Frequently Asked Questions

What is debate?

Marist School primarily participates in two types of debate -- public forum debate and policy debate.  Both are two-person activities that center around current policy issues facing the United States and/or international governments.   The activity should be seen as a "game" in the search of the best solution to a problem.

The primary difference in types of debate has to deal with the length of debate and the specific resolution.  Traditionally, we start all students in policy debate at Marist if they start debate in 7th, 8th or 9th grade.  Mr. Miller and Ms. Schirmer can help you determine which activity is best for you.

Similar to sports, there are different levels for experience in each activity.  Debaters begin their careers in the first year division, usually called novice to allow them to compete against other students at their skill level. 

We also offer competitive speech events for students interested in a non partner activity.  Speech events could center around writing skills and/or acting skills.  It is a great way to supplement our Theatre program at school or to engage in a competitive activity centered around writing. 

What is the debate season like?

The debate season is one of the longest of any extra curricular activity at Marist.  Our team is actively competing at tournaments from Labor Day weekend to the middle of June.  

That being said, the novice season is substantially shorter.  Novices begin traveling to tournaments in September, with about one or two competitions a month.  The Novice State Championship is traditionally the final tournament for first year debaters and is offered the third weekend of January.   For first year debaters that seek to be more competitive, we invite novices to compete in national postseason tournaments which are offered throughout February and March.

Can I do other activities with debate?

Most activities at Marist provide students the flexibility to try out multiple activities.  Debate takes place on the weekends so weekend flexibility is critical for your participation.   Unlike athletic competitions, every tournament is not mandatory for students.  While Marist travels almost every weekend for debate, most first year debaters will choose one or two weekends a month to compete with a teammate at a tournament.  Our biggest tip though is the more you debate, the better you will be!

As a novice, registering for a course excuses you from all practices that term which allows students to participate in a Fall sport as well as compete with the speech and debate program.

What does a tournament look like?

Tournaments are held on weekends and range from 1 day to 3 days.   Tournaments bring together teams from all over the country to compete around an agreed upon resolution.   Students will typically debate in four to six preliminary debates against a variety of competitors.   During each round, all two-person teams debate another two-person team in front of a neutral judge (usually a coach or former debater). A win is awarded to one side and a loss to the other and team awards are determined by win-loss record. After preliminary rounds at most tournaments, teams with winning records will be invited to participate in the elimination rounds.   Students who reach these rounds traditionally will receive an award for their accomplishment.

In 2024-2025, the team plans to attend tournaments virtually and in-person.  In-person tournaments are usually at different host schools around the state of Georgia and around the United States.  For tournaments that are virtual, students meet at Marist and compete virtually in different classrooms as a full program.  

What do we debate?

We debate the National topics that are used throughout the United States.  Topic Committees meet in the summers to write these topics that are used by every accredited speech and debate program in the US.   In Policy Debate, our students focus on one topic a year where they find new depths to a tough policy situation facing the United States. In 2024-2025, our policy debaters will be exploring a topic dealing with patent law.  In Public Forum debate, our students focus on five topics a year that change every month or so.  The topics are generally smaller and/or more specific than policy debate. In 2024-2025, public forum debaters will debate topics dealing with US immigration, US nuclear policy, US airline industry regulations, Mexico's energy privatization and many others.  

When are practices and how long are they?

The junior varsity and varsity team practices two to three times a week after school in M001 from 3:45 to 5:00pm.  The novice team practices after school once a week either in person from 3:45pm to 5:30 or virtually in 4:30pm to 6:00pm. If you are a novice and registered for one of our courses, you are excused from all practices that term.

Can I earn a letter in debate?

Yes.  In order for an activity to be considered the equivalent of a varsity sport, it is expected that a student would commit a minimum of 100 hours of work outside of the school day to pursuing the activity at a level of excellence. For speech & debate, students must attend at least five tournaments and a postseason tournament.   

In addition to this requirement, students must attend our service projects which include the Marist Scrimmage Series and the Ivy Street Round Robin.

I have a question that isn't answered here.  Who can I contact for more information?

Contact Mr. Miller for more information.  You can find his contact information on our Coaches page.