Elva Chen is an active member of the Hamilton Debate Team, serving as PR Director and Equity Officer since December 2024.
After a relaxing winter break, the Hamilton Debate Team has launched its preparation for spring tournaments. In the fall semester, Debate President Theodore Gercken ’27 and Novice Coach Timothy Colledge ’25 worked to restore the team to its pre-COVID competitive model by increasing competition and practice requirements, along with upping the number of travel tournaments.
As a part of this initiative, the debate executive board facilitated a highly selective first round of tryouts in late September. Many students vied for a finite number of spots. After a week of deliberation, the Executive Board invited Pedro Barata ’28, Elva Chen ’28, Maxwell Gold ’28 and honorary member President Steven Tepper to join the team.
To kick off the competitive season, the team attended the Drexel University and Binghampton University tournaments. Then, following an intensive week of training, new and old members attended the following tournament at Tufts University.
The new members holed up in KJ to prepare for these early tournaments, practicing and writing cases on topics that sparked their interest. They chose to defend a wide variety of motions, debating “This House believes that life under a government is superior to life under anarchy,” “This House, as Walter White, would not work with Jesse Pinkman as partners in the methamphetamine drug trade” and “This House believes that the US overthrowing the Venezuelan government is a net good.” Other team members, also diligently preparing for the season, chose to write on the Trolly Problem, the Mongol Empire, Double Elimination Tournaments, North Korean Sanctions, the Electoral College, the United Nations and The Bee Movie.
After putting the final touches on their cases, the team faced one another in an at-home tournament over Halloweekend. Over the course of eight rounds, each team alternated between arguing for and against each case to determine potential holes and weaknesses in their arguments. Gathered in Root Hall, the team deliberated for hours on end to refine the cases in preparation for the following weekend’s tournament at Northeastern University. At Northeastern, the team competed against schools such as Dartmouth and University of Chicago and emerged invigorated to continue refining their cases.
After countless hours of fine-tuning their cases, the team arrived at their next tournament, which took place online at American University, debuted at the online tournament. The teamwork had paid off as judges gave high praise, the novices held their own against varsity competitors and Novice Coach Timothy Colledge ended the tournament with an impressive 4–1 record, which would have made him eligible to advance to the semi-finals had he not competed alone.
To close the semester, an election was hosted in early December for Executive Board positions. This process also included new members, as Pedro Barata became Vice President and Maxwell Gold was elected Treasurer. Tim Colledge
and Theodore Gercken remained as Novice Coach and President. With the new leadership in place, the Executive Board hosted a second round of tryouts during the last week of the semester. They invited three new members: Eunsol Do ’28, Kait Podlich ’28, and Jubilee Kim ’28 to finish the team’s Class of 2028.
Freshly stacked with a talented cohort of new members, the Hamilton Debate Team anticipates a lively and triumphant season ahead. Beyond refining their existing cases, members have also begun to craft new cases to keep rival schools on their toes. Welcoming in three additional members this spring will also bring fresh perspective and energy, strengthening the team’s collective spirit.
The Hamilton Debate Team has six more tournaments to look forward to, including the National Championship hosted by New York University. As the team prepares for the season ahead, optimism and determination to remain at an all-time high for a successful semester.
