economics
Read “Exploring Cultural Competence in the World Schools Debate Community“ by Team Manager and Co-Head Coach Cindi Timmons
When the World Schools Debating Championships (WSDC) began in Australia in 1988, six nations participated: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. Over the years, the event has expanded, culminating in 2016 with 56 nations represented at the WSDC in Stuttgart. While debating teams from six continents have been represented, the increasing variety of participants from non-Western nations and the growing diversity of the debaters themselves in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, etc., means that it is time for the global debating community to examine how inclusive it is and to evaluate its cultural competence as an organization. This paper seeks to address the current state of cultural competence in the organization and how WSDC might become even more inclusive.