JACKSON, Tenn. — April 24, 2019 — Union University’s debate team won first place at the International Public Debate Association’s National Championships tournament April 7-13 in Reno, Nevada. The team also won second place in the Founders Award competition, which combines scores from all divisions and tournaments throughout the year.
Web Drake, chair of Union’s department of communication arts and director of debate, said debate allows all students to hone the skills they need to succeed in their classes and workplaces. Union’s debate team includes students from more than 15 programs across the university.
“Debate teaches you to think critically and teaches you to think quickly, especially the kind of debate that we do where there is limited prep time,” Drake said. “That of course translates to any discipline.”
Joshua Swafford, junior political science and Spanish major, is team captain for the debate team. He said his three years on the debate team have sharpened his presentation skills and broadened his horizons.
“It’s helped me to think about a wide variety of issues, not just things that I’m familiar with,” Swafford said. “One debate you might be debating about President Trump and the next you’re debating about solar energy. I’m much more aware of more issues than I was before.”
Union competes against a variety of public and private schools in IPDA, with 154 schools participating in the national championships this year. This was the Union’s sixth national championships tournament win. Swafford said he is most impressed with his team’s ability to sustain excellence year to year.
“That does say something about the team mindset, how the team is structured and how we perform,” Swafford said. “It speaks to the leadership and the way Dr. Drake has led the team in making sure that we’re always prepared.”
Drake, who will be leaving Union after this semester, said this tournament was a good one to go out on.
“This was an excellent team,” he said. “It was a young team with a lot of new people, and I was very, very proud of them. They came a long way this year.”
In addition to the tournament win, Union’s team also won several other individual and team awards.