Matthew Harris-Ornstein Summer Debate Institute Turns 10 Years Old!
When we were crowded into four multi-purpose rooms at the Hill Center 10 years ago, we didn’t think about reaching a 10th anniversary. We couldn’t imagine having more than 200 students attending the program, that it would run for 3 weeks, or any myriad of other things that are now just taken as fact.
With an incredible partnership with the Matthew Harris Ornstein Memorial Foundation, a community of engaged alumni that make up most of our instructors these days, and a huge cadre of eager students, however, we’ve made it to 10 years. As we look ahead, the 20th anniversary looks even brighter, and right around the corner.
With an incredible partnership with the Matthew Harris Ornstein Memorial Foundation, a community of engaged alumni that make up most of our instructors these days, and a huge cadre of eager students, however, we’ve made it to 10 years. As we look ahead, the 20th anniversary looks even brighter, and right around the corner.
We’d like to first share many thanks to DC Bilingual for being a wonderful host. Their new wing (and the rest of the building) was beautiful and well maintained, and the administrative team of Christian and Eddie was easy to work with. The school is easily accessible to transit so students could easily attend, and had great outdoor spaces for our field day (see below)!
This year, students wrestled with a complex legal topic, with a host of implications for the economic, political, and social future of this country:
Resolved: The United States federal government should significantly strengthen its protection of domestic intellectual property rights in copyrights, patents, and/or trademarks.
Intellectual Property isn’t on the tip of the tongue for many Americans, but who benefits from content creation, the proliferation of deepfakes, and the price of healthcare are. We couldn’t have done it without a star studded array of guest speakers, including:
- Jay Cox, Director of Investigations, Northrop Grumman
- Victoria Espinel, Business Software Alliance, former US Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (Obama Administration)
- Hannah Alise-Rodgers, Congressional Research Service
- Kavya Nagumotu, US Department of Justice, Intellectual Property Division
- Taylor Schad, US Department of Agriculture, Policy Advisor for Tribal Relations
- Sujai Shivakumar, Center for Strategic and Intelligence Studies
What was new this year?
We’re always trying new things, testing ideas from coaches, students, staff, and alumni and looking for the best balance of activities to fit that year’s topic.
1. Much Bigger Than Usual!
We’ve had several years where we had more than 180 students in years past, but never surpassed 200 before. This year, we just skipped straight to 228, with record numbers of labs, instructors, and students, representing 61 schools from across the DMV.
2. Creative Argumentation
Last year, we adjusted our curriculum and put a new emphasis on argument writing and creativity. It made a big difference, with a wide range of creative cases coming from our advanced students. Ranging from Bio Architecture, Orphan Drugs, and the gender implications of deepfakes, students did some incredible research. Some teams even played with the form of their arguments, testing the boundaries of what an argument looks like and questioning how we learn and grow from debate.
3. Adjusted Literacy Interventions in Novice
Last year, we made extensive changes to how information is presented for our beginners. Some of these changes proved effective and popular, while others were a lot of effort for no impact. We have continued to adjust and tweak these reforms to make debate accessible and exciting for everyone.
4. Expanded College Fair
This year, Director of Debate at Towson University Michael Harrington, Director of Admissions at University of Maryland Eastern Shore Phillip Harrington, Asst. Admissions Director Federico Glitman of George Washington University, and Dominique Tucker, University of Maryland held a forum, moderated by WUDL Director David Trigaux. Covering everything from need blind and test optional admissions to financial aid, campus culture, and the different types of schools out there, the forum allowed students to look ahead and realize that college is an accessible option folks should consider after high school graduation.
Special shout outs:
To Jess Berenson (who is leaving us after completing her M.A. in Social Work), Elena Fialkoff, and Eve Stettin from the Matthew Harris Ornstein Memorial Foundation and a number of parent volunteers for their irreplaceable partnership and assistance.
To White and Case, Williams Connolly, and The Asia Group Foundation for their incredibly generous donations of printed materials — we covered all of our curricular needs for camp via donations for the first time ever!
Join us during the season to see debate worthy of (and always more substantive than that occurring downtown) the nation’s capital!
First up, Georgetown Day’s Invitational on Sept. 27th!
Volunteers: Keep an eye out for emails about coaching and judging opportunities, school starts in a few weeks!
