The Georgia Debate Union has been fielding competitive policy debate teams for over fifty years. The program has graduated debaters who have become productive scholars and citizens across several generations. We have compiled a partial list of alumni that you are welcome to peruse. As one can see, Georgia debaters are a politically diverse group. Based upon our limited records, the period between 1964 and 1977 was a remarkably successful one for University debaters. We have a complete record of trophies won during that period and many are stored in the University archive. The program was regularly in the late elimination rounds of national tournaments and UGA debaters qualified for the National Debate Tournament (NDT) on an annual basis. At that time, the team was housed in the Jasper Dorsey Room in the Geology and Geography building. Coaches during this period include Richard Huseman, John Hatfield, Chester Gibson, Merwin Hays, Bert Gross, Joe Luchock and Sandy Pence. We are very interested in filling in the history of Georgia Debate and would appreciate any information interested alumni can provide. The program was largely a regional one between 1977 and 1987 and performed effectively during that time. In 1987, the Department of Speech Communication recommitted itself to competing at the highest levels. During the last seventeen years, Georgia Debate has qualified 30 teams for the NDT. Our teams are usually in the elimination rounds of the national tournament. Their accomplishments during this period include debating in the finals, semi- finals, and quarterfinals of the tournament. Additionally, in 2003 UGA had the 17th team in the history of the NDT to compile an 8-0 record in the preliminary debates. The 2003 team, Powers and Ramachandrappa, join the Martinsons (1971) as UGA teams to achieve a perfect record in the preliminary debates. During the last seven years our students have won a variety of awards at some of the most rigorous events in the country (see below). In 1993, the team moved its offices to Phi Kappa Hall from the Dorsey room. In the fall of 2004, Phi Kappa Hall was renovated for the team. UGA President, Dr. Michael Adams, is a former intercollegiate debater who facilitated the renovation of the office for our debaters. Georgia's NDT Qualifiers 1967: Marcia Mulkey and Skeet Muncie 1968: Terry Brown and Mark Dickerson 1969: Terry Brown and Steve McCurley* 1970: Terry Brown and Steve McCurley 1971: Pam Martinson and Tom Martinson* 1972: Richard Bethea and Margaret Snyder 1973: Richard Bethea and Don Cornwell* 1974: Richard Bethea and Peter Quist 1975: Richard Bethea and Donald Lively* & Don Cornwell and Bill Withrow 1976: John Bow and Mark Brown 1977: John Bow and Don Lively 1990: Allison Ashe and Kelly Happe 1991: Allison Ashe and Kelly Happe 1992: Jeff Griswold and Leonard Neighbors* 1993: Jeff Griswold and Leonard Neighbors 1994: Paul Barsness and Leonard Neighbors* & Marcus Henson and Shunta' Jordan 1995: Paul Barsness and Leonard Neighbors* & Michael Cates and Anne DeWolf 1996: Paul Barsness and Michael Cates* & Bill Roberts and Nirav Dhruva & Chris McIntosh and J. Leighton Miller* 1997: Paul Barsness and Daniel Davis* & Michael Cates and Chris McIntosh* & Bill Roberts and Jason Teagle 1998: Michael Cates and Chris McIntosh* & Jason Teagle and Michael Matos 1999: Chris McIntosh and Bill Roberts* & Wally Eastwood and Meredith Stein 2000: Shawn Powers and Robbie Quinn & Wally Eastwood and Patricia Kelley 2001: Shawn Powers and Robbie Quinn* & Adrianne Carr and Kate McGrath 2002: Shawn Powers and Hays Watson & Michael Lee and Naveen Ramachandrappa 2003: Shawn Powers and Naveen Ramachandrappa* & Tom Keane and Hays Watson* & Patricia Kelley and Adrianne Carr 2004: Naveen Ramachandrappa and Hays Watson* & Brent Culpepper and Robbie Quinn 2005: Brent Culpepper and Hays Watson & Todd Mitchell and Kevin Rabinowitz 2006: Brent Culpepper and Kevin Rabinowitz & Todd Mitchell and Spencer Diamond 2007: Brent Culpepper and Kevin Rabinowitz* & Todd Mitchell and Spencer Diamond 2008: Todd Mitchell and Spencer Diamond & Adam Schmidt and Brittany Cambre 2009: Adam Schmidt and Brittany Cambre & Maggy Warden and Karen Harrison & Mike Lacy and Tommy Beyer 2010: Brittany Cambre & Mike Lacy* & Karen Harrison & Austin Layton 2011: Mike Lacy & Austin Layton* 2012: Mike Lacy & Austin Layton* & Tommy Beyer & Shyam Shanker 2013: Austin Layton & Shyam Shanker & Robert Galerstein & Will Caplan 2014: Shyam Shanker and Will Caplan & Robert Galerstein and Maggie Davis 2015: Amy Feinberg and Tucker Boyce & Robert Galerstein and Chetan Hebbale* 2016: Tucker Boyce and Nathan Rice & Swapnil Agrawal and Advait Ramanan* 2017: Advait Ramanan and Swapnil Agrawal & Nathan Rice and Johnnie Stupek* 2018: Advait Ramanan and Swapnil Agrawal* & Nathan Rice and Johnnie Stupek* & Alyssa Hoover and Tripp Haskins 2019: Advait Ramanan and Swapnil Agrawal* & Nathan Rice and Johnnie Stupek* & Alyssa Hoover and Tripp Haskins* 2020: Zach Adam and Joshua Weintraub 2021: Jack Mruz and Daniel Wakefield 2022: Jack Mruz and Roman Vale 2023: Jack Mruz and Roman Vale * reflects teams that debated in elimination rounds of the National Debate Tournament. The NDT is a qualifying event for the 78 best debate teams in the country. Beginning in the 1990s, rules of the tournament were amended to allow six universities to qualify up to three teams for the NDT. Squad results (1997/1998 - 2010/2011) 1997-1998 1st place, Thomas Jefferson Debates, Washington D.C., 1997 5th place, University of North Carolina, 1997 5th place, Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 1997 3rd place, Alan Nichols Debates, University of Southern California, 1998 3rd place, University of Redlands, 1998 9th place, Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 1998 2nd place, Herbert L. James Round Robin, Dartmouth College, 1998 9th place, United States Naval Academy, 1998 9th place, Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 1998 Elimination debates, Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 1998 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 1998 (two teams) 9th place, National Debate Tournament, 1998 1998-1999 2nd place, Season Opener Iowa, 1998 3rd place, Henry Clay Debates, University of Kentucky, 1998 9th place, Robert Kennedy Debates, Harvard University, 1998 5th place, Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 1998 9th place, Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 1999 3rd place, Herbert L. James Round Robin, Dartmouth College, 1999 5th place, Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 1999 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 1999 (two teams) 5th rated individual team in country by NDT Committee, 1999 9th place, National Debate Tournament, 1999 1999-2000 9th place, University of South Carolina, 1999 2nd place, Henry Clay Debates for 1st year debaters, 1999 1st place, Vanderbilt University Debate Tournament, 2000 5th place, U.S. Naval Academy, 2000 9th place, MTSU Debate Tournament, 2000 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2000 (two teams) 2000-2001 2nd place, University of Alabama Debate Tournament, 2000 3rd place, University of Alabama, 2000 5th place, Henry Clay Debates for 1st year debaters, 2000 9th place, U.S. Naval Academy Debate Tournament, 2001 2nd place, Novice National Debate Tournament, Northwestern University, 2001 Elimination debates, Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament, 2001 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2001 (two teams) 17th place, National Debate Tournament, 2001 2001-2002 1st place, Emory University, 2001 2nd place, University of Alabama, 2001 2nd place, California State University Fullerton, 2002 Elimination debates, Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament, 2002 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2002 (two teams) 2002-2003 1st place, National Debate Tournament Season Opener, 2002 1st place, Univ. of Alabama, 2002 9th place, Liberty University, 2002 3rd place, University of Louisville, 2003 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2003 (three teams) 1st and 2nd place, Southeast CEDA Tournament, 2003 1st place, Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 2003 Participant, Herbert L. James Round Robin, Dartmouth College 2003 5th place, Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 2003 Participant, Policy Debate Round Robin, Chicago, 2003 Elimination debates, Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament, 2003 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2003 (three teams) Top Seed (8-0) at the 2003 National Debate Tournament 6th rated team in country by NDT Committee, 2003 5th and 9th place teams, National Debate Tournament, 2003 2003-2004 9th place, National Season Opener, 2003 5th place, University of Alabama, 2003 2nd place, Robert F. Kennedy Debates, Harvard University, 2003 2nd place, Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2003 3rd place, Wake Forest Freshman Tournament, 2003 5th place, University of Southern California, 2003 1st place, Southeast CEDA Tournament, 2004 Elimination debates, Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament, 2004 17th place, Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament, 2004 2nd place, Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 2004 Participant, Herbert L. James Round Robin, Dartmouth College 2004 5th place, Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 2004 Participant, Policy Debate Round Robin, Chicago, 2004 Qualifier, National Debate Tournament, 2004 (two teams) 5th rated team in country by NDT Committee, 2004 9th place, National Debate Tournament, 2004 2004-2005 9th place - National Season Opener, 2004 5th place - University of Alabama, 2004 17th place - Henry Clay Debates, University of Kentucky, 2004 3rd place, 9th place, 10th place - Liberty University, 2004 17th place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2004 17th place - University of Southern California, 2004 9th place - Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 2005 1st place, 9th place - U.S. Naval Academy Debates, 2005 17th place - Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 2005 5th place - Vanderbilt University, 2005 Qualifier - National Debate Tournament, 2005 (two teams) 5th place, 9th place - ADA National Tournament, 2005 2005-2006 17th place, National Season Opener, 2005 5th place - Liberty University, 2005 9th place - Henry Clay Debates, University of Kentucky, 2005 2nd place - University of Alabama, 2005 9th place - Robert F. Kennedy Debates, Harvard University, 2005 2nd place, 9th place - Capitol Cities Debates, Catholic University, 2005 1st place, 3rd place - Appalachian State University, 2005 9th place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2005 9th place - University of Southern California, 2005 9th place - California State-Fullerton University, 2006 5th place - Robert D. Tisinger Debates, 2006 5th place - Naval Academy, 2006 1st place, 3rd place - Florida State University, 2006 9th place - University of Texas, 2006 2006-2007 1st place - National Season Opener, 2006 2nd place - University of Kentucky Round Robin, 2006 2nd place - Henry Clay Debates, University of Kentucky, 2006 4th and 10th place - Vanderbilt University Debate Tournament, 2006 4th and 6th place - James Madison, 2006 5th place - Robert F. Kennedy Debates, Harvard University, 2006 1st and 5th place - Appalachian State University, 2006 2nd place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2006 5th place - Alan Nichols Debates, University of Southern California, 2006 1st place - California State-Fullerton University, 2007 1st place - Herbert L. James Round Robin, Dartmouth College, 2007 3rd place - Owen Coon Debates, Northwestern University, 2007 1st and 2nd place - University of Florida, 2007 1st and 3rd place - Southeast CEDA Championship 2007 2007-2008 17th place - National Season Opener, Georgia State University, 2007 3rd place - Liberty University, 2007 5th place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2007 9th place - California-State-Fullerton University, 2008 9th place - West Georgia, 2008 1st place - Naval Academy, 2008 17th place - University of Texas, 2008 2008-2009 9th place - National Season Opener, Georgia State University, 2008 17th place - University of Kentucky, 2008 3rd place - Freshman Break-Out, University of Kentucky, 2008 Top 1st Year Speaker in America, University of Kentucky, 2008 2nd place - Vanderbilt University, 2008 5th place - Liberty University, 2007 17th place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2008 3rd place - Freshman/Sophomore Break-Out, Wake Forest University, 2008 9th place - University of Southern California, 2009 9th place - California-State, Fullerton University, 2009 9th place - Naval Academy, 2008 5th place - West Georgia, 2009 Three Teams Qualified to the NDT 2009-2010 5th place - National Season Opener, Georgia State University, 2009 17th place - University of Kentucky, 2009 9th Place - Harvard University, 2009 9th place, Liberty University, 2009 17th place - Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2009 5th place - Mountain State Debates, Appalachian State, 2009 5th place - University of Southern California, 2010 17th place, California State, Fullerton, 2010 Runner Up - West Georgia, 2010 3rd place and 5th place - University of Texas, 2010 9th place, American Debate Association National Championship, 2010 First Round Bid to the NDT, Two Teams Qualified to the NDT Mike Lacy & Brittany Cambre, NDT Octafinalists, 2010 2010-2011 9th place, National Season Opener, Georgia State University, 2010 Kentucky Round Robin Invite (Top 9 Schools Nationally) 9th place, Owen L. Coon Invitational, Northwestern University, 2010 5th place, West Georgia Novice Debates, 2010 5th place and Top Novice Speaker, Liberty University, 2010 9th place, Franklin Shirley Debates, Wake Forest University, 2010 5th place and 2nd Novice Speaker, Mountain State Debates, Appalachian State, 2010 9th place, University of Southern California, 2011 17th place, California State, Fullerton 2011 5th place, University of Georgia Debates, 2011 3rd place and Top Speaker, Indiana University Hoosier Invitational, 2011 5th place and Top Novice Speaker, University of Kentucky, 2011 First Round Bid to the NDT Mike Lacy & Austin Layton, NDT Double Octafinalists Archived Trophy Listing A list of trophies that have been moved to the University archives is available. Many other trophies, dating back to the 1950s, are still housed in the debate office. View the listing of the Debate Union's archived trophies
