Tags: Georgia Debate Union

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UGA's Warnock wins Inaugural Regents Cup Debate

Franklin College undergraduate student Ansley Warnock ('25) was the individual debate champion at the the University System of Georgia’s (USG) Regents Cup Debate Series. The Valdosta State University (VSU) debate team won the tournament over competitors from Georgia Tech, Georgia College, UGA and the University of North Georgia. In all, nine students from six USG institutions participated in the event, hosted on Middle Georgia State University’s…

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Franklin student Mariah Cady named Rhodes Scholar

UGA Russian and International Affairs major Mariah Cady, with minors in geography and German, has been named a 2024 Rhodes Scholar. The oldest and most celebrated international fellowship award in the world, the Rhodes Scholarship allows winners to pursue courses of study as graduate students at the University of Oxford. Cady's Franklin connections run deep and also include the Institute for Native American Studies and the department of…

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Georgia Debate Union Begins 2020 at Georgetown Tournament

The Georgia Debate Union began the second half of its season with strong showings at the Georgetown College Debate Tournament held over the first weekend of 2020 in Washington, DC.   The JV team of Lauren Debranski (senior, Woodstock) and Eshaan Kalra (sophomore, Johns Creek) finished prelims as the only undefeated team with a 6-0 record. They finished the tournament in 3rd place. Their road to 3rd place included wins against George Mason…

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Georgia Debate Union finishes 2019 as top varsity debate team in the nation

For the first time in the program's history the Georgia Debate Union finished the 2018-19 season as the top varsity college debate team in both the American Debate Association and the National Debate Tournament's end-of-the-season rankings. Each ranking is derived from points that two-person teams accumulate for each tournament over the course of the season, which runs from mid-September to the end of March.  UGA's top…

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Georgia Debate Union caps most successful year in its history

After winning the American Debate Association tournament earlier in March, Georgia Debate Union members Nathan Rice and Johnnie Stupek recently finished second at the 2019 National Debate Tournament (NDT), held at the University of Minnesota.   Rice and Stupek are the second team in the history of the Georgia Debate Union to make it to the final round of the National Debate Tournament and the first since 1997. In their run to the…

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Georgia Debate Union wins national championship

The Georgia Debate Union won the American Debate Association national championship tournament this past weekend in Athens. Nearly 100 teams from around the country attended the American Debate Association's end of the year championship tournament, hosted at the University of Georgia.   Seniors Advait Ramanan and Swapnil Agrawal won the American Debate Association's varsity division national championship and finished the tournament…

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Agrawal and Ramanan win Dartmouth Round Robin debate

One of the finest accomplishments a UGA debate team has ever achieved, the team of Swapnil Agrawal and Advait Ramanan won the 2019 Herbert L. James Debates at Dartmouth College, known as the Dartmouth Round Robin debate competition, this past weekend in Hanover, NH. The win bodes well for the Georgia Debate Union's chances of winning a national championship later this spring. The competition included the top 7 debate teams in…

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Georgia Debate Union preps for a stellar 2019

The Georgia Debate Union finished the fall semester ranked as the top ranked varsity debate team in the country according to both the American Debate Association and National Debate Tournament varsity rankings. The team is ranked third in the Cross Examination Debate Association Rankings.   The rankings are based on a points-based system whereby individual two-person teams from a university or college accumulate points based off…

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Georgia Debate Union ranked number 1

As of this week, UGA is ranked first in all three college debate organizational rankings - the American Debate Association, the Cross-Examination Debate Association, and the National Debate tournament - ahead of Harvard, Wake Forest, Emory, Michigan, Northwestern, among hundreds of other institutions. UGA's top six debaters [pictured] each earned awards at their most recent tournament at the University of Kentucky. …

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Debate team to begin season with 'Run for the Roses'

The Georgia Debate Union will begin the 2018-19 season at the prestigious Run for the Roses debate round robin, held in late September at the University of Kentucky. The projected top 7 debate teams in the nation receive invitations to the Kentucky Round Robin. The team of Nathan Rice and Johnnie Stupek, both rising seniors, will be representing UGA and the Georgia Debate Union.   The Kentucky Round Robin features the projected 7…

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Georgia Debate Union closes out season at National Tournament

The Georgia Debate Union recently capped off its historically successful 2017-2018 season at the 72nd National Debate Tournament in Wichita, Kansas.   The National Debate Tournament (NDT) is the premier national championship tournament for intercollegiate policy debate.  Only 78 teams are allowed to attend, with each team having to qualify weeks prior to the tournament itself.  2017-2018 marks the 29th consecutive year that teams…

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Georgia Debate Union wins University of Miami tournament

Additionally, the team of Alyssa Hoover (Alpharetta, Georgia) and Tripp Haskins (College Park, Georgia) finished tied for 5th place at the tournament.   The University of Miami Hurricane debates featured schools from around the country, including teams from Emory University, Boston College, the United States Naval Academy, and the University of Michigan.  The Bulldogs' victory at Miami represents the second tournament won by the…

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40 Under 40: Matt Koperniak

The University of Georgia Alumni Association 40 Under 40 Class of 2017, celebrating the personal, professional and philanthropic achievements of UGA graduates who are under the age of 40, includes Riverwatch Middle School director of bands Matt Koperniak (BMUS ’02, MMED ’04): Under his direction since 2008, he has expanded the band program from 130 students to over 600. Prior to his arrival at Riverwatch, he taught at Norcross High School…


Turner named new Director of Bands

The Band Program in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music is nationally renowned for multiple reasons, and most have to do with the artistic leadership of outgoing director of bands John Lynch. Whether recordings by the Wind Ensemble or memorable performances by the Redcoat Marching Band, our music students represent the the university exceedingly well, consistently performing at the highest levels, no matter the venue or ensemble. So with Lynch…
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