While most students were still working summer jobs or hanging out at Dockton, the Vashon High School debate team returned to the classroom for a week-long camp.

For decades, VHS had a strong presence at debate tournaments around the region under head coach Jim Dorsey, regularly sending students to State and occasionally to Nationals. After his retirement in 2015, a variety of teachers worked to keep the team alive, but when the pandemic hit, the program fizzled.

The team was revitalized in 2023, and last year, nearly two dozen students competed in public speaking events and Lincoln-Douglas Debate. Collectively, the team competed in 200 debate rounds and maintained a winning record.

Individual students were recognized, with Emily Rock, now a junior, qualifying to compete at the State Tournament in both Lincoln-Douglas Debate and Spoken Word Poetry. Iylaf AlMustafa, also now a junior, competed at the District National Qualifiers tournament in Lincoln-Douglas Debate. Mustafa advanced to the tournament’s quarterfinals, logging winning ballots against two eventual finalists along the way.

Competing in debate requires commitment from students for weekly practices, researching and writing cases, and attending tournaments on weekends. Despite this, students feel it is worth it.

“Since I began debating, I’ve become increasingly more comfortable with public speaking, which is such an important skill for so many avenues of life,” said Rock. “I also think the research skills that you gain have so many other applications. I’ve always loved having conversations about different topics and breaking a complex subject down and so I think the thing I value most about debate is just having a space to engage in those often seemingly difficult or argumentative conversations in a way that is structured and polite — and most important, with other people who love doing it as much as you do.”

Last spring, the team decided to build on their success and agreed to hold a summer camp this year for Lincoln-Douglas debaters. The camp was led by Jon Howland, who was recognized by the Washington State Forensics Association as its 2024-2025 Volunteer of the Year.

During the summer camp, Howland drew on his years of experience debating and coaching at the college level to lead lectures, drills, and research sessions. He also brought in several guest speakers with collegiate experience to discuss specialty topics and strategies to strengthen cases.

The camp culminated in a summer tournament at Seattle University on Friday, August 15. Other high school students from the Seattle area joined the tournament for four rounds of debate. Rock, AlMustafa and Henry Hughes, who is also now a VHS junior, received recognition for speaker points. AlMustafa placed second overall at the tournament with a 4-0 record.

VHS Principal John Erickson is thrilled to have the program back at the high school.

“It’s remarkable what becomes possible when a clear vision meets the combined force of talent and hard work. Our speech and debate team exemplifies what it means to make your own luck,” Erickson said, praising the educators leading the program but also, the students involved. “In less than two years, they’ve taken speech and debate from a dream to a thriving, competitive program producing state and national-level contenders.”

The first official tournament of the season will be held the weekend of October 17 at Bear Creek School in Redmond. Thanks to an Appleford Grant from Partners in Education (P.I.E.), the fees for this competition and the dozen or so to follow will be covered. The team is planning various fundraising activities this year to help cover the costs of travel and lodging.

New and veteran members are invited to attend interest meetings on Fridays at lunch at the high school.

“I hope our team continues to gain debaters in the future and that as we improve, we can teach each other and strengthen our community,” said Rock. “Even if you end up just trying debate, I think it will always be an experience that will push you outside your comfort zone and benefit you by teaching you about yourself, maybe even revealing abilities you never knew you had, and really showing how capable you can be.”

— Educator Jenni Wilke was named as New Coach of the Year for 2024-2025 by the Washington State Forensics Association.