Keoni Scott-Reid High School Debater of the Year: Haven Howard (Phelps Architecture, Construction, and Engineering High School)

If you are looking for a young person who embodies the spirit of a good debater, look no further than Keoni Scott-Reid. He was one of the first WUDL debaters, and holds most of the “firsts” in the league record book, winning every award available at the time. He was a leader in the community, an innovative scholar, and an inspirational coach. He tragically passed away in 2019, and we’ve re-named this award in his memory. 

Haven is this year’s winner, best representing Keoni’s competitive excellence, innovative scholarship, leadership, and character. A debater since Middle School at DC Prep (Edgewood), Haven is now a junior and the Captain of the Phelps High School Debate Team. He represented the league at JV Nationals last year, and was about as good as you can get without refining his technical skills. 

We can officially say, “Mission Accomplished.” Haven went to the Georgetown Summer Debate Institute and took a big leap forward, becoming one of the best Varsity Debaters in the league. When his former partner jumped to McKinley Tech for their Track program, Haven barely missed a beat, showing leadership, patience, and persistence as he not only trained a new partner but recruited several other students to the team. He’ll be an excellent coach upon graduation, just like Keoni. 

Middle School Debater of the Year: Noah Millhouse (Kettering Middle School)

Noah has been a standout debater at the Matthew Harris Ornstein Summer Debate Institute for several years now, but this year, he brought some friends. 

We approached Noah to restart the team at his school, and he was initially concerned that nobody else would want to join, but he was game to try. He advocated to his principal, and a month later, 100 students were knocking on Coach Herron’s door, trying to join the team. Kettering went on to have a great season, and Noah, debating with a novice, almost qualified to Middle School Nationals, despite not even being sure he wanted to try until the morning of the qualifier. As a rising 8th grader, we have very high hopes for him next year. 

New Debater of the Year: Winnie Chan, (Banneker High School)

Dr. Arndt called and asked — can we send another team to the Dragon in November? I thought about it and asked who she had in mind, since I couldn’t think of any other returning debaters who weren’t already going. She said they had a new pair of Novices, Winnie and Bridget, that we want to challenge after a great first two tournaments. 

The rest was history. From not winning a single round at the Dragon in their JV debut to being the last first year debaters standing that didn’t go to Lexington (a national powerhouse outside of Boston with a debate class) at Pennsbury just three months later, they grew by leaps and bounds. Winnie went the extra mile, attending the UK Round Robin and volunteering for additional practice opportunities when possible. She’s Varsity ready and has a very bright future. 

WUDL Student Choice Awards: High School Debater of the Year: Zahra Dinkins (School Without Walls)

Zahra started debating in Middle School and was a real slouch, placing at prestigious Round Robins and finishing as the Top Speaker at Middle School Nationals as an 8th grader. While the transition to high school was a bit challenging, Zahra reminded us all this year that she’s one of the best debaters in the league. A diminutive presence when she walks into the room, her opponents learn very quickly to not underestimate her. Debating with a freshman, she was the only WUDL Travel Team to post a winning record at Mamaroneck this year, and almost qualified for Nationals. Despite having more accomplishments already than most debaters have in their careers, she has a very bright career ahead of her. 

WUDL Student Choice Awards: Middle School Debater of the Year: Madison Thorpe (Stuart Hobson)

Madison was one of the best Stuart Hobson debaters (which is saying a lot already) all season long. A creative researcher eager to learn about new arguments, Madison represented Stuart Hobson at several Travel Team tournaments and dominated the local circuit, winning awards every time she competed. Madison and partner James almost qualified for Middle School Nationals, finishing as our first alternates. 

Judge’s Choice Award: Mars Delehant, DuVal High School

Last year, Mars walked onto the DuVal debate team as a junior and started to figure things out. With partner Favour, Mars caught our eye by winning the Financial Literacy tournament as a Novice, defeating some of our most experienced teams head-to-head. This year, as a senior, Mars and Favour jumped into the Varsity deep end. While the transition was rough, Mars showed perseverance and drive, quickly adapting, seeking help when needed, and finding their way in Varsity instead of copying someone else. Their affirmative case about gender bias in artificial intelligence algorithms was the best I saw a WUDL team write this year. Mars and Favour also played a substantial role in coaching the less experienced members of their team, a group that grew and thrived under their tutelage. 

Shoutout to National Urban Debater of the Year Liv Birnstad and the other national qualifiers who weren’t eligible for any local awards due to their  national recognition, but who certainly would have been a highly competitive candidates for these awards if eligible.These awards are given to students, coaches, schools, and volunteers who have demonstrated consistent excellence throughout the season.