Seawolf debaters travel to China to mentor peers, compete

by Kathleen McCoy  |   

Alaska International Education Foundation grant makes trip possible

The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) Seawolf Debate Team will travel to China in May for three weeks to mentor their Chinese peers, and participate in exhibition debates and an international debate competition.  Steven Johnson, Director of the Seawolf Debate program, received a grant from the Alaska International Education Foundation (AIEF) to support the promotion of intercollegiate academic debating in China.  

The first stop on the Seawolves' tour will be the Foreign Languages Teaching and Research Press (FLTRP) Cup in Beijing.  The FLTRP Cup is the Chinese intercollegiate English language debating championships.  The tournament annually attracts over 130 colleges and universities from around China to compete in this tournament.  Professor Johnson served as Chief Adjudicator for the event last year and was asked to serve in that capacity again this year.   The UAA students will arrange exhibition rounds for the training portion of the tournament and will serve as peer mentors for the Chinese university student debaters as the event progresses.

Following their time in Beijing and a brief stop in Shanghai, the Seawolf debaters will travel to Xi'an Jiotong University to participate in the International Debate Education Association's (IDEA) International Debate Tournament.   For this event the UAA students will be paired with a debate partner from China to compete in a tournament focused on issues of international politics.

Irma Scavenius, a long-time Alaskan teacher, created the Alaska International Education Foundation with the goal of increasing mutual understanding between Alaskans and people of other countries.  The AIEF supports students' studies in Alaska and abroad; student and faculty exchange programs; participation in conferences, workshops and research studies involving Alaska and foreign nations; and a variety of other projects consistent with its central purpose.

UAA's Seawolf Debate Team was founded in 1982 and is currently the only intercollegiate forensics program in Alaska.  The program represents the university and the State of Alaska in competitive debate activities against students from around the world.

For more information contact Steve Johnson at 786-4391 or steve.johnson@uaa.alaska.edu, or visit http://forensic.uaa.alaska.edu/ .

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