Many students have seen the infamous “Debate is a contact sport” posters that have been lining the school bulletin boards recently, but many are unaware of the Debate Team’s deep successes this year. 

The Debate Team is a group of students that dedicate hours of their time towards perfecting their researching, argumentative, and public speaking skills. They meet weekly and compete in tournaments on weekends to test their skills against schools locally and nationally. 

The team’s primary form of competition is through the organization ICDA, Illinois Congressional Debate Association, which mimics the processes that occur in a traditional congressional meeting. 

Once a month, students dress up in professional clothing, debate bills that were written by other students, and awards are given to the top debaters. Congressional debate is an IHSA competitive activity, and debaters are awarded varsity letters for their participation.

This year, one of the bills debated at an ICDA tournament was written by a member of the LFHS debate team. According to Research Chair, junior Ana Dollard, this is the “first time in years this has happened.” 

Freshman Adelyn Jacobs presented her bill regarding Universal Child Care, which was eventually debated at the tournament. Jacobs said she felt so much “support” from her peers in the process, and that it was “amazing practice in being more confident in my [her] ideas.”

The Team experienced great successes in their competitions, with freshman Alejandro Leahy winning 1st place and 2nd place at two separate ICDA competitions, junior Caroline Gerber winning 2nd place at an ICDA competition, and sophomore Kosta Kapsalis winning “Best Presiding Officer” at an ICDA competition, are among some of the honors LFHS debaters have received in Congressional Debate this year.

The team also competes in tournaments run through JSA, standing for Junior State of America. JSA is a more laid-back form of debate competition compared to ICDA. 

Debaters engage in a wide variety of debates ranging from serious debates to joke debates, even rap-battles are thrown in every once in a while. 

Debate Coach Mr. John Wanninger says the organization allows students to develop “leadership skills” and “civic engagement.” 

JSA has provided opportunities for LFHS debaters to take on leadership roles beyond the school itself. Dollard is an expansion agent for JSA which means she communicates with surrounding schools to get them involved with the organization. Kapsalis, who is the JSA Chapter President, is also a member of JSA’s Midwest Cabinet, an organization of students from Illinois and ten other states who work to run the JSA organization.

“Being part of this group has been very rewarding as I contribute to the overall direction of the organization while gaining skills in working within a leadership team to achieve goals and meet deadlines,” said Kapsalis.

The team even got to host their own JSA Chapter Convention here at the High School. The convention took place just near St. Patrick’s Day, so the competition was cleverly named LepreCon. 

While the team was very successful on the debate floor itself, LepreCon was also especially rewarding because the event raised money for a special cause. The team held a bake sale, raffle, and a Shamrock Shake fundraiser at the competition to support NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. The team ended up raising around $300 for the charity at this event.

“It [LepreCon] was an amazing experience for the LFHS Debate Team to host many other schools, talk about policy, and raise money for charity,” junior and Debate Team President Avery Morris said. 

Something notable about the Debate Team is how involved high school students can get in leadership, both locally and on larger scales.

“JSA is a very student driven and run organization, and even the higher-ups tend to be kids,” said Dollard. “It makes it an extremely unique environment to be in, and one that is very much catered to our demographic.”

The fact that students can acquire such leadership skills and experience is unique for a high school activity, and these valuable experiences are what many members believe sets debate apart from the rest.

“Debate is great because it provides a format to contemplate controversial topics,” said junior member Caroline Gerber. “Debate fosters mental agility, quick thinking, and interpersonal communication skills, which are all very valuable life skills.”

The ICDA congressional debates are all local, however, the team got to travel to multiple Midwest cities this year in order to debate on a larger scale. The team competed in JSA Fall State this past November, a convention held in Chicago which attracts teams from all over the Midwest. After the two-day convention, Nicholas Pizzo and Alejandro Leahy won “Best Speaker” awards. 

“Our team was not only very engaged in the event [Fall State] but also enjoyed the interaction with students from other schools who are passionate about world events and debate,” said Kapsalis.

Similarly, five members of the team were able to travel to Indianapolis this past February to compete in Winter Congress, a JSA run event. Winter Congress is typically held in D.C, but has been relocated to Indianapolis since COVID-19 hit. Wannigner is “hoping that the event will be back in D.C. next year.”

The Debate Team’s successes this year did not come without struggle, however. According to Wanninger, “After the remote year, we had a hard time rebuilding the team. This year, we have a great core of talented and committed debaters, and they have really worked hard to rebuild the team.”

President Morris shares the same sentiments about the growth in the team this year, and how her favorite part of this year was watching her peers become “better speakers” and “critical thinkers.” 

This rebuild was possible due to the dedication the members have shown and the community that they have built together. 

“The best part about the debate team is the brillant and supportive people who work so hard on making the team be the best it can be,” said Jacobs. “Everyone there wants people to do as well as they can, they offer advice and criticism which helps in building skills, they are also a sweet community who support people.”