2020 UDNC
A Standing Spirit of Celebration
When NAUDL made the difficult announcement that our Annual Dinner and Urban Debate National Championship (UDNC) were cancelled due to the global health crisis, we knew we wanted to celebrate virtually the honors and awards that are part of these signature events. This includes the Debater of the Year, Debater of the Year Finalists, Coach of the Year and the UDNC qualifiers from our leagues. It is their dedication to their craft throughout the year that brings the NAUDL mission to life.
I want to congratulate all of our debaters and their coaches on the hard work of the 2019-20 season. I also want to offer my gratitude to
Dr. Ben Voth and his colleagues at Southern Methodist University (SMU) where we intended to host the tournament. We hope to host future events in Dallas.
In these challenging times, know that NAUDL remains committed to our mission, our leagues and the students they serve. We look forward to brighter times ahead and wish you well.
Stuart Singer
Chair, NAUDL Board of Directors
A Community of Champions: 2020 National Qualifiers
Each year, our 22 league partners receive two entries for high school debate pairs to compete at NAUDL’s Urban Debate National Championship (UDNC). Teams must consist of students who attend the same school and qualifiers must compete in at least three league sponsored tournaments during the current academic year. After a season of preparation, these hard-working and dedicated students qualified for this year’s championship (see special features here):
Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce Direct Commercial Sales and/or Foreign Military Sales of arms from the United States
Atlanta Urban Debate League
Masadericka Ampafo and Aaron Gill
Rockdale County High School
Coach: Karease Quashie
Atlanta Urban Debate League
Maddox Gates and Terroin Joiner
Charles R. Drew Charter School
Coach: Candice Williams
Bay Area Urban Debate League
Ne’Jahra Soriano and Salvador Sanchez-Cortez
Emery High School
Coach: Jessica Wright-Crichlow
Bay Area Urban Debate League
Megan Ma and Veronica Liu
Oakland Technical High School
Coach: Seth Zimmerman
Boston Debate League
Justin Perez and Tyerohn Coleman
Charlestown High School
Coach: Matt Grimes
Boston Debate League
Nia Thompson and Hasna Iqbal
Boston Latin Academy
Coach: Sneha Walia
Chicago Debates
Nik Stamenkovic and Gabriella Perez
John F. Kennedy High School
Coach: Kevin Trant
Chicago Debates
Aysia Grey and Dimarvin Puerto
Lane Tech College Prep
Coach: Andrew Fine
Dallas Urban Debate Alliance
Coming soon
DEBATE! Kansas City
Jaleon Brown and Neymara Freeman
Sumner Academy of Arts & Science
Coach: Jamelle Brown (2020 NAUDL Coach of the Year)
DEBATE! Kansas City
Emmarie Miller and Michelle Sall
Lincoln College Prep
Coach: Charles Palmer
Denver Urban Debate League
Joshua Duran and Danh Vu
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Early College
Coach: Rachel Bruce
Denver Urban Debate League
Reyna Esquibel and Owen Schalk
Denver City for International Studies
Coach: Benjamin Pruitt
Detroit Urban Debate League
Nakayla Butler and Jabari Cook
University Prep High School
Coach: Sukhvinder Johal
Detroit Urban Debate League
Danielle Cain and Lavern Harden
University Prep High School
Coach: Sharon Hopkins
Houston Urban Debate League
Alexander Poll and Thomas Williams
Heights High School
Coach: Isaac Chao
Houston Urban Debate League
Alfonso Arreola and Lee Carter
Heights High School
Coach: Isaac Chao
Los Angeles Metropolitan Debate League (LAMDL)
Diego Flores and Jackie Ize-Iyamu
Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School
Coach: Steve Valenzuela
Los Angeles Metropolitan Debate League (LAMDL)
Qi Bin Lei and Gabriel Gutierrez
Alliance Marc and Eva Stern Math and Science School
Coach: Yvonne Gutierrez
Metro Memphis Urban Debate League
Maggie Dearmore and Hope McClew
White Station High School
Coach: Curt Rakestraw
Metro Memphis Urban Debate League
Lydia Grace and Harper Kolehmainen
Crosstown High School
Coach: Deion Jordan
Miami Dade Urban Debate League
Naomi Tsu and Aliya Dhanji
American Senior High School
Coach: Bernadette Chitolie
Miami Dade Urban Debate League
Gabriel Zamora and Maximo Mayora
American Senior High School
Coach: Bernadette Chitolie
Milwaukee Debate League
Samuel Larson and Adit Gupta
Marquette University High School
Coach: Linnea Stanton
Milwaukee Debate League
Yeraldy Ramirez-Estanislao and Elizabeth Literski
Rufus King High School
Coach: Stephanie King
Minnesota Urban Debate League
Elsa Snowbeck and Henry Kelly
Highland Park High School
Coach: Lily Endo
Minnesota Urban Debate League
Simon Jarcho and Isabel Kleckner
Washburn High School
Coach: Izak Gallini-Matyas
Nashville Debate League
Kurt Schelzig and Mohammad Laghari
Hillsboro High School
Coach: Joseph Nettles
Nashville Debate League
Iris May-Fleming and Hannah Sanders
Hume-Fogg Academic Magnet School
Coach: Courtney Shultz
New York City Urban Debate League
Coming soon
Rhode Island Urban Debate League
Erick Gonzalez Soto and Jose Rivera
Blackstone Academy Charter School
Coach: Christina Lee
Silicon Valley Urban Debate League (SVUDL)
Daksh Jain and Jasleen Rhandawa
Silver Creek High School
Coach: Robert Burns
Silicon Valley Urban Debate League (SVUDL)
Tiffany Tran and Ishita Verma
Silver Creek High School
Coach: Robert Burns
Tulsa Debate League
Hannah Hoff and Cormell Padillow
Will Rogers Senior High School
Coach: Michael Haskins
Tulsa Debate League
Courtne Jordan and Yaakov Ewell
McLain High School
Coach: David Lawrence
Washington Urban Debate League (Washington, D.C.)
Paola Almendarez and Lola Rogin
District of Columbia International School
Coach: Patrick McMullen
Washington Urban Debate League (Washington, D.C.)
Ernest Ntangu and Justin Sayoto
DuVal High School
Coach: Dara Davis
Young Leaders Charting Their Mark
Continuing a longstanding legacy, twelve urban debate alumni were selected to the 2020 Alumni Ambassadors program. Each year, ambassadors from across the country are chosen based on their commitment to urban debate and their leadership and service to their community. This year was a particularly impressive class and we are pleased to recognize these accomplished young leaders.
See some of the Ambassadors’ own captures of their orientation in Chicago.
Saul Cardenas
Los Angeles Urban Debate League
California State University, Northridge
Michael John
Boston Urban Debate League
University of Pennsylvania
Joyce Korir
Atlanta Urban Debate League
Emory University
Travis McClendon
Detroit Urban Debate League
Henry Ford College
Adele Pereira
Chicago Debates
Emory University
Elvis Pineda
Los Angeles Urban Debate League (LAMDL)
California State University, Long Beach
Ronald Poole
Houston Urban Debate League
Emory University
Fariha Rahman
New York City Urban Debate League
American University
Timothy Richmond
Metro Memphis Urban Debate League
Emory University
Ridhwan Shakil
Nashville Urban Debate League
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Bilqiis Sheikh-Issa
Washington Urban Debate League
(Washington, D.C.)
University of Mary Washington
Elisa Yeung
Bay Area Urban Debate League
University of San Francisco