Bill Kelvin debates from the podium at CSU Chico while opposition team member Jake Snow looks on.

By Bill Kelvin

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I sat in a Chico State University classroom with my debate partner, nervously wringing my clammy hands. I didn’t feel like I was going to lose my lunch, but I definitely felt queasy. This debate was the climax of my three-year career as a debater.

In the no-holds-barred open division, I was on one of the eight teams that “broke.” That means we made the cut to the semifinal round from the original 17 open teams that participated in preliminary rounds at this year’s Northern California Forensics Association Championships.

This was the first time I had broken in the open division and possibly my last competitive debate ever, so I was determined not to go out without a fight.

We had 15 minutes to deduce what kinds of plans the Government teammembers from UC-Berkeley might craft, and come up with arguments to shoot down any type of legislation that they might try to pass. As the opposition team, it was our job to poke holes in any plan that they might try to run.

I attempted to relax, concentrating on the bright blue sky outside. “Stay mellow,” I told myself. “Never let ‘em see you sweat.” I got up from my desk, paced back and forth a few times, rubbed my face, and smiled broadly. “Everything’s going to be okay,” I said, trying desperately to remember that I was supposed to enjoy this activity.

When the prep time was up, the Government team returned to the room and offered a solid plan on improving the environment. We did our best to defeat the plan, but in the end, two of the three judges voted to pass it. We gracefully shook hands with our opponents and wished them luck in the next round.

I was slightly upset at the loss and subsequent elimination from the tournament, but I felt that we did a sound job of arguing against a well-designed plan. It was rewarding to see that team go on to take second place overall in the tournament.

It was a fitting end to my competitive career with the Humboldt State University forensics program. I won seventh speaker in the open division, and my team applauded raucously when I leapt out of my seat to accept my award.

The HSU forensics class, Communication 110, allows students to travel to intercollegiate speaking competitions. Besides debate, the program also offers interpretation of poetry, prose, and literature, informative and persuasive speaking (like in Communication 100), impromptu and extemporaneous speaking, and other events.

Many Americans are familiar with debate from television shows like “CNN Crossfire” and “Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher,” but these shows feature less formal debates than the style practiced in parliamentary debate competitions.

Discussion-style debates date back to at least ancient Greece. Socrates, who died in 399 BCE, popularized the dialectical style of debate, which is the pursuit of truth through questions and answers, and additional questions.

Forensics debates are more structured, like the presidential debates, which are probably the most well-known debates in the country. Perhaps the most famous presidential debate was between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy on Sept. 26, 1960.

Most citizens who listened to the debate on the radio thought that Nixon won, but 73 million people watching it on television were treated to an image of a sweaty and nervous-looking Nixon, juxtaposed with a calm and collected Kennedy.

Likewise, it is important for competitors at forensics tournaments to be dressed nicely and speak well. In a close debate, the team that portrays a more professional image may have the edge.

The presidential candidates delivered eight-minute speeches followed by three-minute conclusions. The time allotted to presidential candidates is similar to the time allotted to collegiate debaters.

In our parliamentary debates, the first speaker is the representative of the Government team, known as the prime minister, who gives an eight-minute constructive speech to set the table for the debate.

The following three speakers take turns giving seven-minute constructives, then the leader of the opposition gives a four-minute rebuttal, followed by the prime minister’s five-minute rebuttal. As the aforementioned presidential debate taught the world, image can be very important.

Daerielle Culver was a freshman in high school when she began interpreting poetry, prose, drama, and literature for competitive speaking competitions. When she enrolled at HSU in the fall of 1998, she immediately joined the forensics team to continue to develop her “interp” skills, as well as to add debate to her repertoire.

“I really like interp,” said Culver, a 21-year-old senior, who performs the most individual events of all debaters on the team. “Interp events allow the interper to lead the audience through an entire story and a wide range of emotions.”

While Culver has been active in interpretive events longer, she also enjoys debate. “It keeps me on my toes and forces me to learn about a wide range of topics,” said Culver. “Pitting our intellect against another team is exhilarating, plus my partner’s really cute.”

The partner Culver speaks of is Rick Crum, a 22-year-old graduating senior who joined the team in fall 1999. Crum also enjoys the intellectual-battle element of debate, but stresses that the true reasons for debating are the skills learned.

“I think communication skills are of the utmost importance in the real world,” stated Crum. “Forensics is the opportunity to apply communication skills gained through education in an environment that motivates (one) to strive for achievement.”

The National Association of Colleges and Employers agrees with Crum, according to the NACE Job Outlook 2001: “As has been the case for the past several years, communication skills top the list of personal qualities/skills employers seek in new hires.”

HSU speech communication professor Greg Young, the only salaried coach of the forensics team, believes that forensics is one way for students to become well-rounded people. “I think it’s an important way for students to develop a lot of important skills, such as critical thinking, clarity in oral communication, and personal skills like self-confidence and leadership,” stated Young.

Like all members of the team, Young is quick to point out that new members do not have to be established speakers when they join the team.

“Sometimes students come in with very few communication skills, and it’s rewarding to see them leave having advanced those skills significantly,” said Young. “A lot of them discover they can accomplish more in an intellectual activity than they thought they could.”

Not only is forensics a valuable activity for students to pursue, but it is also an activity that is valuable to the school. According to Young, forensics is important to HSU because it develops “skills that any institution hopes that their students will leave with.”

Young said that the job of the university is to serve the students well, and that forensics does that. He also said that forensics “can be helpful in recruiting bright students” to HSU, and “can make clear to others the degree of academic excellence that our students can attain.”

Tiffany Wallace is a 20-year-old junior and has been a member of the team since she arrived at HSU in fall 1999. She believes that “forensics is important because it encourages students to become active in their government and society.”

While Wallace does think that the program is performing adequately, she suggests a few changes.

“I would like to see more paid coaches available because there would be more individual attention, we would therefore have better speakers, and students would exemplify the goals of HSU,” said Wallace emphatically. “With more coaches, we could have more people to give us criticism from an experienced perspective.”

Young agreed with that idea. “HSU is one of the few programs that does not have a staff of assistant coaches,” said Young. “In fact, we are the only program of this size, of which I am aware of, that has no paid assistants.”

The team does have two volunteer coaches, Peter Perata, formerly a very competitively successful individual events performer at HSU, and Rob Margesson, formerly a debater at HSU and a salaried debate coach at the successful Colorado State University forensics program.

However, the voluntary nature of their commitment limits their ability to spend time with the team and travel to tournaments.

Forensics is an activity funded by the Associated Students of HSU. As with most college programs, additional funding would always be helpful. Forensics students get small amounts of per diem money to cover their traveling expenses, usually $20 or less for a weekend. Not only would additional funds allow the team to eat more, but travel more, as well.

“If we had additional funding we would be able to travel out of the region more, which would increase our visibility and our national competitiveness,” said Young.

This semester, the team will send two debate teams to face off against the best debaters in the country. Kitt Kilpatrick and Keenton Luong will accompany Culver and Crum to the National Parliamentary Debate Association Championships. In addition, the team will send the most successful individual events performers, including Culver and Nicole Iberri, to the National Individual Events Tournament.

The traveling itself is enjoyable to most members of the team. “I love the bond that is created amongst the team,” said Culver. “We are people from different majors and different opinions who are stuck together without relief for three or four days at a time.”

“We all have a common love of forensics, and though we may have our differences, we really are a family.”

Students interested in joining the forensics team can visit the Communication Department Web site, www.humboldt.edu/~speech, contact Greg Young at (707)826-3569 or gwy1@humboldt.edu, or enroll in Communication 110.