Memphis, TN – Friday, March 21, marked the finale for the Metro Memphis Urban Debate League for middle schoolers of Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS), which was hosted at Ridgeway Middle School.

Two middle school tournaments, on December 13 and January 24, led up to the final tournament. Each session is meant to be a rigorous and intense academic competition through research-based policy debate. Throughout the season, 12 schools participated. However, one school was unable to be present on the final night. 

The night began with three 45-minute rounds. Students debated topics ranging from artificial intelligence to the pharmaceutical industry. These sessions were done in pairs. Students were given speaker points based on topics including preparedness, complexity and quality of arguments, clarity of enunciation, modulated or dynamic voice tone, concision, organization and structure, and explanation of evidence. Speaker points were issued on a scale of 25-30.

At the end of the night, judges tallied the final ballots and tabulations, and announced the winners. Teammates Mikayla P. and Daveaon P. from Kate Bond Middle School were crowned the winners. Kate Bond Middle also obtained the highest score. 

Congratulations to all of the scholars who competed in the tournament, and the MSCS schools that participated. The event serves as a reminder that Greatness Grows Here.

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