2009 Tournament Results

On April 17th-18th, 34 high school students from seven south-central Alaska high schools took part in a debate tournament conducted in the world universities style of debating. Over the course of the weekend, students engaged each other on such controversial topics as whether bailouts are an appropriate response to economic crisis and whether the Bush Administration should be prosecuted for war crimes. At the conclusion of four preliminary rounds, the top four teams advanced to the final round of competition.

In the championship round, debaters from Chugiak, Homer, and South Anchorage High Schools discussed whether the United States should occupy Somalia to solve the piracy problem. The opening government team, from Homer High School (Kelsey Waldorf, senior, & Bailey Richards, junior) discussed the economic consequences of piracy and proposed that the United States send military troops into Somalia while also engaging the government diplomatically. The opening opposition team, from South Anchorage High School (Austin Heyroth & Kenneth Hubbell, sophomores) argued that the threat of piracy is overblown and that a military occupation would have enormous economic costs, and would ultimately be a quagmire. The closing government team, from Homer High School (Emerson Quarton & Ben Blue, juniors) continued to stress the importance of piracy and began to build the case that American occupation was a necessity. The closing government team, a hybrid from Chugiak High School (Esther Smith, junior) and South Anchorage High School (Jesse Lehman, sophomore) focused on the turmoil a US occupation would bring about while also stressing how it would harm the Somali people, as well.

Ultimately, the five member adjudication panel, comprised of current and former Seawolf Debaters, determined that the closing government team from Chugiak/South High Schools did the superior job of debating and named them the tournament champions. Both members of the championship team will receive a $250 merit-based scholarship for academic achievement in debating. In addition, the tournament's top speaker also earned a $250 scholarship. This year, that award was won by one half of the championship team: Esther Smith. Rounding out the top 10 speakers were:
2nd Place: Lehman
3rd Place: Heyroth
4th Place: Lindsay Cason (senior, West HS)
5th Place: Nathaniel Rubin (sophomore, West HS)
6th Place: Hubbell
7th Place: William Cason (senior, West HS)
8th Place: E. Quarton
9th Place: Waldorf
10th Place: Bonnie Etter (junior, Eagle River HS)

The topics debated in this year's tournament were:
Round 1: This house believes the Bush Administration should be prosecuted for war crimes
Round 2: This house believes bailouts for failing industries are an inappropriate response to economic crisis
Round 3: This house would require sex education regardless of whether parental consent has been given
Round 4: This house would subject itself to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court
Championship Round: This house would occupy Somalia to solve the pirate problem

2008 Northern Lights Results

Tournament Recap

This was the 1st time--as far as we know--that a tournament was held for Alaska high school students in the world universities style of debating competition.

The tournament was a resounding success. Twenty-eight debaters, representing seven high schools from south-central Alaska spent the weekend engaging one another on a variety of controversial topics:

Round 1: This house supports compulsory national service
Round 2: This house believes no nation should have exclusive rights to the Arctic
Round 3: This house would mandate a reduction in carbon emissions
Round 4: This house supports single sex education

We recognized the top five speakers in the tournament at the conclusion of preliminary rounds. Showing the diversity of talent in the state, these speakers came from four different high schools:

1st Place & winner of a $200 scholarship: Sarah Carpenter (Chugiak)
2nd Place: Katie Zager (Service)
3rd Place: Austin Heyroth (South)
4th Place: Tamiah Liebersbach (Chugiak)
5th Place: Morgan Haskins (West)

Rounding out the top 10 were:
6th Place: Bryce Jarvis (Eagle River)
7th Place: Daniel Schwicht (South)
8th Place: Becky Smith (Chugiak)
9th Place: Lindsay Cason (West)
10th Place: Wiley Cason (West)

Championship Round

The final round saw debaters from four different high schools (Eagle River, Service, South, and West) engage one another on whether the use of torture is a legitimate tool in the War on Terrorism. The opening government team, from Eagle River (Bryce Jarvis & Bonnie Etter), argued protecting American lives is of the utmost importance while the opening opposition, from Service/South (Katie Zager/Austin Heyroth), countered that torture is never justified and that other alternatives are always more effective. The closing government, from South (Blake Steenhoven & Daniel Schwicht), continued the line that the government has a responsibility to protect its citizens. In addition, they argued that by legalizing torture we gain the ability to regulate the who, how, and when of torture, thereby minimizing its abuse. The closing opposition, from West (Morgan Haskins & Lindsay Cason), argued that by sacrificing our moral high ground on human rights, we lose our ability to effectively use our soft power throughout the world. In the end, the hybrid team from Service/South convinced the 5 member adjudication panel that they deserved to be the tournament champions, and winners of the $250 cash scholarships.