January 25th Middle School Debate Winners

It was an impressive day all around as we sent MS debaters to two separate events in Manhattan and Brooklyn and both sets of representatives brought home school awards for Hackley.

In Brooklyn, at East Middle School, 6th graders Madeline Z. and Alex E., along with 5th grader Kiri F., placed 6th overall and won the school award for best winning percentage (their team won 4 out of 5 debates). Madeline and Alex were also recognized for individual speaker awards.

In Manhattan, at the Success Academy West School, our intrepid mix of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders all finished the day with winning records, with three of the four teams earning team awards and more than half a dozen students recognized for individual speaker awards. Alex W., Max T., Michael C.-B., Hannah P., Matthew D., and Ben O., all won team and speaker awards. The team of Jared T., Adam T., and Neil S. earned a team award. A special congratulations is in order for Neil S. for earning the top speaker award from Hackley, a great achievement for a 6th grader! The final team of Tucker W., Neil T., and Max R. also finished the day with a winning record with Max earning a speaker award for his team. Hackley also earned 2nd place overall for highest winning percentage.

Overall, this was another terrific day for Hackley debaters, debating such interesting topics as the outlawing of the domestic sale of GMO's, whether or not violence is a justified response to oppression, whether texting does more good than harm, and whether or not to ban tipping.

We could not do what we do without the work of the volunteer judges (thank you Karina and Kelly!), so thank you to those parents who have been certified and are willing to spend their Saturdays parsing the impressive arguments of MS debaters! If you are a parent with a MS debater, please consider getting yourself certified!

Finally, I would like to extend a special measure of gratitude to the other Hackley teachers who have pitched in to support Hackley debate this year, one of the few programs I know of that includes members from all four grades – David Duerr has been at almost every debate the past two years and is now an indispensable part of the league as a certified Tournament Director. Cyndy Jean, a longtime supporter of debate, accompanied Rebecca Garfield to her first debate in Brooklyn to support a nervous trio of 5th and 6th grader girls and (hopefully!) enjoyed the experience. It is not lost on me that these three Hackley teachers are also Deans – in addition to their other extra responsibilities, they have been more than willing to spend their Saturdays supporting their students. I know the students appreciate it!

Our next event is scheduled for March 1st (though we currently do not have a venue for one of the tournaments). Also, please circle on your calendar the date April 5th as Hackley will be hosting the final tournament of the year prior to Nationals on that date.

Steve Fitzpatrick,
MS Debate Team Coach

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