Main News Archive

June 2010

VIPs come to praise the JUDL and Brent Farrand

Newark Science alumni host retirement/launch party for JUDL director

April 2010

Two Newark Teams Qualify for National Debate Tournament

Marcher 2010

Middle school students debate about broadband Internet

Science High School Team places 1st at State Finals

Newark Teacher named 2010 New Jersey Debate Coach of the Year

February 2010

Newark celebrates 30 years of debate with Invitational Tournament and Round Robin

Debaters Prepare for Newark Invitational

University HS Granted Barkley Forum Chair

January 2010

Newark to host first ever Round Robin Tournament

Newark Invitational to bring over 300 students from 8 states

Middle School students compete in 3rd Tournament at West Side High School

Making Noise at Big Lex

A Call for Civic Discourse

December 2009

From Below the Fold

Debating at the Ridge

JUDL Hosts Simultaneous Tournaments

First Middle School Tournament

Nov 14, 2009 - The Jersey Urban Debate League held its first middle school tournament of the season on Saturday, Nov. 14 at Central High School. 72 beginner teams and 25 experienced teams competed in the tournament. This tournament is particularly important for first year debaters, so they can become familiar with competitive activity.

Unlike in the high school conference, the middle school debate topic is very specific and has a fall and winter topic. The topic for this season is: resolved the United States federal government should significantly increase the Housing First and Permanent Supportive Housing Program for persons living in poverty in the United States.

At the tournament director Brent Farrand encouraged the students to be proud of being a Newark debater and that this activity will be the ticket to their future.

"You might be from Miller, Rafael Hernandez, or Wilson Street School, but that's not who you are because who you are today is a Newark debater," he said.

Farrand reminded the students that regardless of whether you win or lose, it's about the experience and that they shouldn't be discouraged. He then shared a story about alumnus Diana Dunker who is currently the Chief Program Officer for the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues.

Twenty five years ago Ms. Dunker was a freshmen at Science High School where she competed in her first debate tournament at Rutgers University and went 0-6. Mr. Farrand saw her crying uncontrollably under a water fountain and she sobbed, "This will never happen to me again." Three weeks later Dunker competed in her next tournament and went 6-0 and received first place. By her junior year she was ranked 8th in the nation.

"For those that go 0-3, it's not something to be discouraged about," Farrand said. "Learn from your three losses because your losses will strengthen you the most."

He also leant a warning to those that go 3-0. "Don't let it go to your head," he said." "Celebrate, but heed the warning, keep working."

Twelve beginner and six experienced teams won all three of their rounds. Congratulations to everyone who competed. The next middle school tournament will be held on Dec. 5 at Science Park HS

"Success in debate is not a shooting star, but having the guts to stick with it no matter what." - Director Brent Farrand

Top Beginner Teams:

1. Mount Vernon PA (Peraveen P. & Rukaya Aware)
2. Robert Treat JFSM (JayShawn Fuller & Sumayah Medlin)
3. Luis Munoz Marin BH (Michael Bizi & Marquis Hall)
4. Luis Munoz Marin HB (Joel Hardaman & Shawndale Brown)
5. Rafael Hernandez LCTC (Luis Cruz & Timothy Carter)
6. Wilson Ave DV (Adriana DeResende & Kennia Vasquez)
7. Mount Vernon DV (Charlie Catelier & Tishawna Jones)
8. Peshine/ Miller DBYA (Dayanna Beeths & Yulisha Aquino)
9. Alexander St JAAB (Jasala Armour & Aleia Brown)
10. Park Elementary SJ (Briana Serrano & Assata Johnson)
11. Alexander St YWAC (Yasmin Watkins & Ameer Copper)
12. Park Elementary LD (Michaell Davis & I'Triyana Davis)

1. Sultana Khan (Mount Vernon)
2. JayShawn Fuller (Robert Treat)
3. McAfree Sheehan (Robert Treat)
4. Peraveen P. (Mount Vernon)
5. Rukaya Aware (Mount Vernon)

1. 13th Avenue (Jaye Rose & Javon Ross)
2. Robert Treat (Nick Ayala & Alejandro Sheppard)
3. Peshine Avenue (Jaquay Brown & Madina Ouedrogo)
4. Peshine Avenue BO (Keora Barkley & Nybiah Jones)
5. Robert Treat AL (Jailene Agosto & Taylor Leake)
6. First Ave AS (Joshua Azcona & Nyasia Sanchez)

1. Jaye Ross (13th Avenue RR)
2. Javon Ross (13th Avenue RR)
3. Alejandro Sheppard (Robert Treat AS)
4. Marquis Gonzalez (Rafael Hernadez CG)
5. Madina Ouedrogo (Peshine Avenue BO)

Jose Espada Tournament kicks off the season

By Margarita Morales

The Jersey Urban Debate League kicked off its season with a tournament at the newly located Central High School on 18th Avenue in Newark. The tournament was a chance for novice debaters to get acquainted with the competitive sport. Junior varsity players also competed in three rounds that drew to a close around 4pm this past Saturday.

The tournament also celebrated the life of Jose Espada, a Newark Vocational debater who passed away at the age of 19 from complications from a heart transplant. Jose was a model debater, friend, and colleague with a smile that would light up the room. His spirit and passion for debate and helping others stands as the example for Jersey Urban Debate League of how powerful the activity is. Even when he was at the hospital, Jose would research the debate topic to share with not just Newark Vocational, but the whole league.

Science High School took away the Jose Espada Memorial trophy for best novice record at this past tournament for the second year in a row. 26 teams competed in the novice division and 10 teams competed in the junior varsity division.

The debaters competed under the resolution: Resolved that the United States federal government should substantially increase social services for persons living in poverty in the United States. Congratulations to the teams with winning records, returning debaters, and new debaters. The next tournament is Oct. 24th at Technology High School.

Top 5 Novice Speakers (out of 52):

1. Jonathan Isaacs (Newark Science BI)
2. DeAndre Williams (Newark Science WA)
3. Jonathan Reyes (Technology High RP)

Top 5 Novice Teams (out of 26):

1. Newark Science BI (Jaysen Bazile & Jonathan Isaacs)
2. Essex Tech- HJ (Zuri Hunter & Patrick Jones)
3. Newark Science MC (Thais Marques & Kyle Coutinho)

Top 5 JV Speakers (out of 20):

1. Alexa White (Newark Science OW)
2. Vida Chiri (University High CA)
3. Omer Bhatti (University High BH)

Top 5 JV Teams: (out of 10 teams)

1. Newark Science OW (Suliat Olusanya & Alexa White)
2. University High CA (Vida Chiri & Armando Rosa)
3. University High BH (Omer Bhatti & Sean Hammond)

Civic Discourse

As professionals in the speech and debate community, we teach our students every day that reasoned discourse is a key element of the democratic process. Respectful communication facilities the greater good of pursuing the truth regarding controversial and complicated topics. The recent actions by Members of Congress during a Presidential address on health care reform set poor examples for our students.

Taken in the context of a series of disturbing meetings during Congress' August recess where shouting and verbal threats replaced dialogue and civic discourse, the outburst during the President's address to Wednesday's joint session of Congress represents more than an isolated breech of decorum. It was an ominous sign.

A public commons where civic discourse, respectful disagreement and reasoned deliberation reigns is essential not just for democracy but also for education. The public commons must not be just respected but also consistently defended and nurtured particularly by those entrusted with the public's well being including both elected officials and teachers.

It is well documented that students involved in the activities of speech and debate exhibit markedly fewer disciplinary issues and schools with speech and debate programs experience less violence. Debate and speech professionals cultivate a community in which discourse replaces discord and the power of rational voices replaces the unyielding trauma of the fist. We teach that those who shout are most often those who have little to say.

These are lessons which all adults ought to teach, particularly those who stand in the public commons - elected officials, teachers, news commentators and participants in town hall meetings. We have not been forceful in teaching these lessons, particularly on a nationally televised stage. Those who have been teaching our students bad lessons must cease.

There have been calls for a congressional censure of Representative Joe Wilson. While we support such a resolution, we believe that, alone, such a response would individualize a problem which has become societal.

Therefore, we call upon all Members of Congress to not only renounce this behavior but also to resolve to hold their communications to the highest standards when they seek to convince others of the merits of their position. We call upon media commentators who voices are amplified to millions to model civic discourse rather than vitriolic discord. And we ask that all who gather at town hall meetings take personal responsibility for protecting the civility of the public commons.

Email us your support.

High schoolers fling logic and reason at each other

Zuri Hunter has the demeanor more of an easygoing teenager than of a skilled and competitive debater. But when the petite and soft-spoken 16-year-old Newark resident entered one of her matches yesterday, her brown eyes took on a hard edge, and she threw a skeptical glance at her opponent, a student from Brooklyn's Metropolitan Corporate Academy.

"Can you sum your argument in simpler terms?" Hunter asked DeAsia Oliver before the two teens parried back and forth on environmental policy.

The students were taking part in the 28th annual Newark Invitational.

The two-day event, which started Friday night in East Side High School and Science Park High, is one of the largest debate gatherings for high school students in the Northeast, said Brent Farrand, one of the organizers. More than 240 students from 43 different schools and six states participated.

The meet culminated with the final rounds last night.

At Science Park High School, students were staging debates in the style of Abraham Lincoln vs. Stephen Douglas, said Tariq Ra heem, a debate coach and teacher at Technology High School in Newark. Like those famous men who wrangled over the issue of slavery while running for the Illinois Senate, students were set to argue on topics that dealt with morals and ethics.

Hunter and her teammate, Wil mot Wilson, were debating at East Side High, where students argued on policy issues.

This year the teens were charged with debating whether the government should substantially increase alternative energy incen tives in the country, Farrand said.

Coaches prepped their students inside classrooms while other teens milled around in the maze-like hallways, munching on snacks as they looked over their notes between matches.

Hunter and Wilson, relatively new to debating, were armed with a worn stack of blue papers typed with notes and references to articles about the environment.

Hunter says she had wanted to be a creative director for an adver tising firm after she graduated from college. But after she joined the mock trial club at her school, Newark Tech High School, she discovered she wants to be a lawyer. Sharp debating skills will come in handy for her job, she said.

Wilson says he had wanted to become a computer engineer until he saw Barack Obama rise to the presidency. Now Wilson wants to become a lawyer, get into politics and become a senator.

First he's looking to brush up on his debating skills.

"It helps me get my thoughts together," Wilson said about join ing the debate team. "It increases my speaking skills."

Farrand, who is the coordinator for the speech and debate program for Newark school district, said, "It's our belief that debate is the most effective way to teach critical thinking and thoughtful, responsible citizenship."

It can also lead to a good job and scholarship offers, he said. The school system produced one stu dent who recently snagged a $40,000 debate scholarship to a college.

"There's nothing that compares to it," Farrand said about the art of debating. "It's a sport."

Sharon Adarlo may be reached at sadarlo@starledger.com.

Seven States Attending Newark Invitational

January 29, 2009 - The Jersey Urban Debate League will host its annual Newark Invitational Debate Tournament this weekend, Jan. 30-31 at East Side High School and Science Park High School, where over 240 competitors representing 39 schools from 7 states (Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island) will compete.

The league will conduct two preliminary rounds of competition on Friday from 5p.m. to 9p.m. and then another three preliminary rounds on Saturday from 8a.m. to 2:30p.m. The convocation for speaker awards will occur at 3p.m. followed by elimination rounds, starting with octafinals. The final round should end at approximately 8p.m.

"This is the 28th year that Newark has hosted this tournament and it has grown into one of the premier high school debate tournaments in the Northeast, paralleling Newark's growth into a regional hub for academic debate," JUDL director Brent Farrand said.

This is the first year the tournament will be conducted at two schools. The Lincoln Douglas debate division will be at Science Park HS with direction by Mr. Jonathan Alston of Science Park and Mr. John Cruz of Bronx Science. While, the Policy debate division will be at East Side HS with direction by Kurt Shelton of University HS/Rutgers-Newark and Randy Mitchell of Science Park.

Hospitality will be organized by Mrs. Mimi Rosenbaum of University HS, Celia Larrichia of American History HS and Belinda McGuire of West Side HS. Mr. Al Mossab, East Side debate coach, will coordinate facilities at the policy site.

Since 1981 debaters from across the east have gathered to hone in on their skills in a regional competition. This experience gives debaters an intense two days of competition and preparation for national tournaments.

3rd Middle School Tournament a success

On Jan. 24 the Jersey Urban Debate League held its 3rd middle school tournament for the 2008/2009 season at West Side High School. Seventy three teams from 19 schools competed in a three round tournament on the topic: Resolved that the federal government should shift tax credits from Big Oil to Alternative energy firms. This was the last tournament under this resolution.

Director Brent Farrand announced the spring 2009 middle grades conference resolution: The United State federal government should substantially increase incentives for biofuels.

At the awards assembly Farrand warmed the debaters with some inspiring words.

"I do need to let you know that the mission of this league has always been to lift your eyes- the debaters eyes from the sidewalk to the horizon, because if we keep focused on the sidewalk we get distracted from what our inner strengths are, but when we look out at the horizon we can see the path clearly that will lead you to actualize all the potential that is in you and all that is shown to you being here to debate," Farrand said.

"There is one place in the United States that Newark has long been known as one of the best, and that's the world of American debate. There is a long, proud history of Newark debate and when I tell you that Newark is the hub of academic debate in the northeast, it is not at all an exaggeration. We have for years, however tried to put the crown star on our building, on our community and that's a collegiate debate team."

He announced that Rutgers University will officially sponsor and fund a Rutgers University debate team. He predicts that in 5 or 6 years, the university's league will be the Emory University of the North.

"We must look at those who do the best and do better than them" Farrand said, with a sense of admiration and delight, with the announcement of the news.

Public relations specialist for Rutgers Newark University, Ferlanda Nixon was in attendance. She honored the newly created Rutgers debate team of Christopher Pinho and Kevin Cenac. The two escorted Nixon during the tournament, showing her the powerful sport of policy debate.

Continuing with his speech Farrand called everybody to stand, as he said the traditional Newark cheer. "I am a Newark debater, I am a Newark debater," the crowd screamed with excitement and pride.

Farrand also introduced the high school coaches to the nascent 8th graders:

• Celia Larrrichia, American History
• Al Moussab, East side High School
• Tariq Raheem, Technology High School
• Randy Mitchell, Science High School
• Kurt Shelton, University High School

Thanks to Principal Otis Brown and debate coach Belinda McGuire of West Side High School for allowing the use of its building. Thanks to the 41 high school debaters and 12 alumni who served as judges. Also, thanks to administrators, parents, and family guests for their support and attendance.

"I am grateful you value this activity as much as we do that you come here, and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do," Farrand said.

Mr. Shelton could not be in attendance because he was at Emory University in Atlanta, GA, where a University High School team was competing in a national tournament.

The league handed out 15 speaker awards and 10 team awards for the experienced division and 25 speaker awards and 20 team awards for the beginner division.

In the experienced division top teams were:

• 1st Place- First Avenue (Nyasia Sanchez and Joshua Azcona)
• 2nd Place- 13th Avenue (Na'Jayah Davis and Patricia Dennis)
• 3rd Place- Wilson Ave (Kelly Rainho and Jennie Romeo)

In the beginner division top teams were:

• 1st Place- Peshine Avenue (Aliyah Rawless and Lisbeth Thomas)
• 2nd Place- Rafael Hernandez (Karen Carrillo and Sebastian Maldonado)
• 3rd Place- Lady Liberty (Bashir Croom and Ah-Quell Ramirez)

The next middle school tournaments will be held Feb. 21 and March 14.

Debate Life Lessons

Welcome to the New Year! Hope everyone is doing well. I am excited by the opportunities and challenges of another year with the debate program. Looks like we are off to a great start, with 2 tournaments schedule for the month of January, one in NYC and one at home in Newark.

At the end of last year, the team and I went to lunch near our school, Central High, the Appleby's on Bergen Street. The meal was both a holiday gathering and a tem building event to celebrate our success thus far. I was pleased to share with them a year that had gone well. I now challenged them to "kick it up a notch" since we would be at a higher level of competition in 2009. The students eagerly took the challenge, and everyone celebrated in a good mood.

These types of celebrations are very important to help the kids feel like a team, and to get a reward for all their hard work. Everyone took home a certificate of participation to show their parents how happy the school is to have the students participate in something so enriching.

Central HS Debate Coach Militza Diaz has been involved in debate for over 20 years. Our weekly series Debate Life Lessons is chronicling coach participation in debate and how debate changes their lives.

Debate Club Wins Recognition

Kids School student Jasmine Singleton won 25th place in the Jersey Urban Debate League Competition on November 15th. Fellow after-school club debaters Heaven Montague, Diane Asante and Cornelius Faulks won special recognition for their notable participation.

Held at University High School in Newark, the debate featured an outstanding pool of 125 city-wide student debaters addressing the question, “Should the federal government shift tax credits from big oil to alternative sources of energy?” The Kids School team achieved a record of 2-1 in their first competition.

The debate club, coached by college student teacher assistants Gregory Waltenberg and Annell Lopez, is one of several enrichment activities in Kids Corporation’s Kids School after-school program. Kids School serves 200 K to 8 students Monday through Friday from 3:30 to 6:30 pm at Lady Liberty Academy Charter School.

Rutgers University's "Cinderella" Debate Team Takes First Place in S.U.N.Y. Binghamton Debate Tournament

(Newark, NJ) – It’s the final round, and with its 5:1 tournament record from the preliminary rounds in hand, the Rutgers team of sophomores Chris Pinho, a political science major attending Rutgers University in Newark, and Kevin Cenac, a history major attending Rutgers University in New Brunswick, go toe-to-toe with two formidable competitors from New York University. After intense preparation and conditioning and two grueling hours of sheer grit, stamina and determination, Pinho and Cenac reign supreme, emerging champions of the junior varsity division of the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) Binghamton Debate Tournament hosted by the State University of New York—Binghamton, Nov. 22-23. Pinho garners honors as the tournament’s top speaker out of a field of 34; Cenac ranks fifth.

And so it goes for the “Cinderella” Rutgers University debate team, formed impromptu and self-funded by Newark’s Science Park High School alums Pinho and Cenac and their high school coach, Kurt Shelton. In winning the championship, the two beat longer-established teams from Cornell University, Bard College, New York University, West Virginia University, and the University of Rochester.

“I guess I was experiencing a bit of withdrawal after having been an avid debater since my freshman year at Science High. So I contacted Kevin to see if he might be interested in partnering with me to compete at the collegiate level,” Pinho responded when asked why he organized Rutgers’ debate team. Pinho turned to Cenac because he and Cenac had debated together at Science Park High School as members of the Jersey Urban Debate League, an organization that makes competitive policy debate accessible to middle and high school students in Newark and in other surrounding school districts.

“I’m glad I agreed to participate,” commented Cenac. “Intercollegiate competition is far more exciting and challenging than high school. During the Binghamton Debate Tournament, we faced Cornell and NYU, among other notable schools. It was quite an adrenaline rush.”

What’s next for the dynamic duo? As champions of the Binghamton Debate Tournament, the Rutgers debate team automatically qualifies to compete in the CEDA Nationals hosted by Kansas City Kansas Community College, March 20-24. The team also is considering participating in the Freshmen/Sophomore Nationals at Michigan State, March 7-9.

As for expanding the team, Pinho and Cenac welcome any Rutgers student who is inquisitive and a self-starter. While prior debate experience is not required, enjoyment of policy research is.

Robert Treat students prove to be great debaters

Two students from the Robert Treat Academy charter school in Newark took first place in a debate sponsored by the Jersey Urban Debate League.

Bruce Berrios and Austin Medina, both sixth-graders, finished first among 42 other pairs in the beginner's division portion of the competition, held Nov. 15 at University High School.

In addition, sixth-grader Carlos Rodriguez and fifth-grader Katelyn Rodriguez received trophies for finishing in 15th place.

Based on speaker points amassed during three rounds, Berrios received a medal for placing fourth overall among 150 individuals registered for the tournament. Joining him in the top 20 were sixth-graders Jailene Agosto and Taylor Leake.

This is the third year students from the academy have participated in the Jersey Urban Debate League's event for middle schoolers. The Saturday event, which attracted debaters from 22 middle schools, was the largest turnout for in the debate league's history.

John Feinstein, Robert Treat's debate team coach, said the students were prepared to defend the affirmative and negative positions of a resolution calling for the federal government to shift tax credits from big oil companies to alternative energy firms.

"The League provides packets of evidence to support arguments," Feinstein said. "I talked our kids through the material to help them understand it. They prepared index cards with arguments and evidence to guide them during competition."

While the issue of tax subsidies is complex, Feinstein said he broke the topic down so the students would understand it.

"We discussed the basics of taxes based on what they knew about their family's income and property tax obligations," Feinstein said. "That lead to talking about companies paying tax on their income and what the purpose of a subsidy is. Debaters know they have to understand the topic or they cannot be an effective contender."

The debate team, which has 25 students, meets three times per week after school. The next debate is Dec. 6 at East Side High School.

Last year, the team placed second overall among 14 Newark schools with middle school students.

Debate Life Lessons

I spent my school years in Newark. I attended University High for 7th & 8th grade, then transferred to Science High. I went there specifically because they had a great debate team. They traveled all over the country for tournaments, and they won trophies often. I wanted that for myself.

The support of the debate team allowed me to dream big. Debate is an activity that was mainly practiced by white students in suburban towns. In debate, I attended debate tournaments at prestigious universities around the county - Harvard, Yale, the University of Massachusetts, Emory University, and many more. No one in my family had gone to college, and very few of the girls had even graduated high school. I was exposed to college campuses routinely, and going to college became a normal next step after high school.

I continued to judge in the national circuit, and graduated from The College of NJ with a degree in Industrial/Organizational psychology. I used this degree to work at in Human Resources. After a dozen years of this work, I revived my dream to make a difference in the lives of students in Newark and started on the path to become a teacher.

Central HS Debate Coach Militza Diaz has been involved in debate for over 20 years. Our weekly series Debate Life Lessons is chronicling coach participation in debate and how debate changes their lives.

Teens asking: What about us?

Debate gets students involved in campaign

As the country discusses what the presidential candidates need to do to claim victory tonight in their final debate, Newark public schools have unanimously selected their winner: today's youth.

The day before Barack Obama and John McCain were to face each other for the third time, about 400 Newark high school seniors gathered at Science Park High yesterday to hear and question the positions of both candidates -- as presented by debaters from the Republican and Democratic national campaigns and high schools.

Brent Farrand, director of the New Jersey Urban Debate League, said his debate students voiced disappointment over the structure of the televised debates, which inspired him to launch the Science Park event.

"The students were disturbed about the non-civil ways adults are conducting themselves in this campaign," he said. "Our mission is to get anyone who is committed to a candidate to understand the opposition. If they oppose a view, we want them to know why they oppose."

This seems to be a common mission this year throughout public schools in the city. Many schools are holding mock elections. Science Park will be holding its own school debate, and Central High School is in the middle of a semester-long campaign that gives students an opportunity to represent both parties through discussion, debating and advertisements.

"Current events is a teaching tool that connects the modern world" to students, said Samuel Garrison, chairman of the social studies department at Central High School.

Such programs prepared stu dents for yesterday's event, Farrand said, and, for some, also the presidential election. Some eligible high school seniors at yesterday's debate also registered to vote Nov. 4. It was the last day to become a registered voter in time for the up coming election.

These students have a responsibility to vote and stay informed, said Roger Leon, assistant superintendent of the Newark public schools, as he addressed the crowd before the debate.

In yesterday's format, a panel of three student debaters had the opportunity to ask both campaigns questions concerning issues of their generation.

"Our main goal as debaters is to involve the community," said Kylah Broughton, a panel member and junior debater at Science Park High School. "I felt like I had an obligation to ask these questions for youth."

Presenting Obama's positions were Rashad Evans, a Science Park graduate and volunteer for the Obama campaign, and Jonathan Alston, a teacher and debate coach at Science Park.

Militiza Diaz, the policy-debate coach at Central High School, and David Tukey, volunteer director of the McCain campaign in New York/New Jersey, presented the Republican nominee's arguments.

Will Baker, executive director of the National Campaign for Civic Discourse, acted as the moderator.

Broughton asked the McCain campaign why it believes vouchers would solve the challenges of educating youth in urban communities.

"Seniors are asking, 'How am I getting into college?'" Broughton said. She remarked that many audience members later thanked her for asking that question.

Kiyan Williams, a 17-year-old senior at Science Park, is one of those wondering whether he will be able to afford a good education. He also worries about how the federal bailout plan will affect him -- another popular question from the panelists yesterday.

Each student panelist wanted to know how bailing out the private sector would benefit the middle class.

Williams thought the Obama campaign's answer was the highlight of the debate.

"I liked how they talked about the contradiction between being a fiscal conservative and voting for the bailout plan," he said.

The majority of the audience agreed with Williams and voted Obama's campaign the debate win ner. But for Diaz, success came when some students approached her about researching more of her candidate's views.

"The goal is to educate students," Diaz said.

Participating high schools were Science Park, Central, Technology, University, West Side, East Side, American History and Newark Tech.

"It's all about student voices today," said Baker. "Debate is one of the most powerful instruments for kids."

Although the two sides had stark differences on taxes, health care and energy, they agreed on one thing.

"It's really important for campaigns to talk to young voters," Tukey said.

"There should be more discussion about the needs of youth," Evans said. "We talk about senior citizens, but we need to also talk about what our youth needs."

Clifford Janey, superintendent of Newark public schools, said the district will be seeing more events like yesterday's debate in its future.

"We need to institutionalize the experience," he said.

My name is Militza Diaz and I am the new debate coach at Central High. I have been involved in debate for over 20 years! I have continued to participate in debate because of how it changed my life.

I started debating when I was 12. Painfully shy and having been in the U.S. for 5 short years, I was attending University High School when some older students approached our table at lunch and asked if we were interested in coming to a debate meeting. "What is debate?" I asked. "Come to the meeting and find out." he replied.

I was hooked. I liked being able to argue, and win, against other students. I was eager to travel and to do something where reading a lot, which I loved, was a positive rather than looked down upon as it was where I lived in the Ludlow Street projects of Newark.

I feel I made a smart decision that day, and my life has never been the same.

A weekly series chronicling the recent experiences of new debate coach Militza Diaz and how debate changed her life

I've seen the summer debate experience from every angle: as a workshop student, long ago; as an instructor/lab leader, as a residence hall director - and, for 25 years, as a coach. Workshops are crucial to success in debate, but they can be challenging experiences for everyone involved.

Here are some suggestions that can make the summer experience more livable and productive.

+ FOR COACHES

+ FOR STUDENTS

LIFE AFTER WORKSHOP

The workshop experience is excellent preparation for the fall - but don't come home thinking that your work is done. You'll come up against some workshop cases and arguments throughout the year; others you'll never hear again. More important, the best debaters are constantly updating their arguments from the summer, and conceiving and researching new cases and negative arguments throughout the year.

The best lab leaders don't just give you arguments - they teach you how to think and research. Keep doing that throughout the year, and you will be excellent!

I'm happy to chat with students and teachers about institutes - you can reach me at les_phillips98@yahoo.com

April 10, 2008 - JUDL debaters swept the recent New Jersey state tournament! University High School's Joshua Gonzalez and Jamil Ahmed were undefeated in prelims. Second place went to Science Park's Pamela Chomba and Kyla Broughton.

Marquis Guzman and Khariah Davis from West Side High School won first place in the junior varsity division, and Shagun Krukej and Amna Tariq from University won first place in the novice division.

The tournament was held on Saturday, March 9, at Ridge High School.

The University and Science Park varsity teams also swept the New Jersey NFL District tournament, held on March 29 and 30 at Hunterdon Central High School. Jamil, Josh, Pamela and Kyla will represent New Jersey at this year's NFL tournament, to be held in Las Vegas in June.

April 7, 2008 - Jersey UDL debaters dominated the first annual Chase Urban Debate National Championship, held April 3 through 6 in Chicago. Our league's representatives took four of the top ten speaker awards; in addition, they fought back fierce competition to advance to the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds.

University High's Joshua Gonzalez was second speaker, and Science Park's Kyla Broughton was fourth speaker. Joshua received a $2500 scholarship award, and Kyla received $1000. Their partners also won awards: University's Jamil Ahmed was eighth speaker, and Pamela Chomba from Science Park placed ninth.

The tournament featured the top two teams from each of the country's seventeen active Urban Debate Leagues, including debaters from Seattle, Miami, Boston. Our University and Science Park debaters were seeded third and fourth after five preliminary rounds. In quarterfinals, Kyla and Pamela were defeated by a team from Morgan Park in Chicago. Josh and Jamil prevailed in their quarters round against Kansas City Central, but lost their semi to Lane Tech, the Chicago team which eventually won the tournament.

Awards were presented at a special reception, held at the University Club in downtown Chicago. Later that evening, NAUDL held its first annual dinner, attended by hundreds of recently recruited NAUDL friends and donors - including many former debaters. At this dinner, our own Diana Dunker received the first UDL Alumnus Award.

So it was a terrific weekend, both for JUDL and for urban debate everywhere. The new NAUDL Executive Director, Scott Deatherage, has truly hit the ground running with a variety of fundraising and educational projects.

Special congratulations to Diana, our debaters, and their coaches!

I've seen the summer debate experience from every angle: as a workshop student, long ago; as an instructor/lab leader, as a residence hall director - and, for 25 years, as a coach. Workshops are crucial to success in debate, but they can be challenging experiences for everyone involved.

Here are some suggestions that can make the summer experience more livable and productive.

FOR COACHES

1. CHOOSING THE WORKSHOP - If your debaters have choices among workshops, don't be shy about helping them decide. If you haven't sent many students to workshop, ask your colleagues. Two good questions: Were students at Workshop X productive? Did the student come back in the fall with better work habits?
2. THE LAB INSTRUCTOR IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE WORKSHOP - Most institute directors are happy to discuss lab placement with you, and many will honor specific requests. Even the most prestigious summer programs have mediocre instructors. Other instructors are excellent for the most experienced kids, but not so good with beginners. Experienced students and other coaches can offer advice on which instructors you might want to request.
3. FOLLOW UP WITH THE LAB INSTRUCTOR - You can overdo this - summer instructors are frantically busy, trying to do too much in a limited amount of time. But a quick call or email to the instructor four or five days into the workshop is perfectly appropriate. Most teachers will appreciate the concern, especially if the student is underperforming. Another query after the workshop is done is also useful. If students know that you'll be following up, they'll probably work harder!
4. DEBRIEF YOUR STUDENTS - Spend some extra time in the fall asking kids about their summer experience - not just the arguments, but what the social and educational experience was like. If you have concerns, express those to the institute director. If you want to commend particular staff members, do that too - and be sure to copy the institute director.

Thank You Newark Debate Community!

February 8, 2008 - We have reached the end of one of the most incredible months in Newark debate's storied history. From January 2 to February 2 we accomplished the following:

• Statute of Liberty tournament in NYC (48 Newark debaters competed)
• Middle Grades Debate tournament at East Side HS (186 Newark debaters completed)
• Four school tour of Nate Parker ("The Great Debaters") reaching more than 1,000 Newark students
• "The Great Debaters" movie night (360 debaters hosted by Mayor Booker and NPS)
• Lexington MA Winter Debate Classic (22 Newark debaters competed for three days)
• Emory University Barkley Forum (6 Newark debaters competed for 4 days)
• JUDL Debate Expo 2008 (18 middle graders showcased debate for foundation representatives)
• Newark Invitational Debate Tournament (hosted 400+ competitors for 2 days)

I deeply appreciate the recognition given to me by the Newark Public Schools Advisory Board, Dr. Bolden and Mr. Leon earlier this month - and particularly the kind gesture by the Maple Avenue debate team. Nonetheless, the incredible level of activity and accomplishment during the past month is the product of a powerful and dedicated community. Although this will be long, I hope you will take a moment to read it all and gain a sense of the passionate service performed by so many.

First and foremost, Kurt Shelton whose tireless effort and willingness to forego sleep and food made January's progression of mega-events organizationally possible. Kurt does all of this while holding a full time job in the volatile mortgage industry.

Diana Dunker who guides the Jersey Urban Debate League Advisory Board and authored its 5 year strategic plan even while preparing and then presenting her second case in front of the NJ Supreme Court.

Christian Oshiro who ran the tabulation room for Middle Grades tournament and The Newark Invitational even while maintaining his full time job in the informational systems industry and being a devoted Dad to a very active family.

Mimi Rosenbaum who coordinated all food arrangements at The Newark Invitational Debate even while battling the flu and coaching her own team.

Les Phillips who put together the evidence packet for the Spring middle grades topic while helping to coach at University HS and American History HS, assisting at three tournaments and traveling to two tournaments.

Dr Santos for offering East Side HS for two huge tournaments - the January 12th Middle Grades tournament and the February 1-2 Newark Invitational Debate Tournament - and Liz Aranjo for coordination at the building level for both tournaments

Mrs. Linda Richardson for offering Ann Street for the novice division of the Newark Invitational.

Mrs. Christine Taylor for offering Science Park High School for the JUDL Debate Expo.

Randy Mitchell, Havier Nazario and Jonathan Alston who handled ballot distribution/collection as well as judge coordination even while coaching their own teams for participation in major national competitions.

Joe Somai, Nate Harp and Abdul Sharif who provided bus shuttle service for The Newark Invitational

Tariq Raheem, Linda McLeod, Militza Diaz, Anderson Preister, Aretha Malloy, and Desmond Odom who provided incredibly powerful testimony on the transformational effect of debate at the JUDL Debate Expo 2008.

Xiania Foster and Terrence Bankston for all of their work on "The Great Debaters" movie night.

Belinda McGuire who organized an incredible meeting for Nate Parker at West Side HS and memorialized it in a beautiful picture collage presented to Mr. Leon.

Whitney Farrand, Tariq Raheem and Kishanda Montes who organized outstanding meetings for Nate Parker at their respective schools.

Carl Cimiluca, Tomi Ingram, Camille Brown, Shelia Montague, Whitney Farrand, Linda McLeod, and Bridget Charles who devoted time, energy and honesty to a thorough-going discussion of middle grades debate issues and vastly advanced an atmosphere of collegial governance among our coaching community.

Fernando Acevedo who is there doing whatever needs to be done, contacting whoever needs to be contacted whenever the debate community needs it, no matter how big or small, no matter what time of day.

The JUDL Advisory Board (Dr. Marion Bolden, Marcia Brown, Casto Maldonado, Craig Drinkard. Richard Cammarieri, Anibal Ramos, Roger Leon and Diana Dunker) who are willing to stay way past adjournment time to hammer out a strategic plan and always provide eager, generous and frequent assistance that is only a phone call away.

AND NATE PARKER for his deeply insightful and passionate lessons taught across our city on January 16th .

Thank you each and every one of you as well as countless others who pitched without me knowing or acknowledging.

Brent Farrand

Newark Debaters Advance Skills During the Summer

Jersey Urban Debate League funding helped sponsor the participation of nearly 70 Newark high school debaters in summer debate institutes. Attending workshops that ranged from one week to three weeks, the debaters underwent intensive preparation for the 2007-2008 policy debate topic - Resolved that the United States should significantly increase public health assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa. An article in the New York Times described the University of Vermont debate institute as "a boot camp for the mind". Each institute held an end of workshop tournament. The following is a list of our debaters summer institute tournament accomplishments:

Northwestern University	Joshua Gonzales (University)	2nd place
University of North Texas	Joyce Taylor (Science Park)	2nd place
University of Vermont	Alim Mohammed (University)	1st place
	LaShonda Taylor (Newark Vocational)	3rd place
	Makiera Buchanan (Technology)	4th place
Wakeforest University	Rajeem Scott (Technology)	3rd place
Towson University	Kaylah Norris (Technology)	1st place
John Jay College	Natasha Harris (Technology)	7th place

High School Conference Begins Season

• 1st place - Science Park (Taylor and Broughton)
• 2nd place - Science Park (Tariq and Clayton)
• 3rd place - West Side (Kilpatrick and Guzman)

• 1st place - Science Park (Murphy and Omoregie
• 2nd place - Science Park (Tariw and Clayton)
• 3rd place - Science Park (Camacho and Sakihama)

The Newark Vocational presents a special tournament award recognizing the school with the best overall novice record. The award is intended to highlight the important Jose Espada always placed upon training new debaters. Science Park won the coveted Novice Sweepstakes Award for the second consecutive year.

Regional and National Competition Begins

On September 29th six debaters from Science Park and University traveled to Washington, DC to compete in an early season national tournament. Facing 60 top level varsity teams from more than a dozen states, the Newark debaters compiled a record of 4-14 recording wins over Lexington HS (Massachusetts), Yorktown HS (Virginia) and Thomas Jefferson HS (Virgina).

During the same weekend four debaters from Technology HS competed in a strong regional tournament at Yale University. The team of Norris and Scott finished 9th, missing quarterfinals qualification by 1.5 speaker points out of 166. Their record placed them above teams from Monticello HS (New York), Bronx HS of Science, Edgemont HS (Scarsdale, New York) and Lexington HS (Massachusetts).

A week later on October 5 eighteen (18) Newark debaters took a 2 hour bus ride to Monticello HS in the Catskill Mountains. Debate competition lasted until 10pm Friday night and resumed at 8am on Saturday. In the junior varsity division the team for Guzman and Scindian from West Side finished in 8th place ahead of teams from Stuyesant HS (NYC), Lakeland HS (NY), Newburg Free Academy (NY), Edgemont HS (NY) and Weston HS (Connecticut). Additionally Guzman was 4th place speaker out of 28 and Scindian was 10th place. In the varsity division both Science Park and University qualified for the quarterfinal rounds. Science Park (De Sa and Taylor) finished 7th lsong to Bronx Science in the quarterfinal round while University won its quarterfinal round against Newburg Free Academy and finished 4th, losing in semifinals to Bronx Science. Andrea DaSa of Science Park finished 2nd speaker out of 32 and Jamil Ahmed finished 4th.

Middle Grades Coaches Select Fall/Winter Resolution

Voting was conducted among the 26 coaches of JUDL's middle grades conference to select a fall/winter resolution that is a subset of the2007-2008 national high school resolution. By a one vote margin the following topic was selected: Resolved that the United States should significantly increase its direct public health assistance to refugees in Sub-Sahara Africa. While public health conditions in the refugee camps are undeniably horrible, the middle grades conference will debate whether increasing direct assistance to the camps is an effective solution. Indeed negative teams will advance the argument that increasing aid to the camps will further destabilize an already volatile situation in countries hosting refugee camps.

Middle grades coaches attended after school topic preparation during the past two weeks and the first middle grades tournament will be November 3rd at University High School.

Bridge to College Tournament

On October 20th JUDL will host its 4th Annual Bridge to College tournament designed to provide East Coast urban debaters with a venue for top fight competition as well as an opportunity to showcase their talents before a dozen college recruiters. The tournament will be held on the Rutgers University Newark campus from 8:30am to 5:00pm. Vistors and observers should come to Robeson Campus Center for guidance,

We are expecting nearly 10 teams in three divisions from Boston, Providence, New York City, Newark and Baltimore. Most recruiting colleges will be represented by debate alum in our continuing effort to construct a network of JUDL alum that will assist senior debaters in there quest to attend the college of their choice.

Excerpts from the 2006 - 2007 JUDL Annual Report

The true worth of the Jersey Urban Debate League lies not in statistics reflecting steady growth in debate training and tournament participation nor in the steadfast and stable dedication of the league's staff and consultant. True worth is revealed in JUDL's impact on the academic performance and life accomplishments of those students who have been able to benefit from the unique experiences presented in the world of debate.

JUDL began a collaboration with Newark Public Schools Office of Testing and Evaluation in May 2007 to formally assess the impact of the debate program on state testing performance at the eighth and eleventh grades. The test scores of nearly three hundred debaters will be compared to those of a similar cohort of Newark students who have not debated.

While the results of this study will not be available until December, we do have significant anecdotal evidence. Ms. Linda McCloud debate coach and literacy coordinator from Maple Avenue School in Newark reported this June .

Last week we received the GEPA scores. Maple had only three eighth graders score Advanced Proficiency in Language Arts. You guessed it: the debaters! I met with them the other day to discuss their scores. They completely credit being on the debate team for their success. I asked them: which came first?? Were you scholars who joined the team/ or did the team make you scholars? All three quickly replied they owed it to being on the team. They were pretty specific. "Debate taught us to read more quickly so we were able to complete the literacy passages." "Debating taught us to consider 'deeper' issues when writing the persuasive essay." "We had to read more carefully than we had ever read before."

Additionally, 100% of JUDL's junior and senior debaters passed the state's High School Proficiency Test, many with advanced proficiency scores. This compares to a district pass rate of 64% and a state rate of 83%

After three rounds of competition and a great lunch (thank you Chartwell !!) the league gathered for a high spirited awards assembly. Bronx Law was the big winner. The full listing of teams with winning records and the top 16 speakers can be viewed by clicking here.

But that wasn't all !!! Concurrent with the middle grades tournament JUDL ran a novice high school division. The third round of high school competition featured a debate between the two teams with the best records. On the affirmative was Kylah Braighton of Science HS and on the negative was Tahjanea and Tahjanae McMillian of University HS. Held in University High School's library, this top debate was witnessed by an audience of 40. The judge panel was composed of three experienced JUDL debate alumni and 5 middle grades debaters. For 1 1/2 hours, the two teams locked in high level academic argumentation over the affirmative proposal to increase participation in medical peace corps to combat AIDS in Africa. In the end Science won, but the entire league is indebted to all three young women who provided a model of academic debate at its best.

Hey…What's Bronx Law's Secret ?!

Don't forget we are a part of a large speech and debate community in Newark !

Many were astounded by the size of the turnout at University on November 18. But that was only part of the whole picture. On that same weekend there were high school debaters from Newark competing in Glenview, Illinois at a national tournament, high school speech and debate competitors at a state competition in Randolph, NJ and three bus loads of high school speech competitors at the Villiger Tournament in Philadelphia. All total approximately 325 Newark students and teachers participated in speech and debate events during the weekend of November 18.

Just in case you missed us….

Here's a bit of what the JUDL has been doing in the past several weeks.

NOTE: A summary of all tournament results will be available on the website shortly.

Try not to miss us again….,

Here's where we will be in the next few weeks:

December 2
2nd Middle Grades tournament - University High School
MidHudson Debate League tournament - Byram Hills, NY
December 8-9
Regional debate tournament at Ridge HS in Basking Ridge, NJ
December 12
JUDL novice meet at Technology HS
December 14
JUDL novice scrimmage at Cicely Tyson
January 6
JUDL travels to NYC to debate the NYUDL at Hunter College

October 8, 2006 - The 2006-2007 season is off to a roaring start. Building the strength of the league at the school level is our top priority and several of our newer coaches are clearly leading the away in recruitment.

Guided by our determination to remove barriers to new program development and widespread recruitment, JUDL will be adding several new and specially targeted tournaments.

Our Middle Grades Conference began its season with a full day workshop for coaches and debaters on September 26. Fifty debaters and coaches participated in a lively and productive discussion led by University coach, Havier Nazario and the JUDL Director. University HS debaters Jamil Ahmed and Judith Ezeke provided an instructive demonstration debate while Science HS Kevin Cenac modeled flow sheeting. A makeup workshop for those unable to attend was held on October 5. Eighteen coaches and debaters participated.

MAJOR REVISION TO MGC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE !!!!!!

Coaches attending the September 26 workshop voted to change the opening middle grades tournament form November 4 to November 18. The site will remain University HS and this will be JUDL's Bridge to High School tournament featuring recruitment efforts by Newark's high school debate teams.

September 21, 2006 - The staff of the Jersey Urban Debate League extends a most hearty welcome back to coaches and debaters. Welcome back from an incredibly productive summer and welcome to the opening of our sixth year.

We are better prepared than ever. Our enrollment in summer debate institutes reached a record 72 ! Debaters from Newark, East Orange and Orange studied at Dartmouth College, Emory University, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, University of North Texas and the University of Vermont as well as at Sacred Heart HS in Massachusetts, CITI 2006 in New York City and JUDL's own 3 day August wrap-up at Technology HS. Watch the website for reflections on the 2006 summer experience.

Summer "vacation" ended on September 5th and by now everyone should know the JUDL in OPEN FOR BUSINESS !!! Competition has begun. During the weekend of September 16 we sent Lincoln Douglas debaters to Yale University and policy debaters to WakeForest University in North Carolina.

Our first high school JUDL tournament is September 23rd at Newark Vocational High School. This is a very special tournament for us - the Jose Espada Memorial Tournament. Jose was our most gentle colleague - a debater, a joyful teacher and a loyal friend. As a league we will pause each year at our opening tournament to remind ourselves that we best honor Jose through our service to others and to make sure that every new debater knows of Jose Espada - a JUDL hero.

Our first middle grades tournament is November 4th and the middle grades conference will meet for a full day workshop on September 27. The day will be packed with topic analysis (universal military draft), flowing practice and a demonstration debate. Certainly we are excited to roll out the welcome mat to new middle grades conference members - Robert Treat Academy and Science High School

So JUDL is open for business but business is only good if we recruit at the school level. Last year our member increased 17% to 385 (six years ago membership was 47). The "State of the League" address at our May banquet set the goal of making 10 the minimum size of all JUDL school programs. This requires aggressive and conscious recruitment. Science, University, East Side and West Side have all reported successful recruitment meetings. Remember recruitment is not some one's assignment. It is EVERYONE'S JOB. Let's see if we can reach 450 this year !!!

In early February, the Jersey Urban Debate League hosted the largest ever Newark Invitational Debate tournament. One hundred and ninety eight (198) policy debaters and eighty-eight (88) Lincoln Douglas debaters from Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Washington DC competed on Friday and Saturday in the varsity division. They were joined by an additional 270 competitors in the junior varsity and novice divisions on Saturday. Edgemont HS of Scarsdale, NY captured first place in varsity policy debate and Berkley Carroll High School emerged at the top of the Lincoln Douglas division.

During the second weekend of February, the team of Stephanie Oliveira and Chris Pinho from Science HS made a significant break through at the Harvard National Debate tournament, one of the most difficult of all tournaments on the national debate circuit. Chris and Stephanie faced several of the nation's most competitive teams and fared exceptionally well. Going into the eighth and final preliminary round, they faced a team from the Greenhill School in Dallas, TX, one of the top debate schools in the country. After the debate, the judge deliberated for over 15 minutes and rewarded a narrow victory to Greenhill, leaving the Oliveira/Pinho team with a final record of 5 wins and 3 losses. While this decision prevented them from advancing to elimination rounds, the experience has given Science debaters the confidence to take on and defeat some of the best teams in the country.

Additionally, their success has again solidified the reputation of Newark Science as a nationally competitive school. Beyond the win/loss record, however, the Harvard tournament marked Stephanie and Chris's rise from level of strong tactical debaters to proficient strategic debaters.

On March 11 teams from the JUDL dominated the New Jersey Forensic League state final tournament in policy debate. State championship of varsity policy debate was captured by Science High School, junior varsity state championship went to Technology High School and University High School emerged as novice state champions. For overall performance in all divisions of debate, Technology High School won the second place in the statewide sweepstakes.

Finally on March 18 and 19, the National Forensic League held its New Jersey qualifying tournament for national finals. After two days of intense competition, two teams from Science High School are selected by the judges to represent New Jersey in policy debate - Stephanie Oliveira / Chris Pinho and Kevin Cenac / Walter Diaz.

Varsity

1st place - Chris Pinho and Stephanie Oliveira (Science HS)
2nd place - Walter Diaz and Kevin Cenac (Science HS
3rd place - Eugene Cruz and Greg Waltenberg (Technology HS)
4th place - Morgan Foster and Nigeria Wilson (Technology HS)

Junior Varsity

1st place - Tiffany Mariano and Stephanie Mariano (Technology HS)
2nd place - Oshane Lennon and Evenia Wright (Newark Vocational HS)
3rd place - Aleece Murphy and Daniel Feliciano (Newark vocational
4th place - Pamela Chomba and Catherine Torres (Science HS)

Novice

1st place - Joshua Gonzales and Youseff Camara (University HS)
2nd place - Rajeem Scott and Kaylah Norris (Technology HS)
3rd place - Jose Rivera and Krystal Salas (Technology HS)
4th place - Ambreen Hernandez and William Massie (Newark Vocational HS)

State final debate sweepstakes awards are given to schools on the basis of their teams overall combined performance in Public Forum Debate, Novice Lincoln Douglas Debate, Varsity Lincoln Douglas Debate, Novice Policy Debate, Junior Varsity Policy Debate and Varsity Policy Debate

Out of more than 25 schools from around the state…….

The 2nd place Debate Sweepstakes winner was Technology HS

The 5th place Debate Sweepstakes winner was Science HS

Also Brent Farrand was presented with the 2006 Coach of the Year Award by the New Jersey Forensic League

Newark 2007 will be held at our new site: the brand new Newark Science Park High School.

Middle school debaters and coaches received a full day workshop on October 25 focused on developing arguments and counter arguments for the fall resolution - that the United States should ban racial profiling in law enforcement by passing the End Racial Profiling Act. Although the workshop was held on a staff development day when students were "out of school", more than 100 middle grade students participated from 9am through 2:30pm.

JUDL's weekly Debate Resource Center has been redesigned to focus on providing an arena for regular practice rounds and three special scrimmage sessions have been conducted. The scrimmages and resource center practice rounds permit our debaters to witness the decision-making process used by highly qualified judges as they evaluate debate rounds.

JUDL has instituted its own news clipping service. Several times per week news articles pertinent to the current topic are posted on our own Yahoo Group site (registration required) and then emailed to all JUDL debaters. The clipping service has dramatically improved our debaters dedication to updating their evidence files.

Finally the league has established a tradition of a "JUDL war room" at regional tournaments. After each round of competition, all JUDL teams gather in a designated room equipped with computers and printers. In rapid fire succession, teams report on the new arguments they faced, responses are cooperatively formulated and briefing sessions conducted - all before the next round begins.

On November 16, the JUDL hosted our 2nd Annual Bridge to College tournament. Over 150 teams from four cities (Providence, New York City, Newark and Washington, DC) gathered at Montclair University for 3 rounds of intense competition meshed with recruitment sessions that involved representatives from 21 colleges and universities. The event was co-sponsored with Montclair's Latin American Student Organization (LASO).

On December 3, JUDL inaugurated its first combined high school and middle grades tournament. Hosted by University High School and conceived as an event to unite the entire league, the tournament provided middle grades debaters an opportunity to observe and judge high school debaters and allowed high school and middle grades coaches a chance to network. Additionally each high school team set up a recruitment table during the lunch hour, eagerly discussing with middle grades debaters the prospects and promise of high school debate. In all, the tournament brought together 280 middle grades and high school debaters, 30 debate alumni and 43 debate coaches.

Participation in middle grades tournament has continued to grow robustly. In 2004 an average of 160 students attended each of the two fall tournaments. This year each of the two fall tournaments for the middle grades conference were attended by more than 200 debaters. Although school membership remains steady at 28, every school has reported strong recruitment of new debaters. Tournaments have been expanded to include three divisions - beginner, experienced and advanced.

Participation in high school tournaments has shown modest but steady growth. More than 80 high school debaters have competed in 4 JUDL tournaments and 8 regional tournaments The programs at Science, Technology, Newark Vocational, and Orange form the solid backbone of the high school conference. Central and West Side are rapidly solidifying. Weequahic has recruited a new coach who has made remarkable advances since September. University has re-established its high school team largely through middle grades debaters becoming high school freshman. They are a dominant force in the novice division. Indeed, the most exciting development in the high school league is the 26 freshmen debaters who graduated from the middle grades league and are now competing for 4 of the high schools.

Ridge HS: JUDL speakers took 4 of the top 10 speakers awards.

Hunter College: Technology, University and West Side brought home a slew of trophies. The big news is the 3-0 top team in the Novice division by Technology HS!

Resolution 1:  Surveillance of U.S. citizens without proper court order should be illegal even in cases of national security.
(Students will debate whether or not the Bush administration's secret survelliance program is proper or not)

Resolution 2:  The use of torture by government agents to gather national security information should be declared a criminal act with exception.
(Students will debate whether or not the exceptions in criminal prosecution included in the McCain Act are justified or not)

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January 3, 2006 - The new year is upon us, and it's time for New Year's Resolutions. Let's start with these two modest resolutions:

• Check out the JUDL Yahoo Group: This Yahoo group is moderated by our very own Kurt Shelton. This group lists major stories related to the resolution. Debaters should constantly monitor this site and even add there own contributions. You have to register to view the listings.
• Smile at debate tournaments: With more debate galleries up, it's a wonder why debaters don't smile more often. After all debate is so much fun. Smile, you're on JUDL camera!

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December 30, 2005 - The Jersey Urban Debate League would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season.

Topical News - JUDL.org will now feature 3 civil liberties or national security articles powered automatically by CaRP and Yahoo. Learn more about RSS. Thanks CaRP!

From my friends at JibJab, click here for a funny 2005 year round-up.

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October 25, 2005 - It was a big month for the Jersey Urban Debate League. Even though the debate season is only 2 months old, the JUDL has been in 2005-2006 mode for 6 months now. Onward to November!

October Highlights

• College Bridge: Our biggest tournament to date, this year's College Bridge Tournament taught us a lot. We know there is strong support in the region for this event. We know college and universities are now very aware about this tournament. We know it's a huge endeavor. We know we have to do an even better job next year! Results are coming soon and keep us in mind for next fall.
• New JUDL.org: It took a while, but JUDL.org got a long awaited upgrade. The hopes for this website is that is better represents our 2 conferences, continues to be a resource for our debaters and we share our ideas to the UDL community so we can better learn from each other.
• Monticello and Bronx tournaments: Not much said about these tournaments, but the JUDL was represented at all the regional NFL and MHL debate tournaments so far. Check out the JUDL.org for all the latest news.

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October 19, 2005 - On Saturday October 22, over 250 debaters from up and down the North Atlantic states will descend on Montclair State University for JUDL's 2nd Annual College Bridge Tournament.

College recruitment check-in will be held at Webster Hall on the MSU campus. Recruiters will arrive as early as 8:00 am for the morning session and no later than 11:00 a.m. for the lunch session. Recruiters will be checked-in early so that we can ensure that the college sessions can begin promptly.

Thanks go out to the Latin American Student Organization (LASO) for all their help and being the laison between the JUDL and MSU. JUDL staff member Yanira Rivera is a former LASO member and is helping make this event possible. October 18, 2005 - Out with the old. In with the new. JUDL.org has gotten a much needed face-lift. All the old content is in the new site, but some of it is in slightly different locations. Please take this opportunity to navigate around the site.

Conferences
When the JUDL was first formed, it was only a high school league. Now in our 5th year, we have debaters from grades 6 through 12. Two years ago we formed the Middle Grade conference of the JUDL, and this new website design aims to do a better job of representing both conferences.

Highlighting Initiatives
While our focus remains on competitive and academic debate, the JUDL is commited to our debaters and their continuing education. The tireless work put in by the staff and our director Brent Farrand is a year-round effort. You can help by simply spreading the word about the Jersey Urban Debate League.

Many Thanks
A special thanks goes to Joe Rivera who volunteered his time and energy to develop the graphical components of the site. Without that work, it would be more of this webmaster's graphics work which is by all accounts pretty shabby. Thanks again Joe! Also please thank a JUDL staff member near you. They are all contributing their time towards writing new articles; I hope you look forward to them. In addition to our high tower voices, we are reaching out to coaches, students, alumni and others to submit their own articles/stories to share with our unique community. We have so much to learn from each other. I welcome your contributions.

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October 3, 2005 - October is upon us. The 22nd is not far behind and that will mark the second annual College Bridge Tournament. We're hard at work inviting colleges and universities to our event. Listed below is an abbreviated and tentative list. Keep checking us out for the latest on this great event!

Marist	SUNY - New Paltz	The College of New Jersey
Yale	Wellesley	Rutgers University
Swarthmore	Seton Hall University	Franklin Pierce
Drew	University of Vermont	Montclair St University
Oberlin	Kean University	Clark-Atlanta University
NJIT	Columbia University	George Washington University
Pace	Clark University	University of Virginia
Penn State	Virginia St University

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September 28, 2005 - Our inaugural Jose Espada Memorial Tournament gave the JUDL and its members a chance to reflect on the loss of one of our JUDL prioneers. Jose was one of the first Newark Vocational debaters that helped change the way people thought about Newark Vocational. With the help of Coach Mr. Hohl, Newark Vocational's debate program is now a thriving organization. Jose was a big part of that foundation and will be missed.

Results are coming soon.

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September 26, 2005 - The Jersey Urban Debate League is hosting the 2nd Annual College Bridge Tournament to be held Saturday, October 22 at Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey.

This event will combine academic debate competition with an organized exchange between college recruiters and high school debaters. Debaters and recruiters will be offered two sessions of 1 hour each to meet and exchange information. Additionally recruiters will be able to observe prospective applicants "in action" during actual debate competitions.

We expect that more than 24 colleges and universities will be represented along with debaters from the DCUDL, Baltimore UDL, NYUDL, Rhode Island Debate League, the Mid Hudson Debate League and the Jersey Urban Debate League. Our inaugural tournament last year drew 100 teams and 19 college recruiters

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September 22, 2005 - The first JUDL tournament is now a day away, and with the new year comes new changes to our website. In the near future, the website will have a new look. However immediately we are featuring new coach and student columns. Our first column has been provided by Science High School Coach, Mr. Randy Mitchell. Please read Mr. Mitchell's article on Prep Time Management.

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September 13, 2005 - Tomorrow is the deadline for the Middle Grades' resolution vote! Every vote counts.

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September 12, 2005 - Welcome back! Everyone is hard at work getting the new JUDL season under way! Lots of news and updates coming soon.

New Schedule Check out the latest schedule. So many of our tournament last year had dual purpose. We had a College Bridge Tournament which gave our students the unique opportunity to debate and speak to college recruiters at the same event. We hosted a Middle Grades and High School conference tournament, so our Middle Grades Conference debaters could get a chance to see some high school debate. Building on that success, we are bringing those tournament back this year along with some great new ideas.

New Look Our website is due a makeover. Coming soon will be out new look. Keep checking us out!

Spread the Word Now more than ever, everyone needs to spread the word of the Jersey Urban Debate League. While you do your part, we will be doing ours by getting our local media more involved, reaching out to our debater's families, inviting sponsors to attend our debate events, and much more!