Current Coaches

Our director of debate and head coach is Tara Tate (ttate@glenbrook225.org):

"What I love about GBS Debate is its legacy and the model it serves for other public schools on how to support a successful debate program.  I have lived and breathed this program since arriving in 2003 for a reason - debate is an excellent experience for our students.  I like to say that I inherited a mansion of success and that I only hope that my leadership was able to add a "wing" to it. 

A defining factor for this program is the support that the debate program receives from our administration, school board and community.  It has been this way since Glenbrook South opened its doors over 60 years ago and debate was supported as an initial flagship program of the school.  Those stakeholders recognized it then and recognize it now - debate is an amazing tool to foster critical thinking and academic achievement for interested students.  I am often emailed from public school high school debate coaches about various aspects of the logistics of the debate program since Glenbrook 225 'gets it right.'"

Learn more about our team!

Our assistant coaches include Jordan Frese, Tony Miklovis, Alaina Walberg, and Jared Zuckerman.

Where did they become a debater?

• Carl Junction High School, Carl Junction MO - Tara Tate

  • Fun Fact: My mom was my high school debate coach!

• Glenbrook South HS - Jordan Frese

• Glenbrook North HS - Tony Miklovis

• Olathe Northwest HS, Olathe KS - Alaina Walberg 

  • Fun Fact: I actually only started debating because my parents insisted on sending me to the week-long ONW debate camp before the semester actually started and I was livid that they made me end my summer a week early.

• Shawnee Mission West HS, Overland Park KS - Jared Zuckerman

For how long have they been a coach at GBS?

• Since 2003 - Tara Tate

• Since 2025 - Jordan Frese

• Since 2024 - Tony Miklovis

• Since 2025 - Alaina Walberg

• Since 2023 - Jared Zuckerman

Where and for how long were they a coach at other schools?

• 4 years at Washburn High School - Jordan Frese

• Michigan State University, intermittent work with University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and Woodward Academy - Tony Miklovis

• University of Kansas since 2018, 5 years at Barstow School, 1 year at Blue Valley North - Alaina Walberg

• 6 years at Blue Valley North, 1 year at Blue Valley West, 8 years at Blue Valley Southwest, and 5 years at Glenbrook North - Jared Zuckerman

Why is debate important to them?

• "Debate is important to me because it shows students how certain persuasive techniques can result in completely different decision making even with the same evidence. I think this is very important because most people assume that if someone else knew what they did they would agree, but oftentimes disagreements come down to different values and ways of evaluating information which debate teaches students to control and understand." - Jordan Frese 

• "Debate is important to me because I truly believe there is no other activity that forces you to think as critically about the world. In a world where accurate information is more difficult to discover, being able to read between the lines, think critically about things I see online, and reflect on my own beliefs has been invaluable to my growth as a student, person, and educator. It is also a great community filled with some of my closest friends." - Tony Miklovis

• "Debate is important to me because it teaches students about the world around them but, more importantly, parts of the world that are not around them. They have to think outside themselves and are exposed to new ideas, incentivized to research those ideas, and asked to consider how those intersect with other subjects or beliefs." - Alaina Walberg

• "It gave me a sense of community in high school and college. It is one of the few places left in public education where nuance, discourse, and disagreement are encouraged over controversial and political topics." - Jared Zuckerman

What debate skills have been useful to them in life?

• "Debate has been very useful both with getting me career opportunities and developing skills I use in my day to day life. Being able to research effectively, process information, and speak efficiently have all been very important. Since I do social work I interact with people a lot, so being able to identify the core issue they oftentimes can’t recognize is useful to simplify their problem and give them a roadmap to resolve the issues." - Jordan Frese

• "Debate teaches students how to do better research about any issue they care about using research databases, like Google Scholar and Lexis Nexis, and discriminate between credible and noncredible sources. The fast pace creates a learning curve in the beginning, but makes assignments in school like an essay or oral presentation seem like a breeze. Committed debaters build invaluable skills in communication and research that help with every facet in life. Universities, law schools, and companies love debaters - they are known for their hard work ethic, critical thinking skills, and intelligence from learning about so many different issues, like international relations, philosophy, politics, and more." - Tony Miklovis

• "The debate skills that have been most useful outside of the activity are research and public speaking. I would not be nearly as effective or comfortable in my position as a college instructor if I did not have years of experience speaking to and keeping the attention of various audiences." - Alaina Walberg

• "Debate at my school was mostly for a parent community, so I learned how to communicate to different crowds of people, engage and code switch between audiences, and effectively manage problems and people." - Jared Zuckerman

What was their best/funniest/most memorable/etc. debate experience?

• "My favorite memory is all of the appreciation my students gave me when I left my coaching job in Minneapolis as I got a ton of hand written letters, students asking me to stay, and one student made an entire box filled with tiny paper cranes as a inside joke we had about how they flowed. The thoughtfulness and effort really made me reflect on what I offered the students which makes me really happy."  - Jordan Frese

• "At the Tournament of Champions during my senior year of high school in 2021, I won a round against these two students from Bellarmine College Prep that I am close friends with. They are now the co-founders of an AI start-up called Mercor. They ended up winning the entire tournament and now claim the title of the youngest self-made billionaires ever." - Tony Miklovis

• "One of my favorite debate experiences was during the 2022-2023 season at the National Debate Tournament with KU. Two of our seniors lost in the quarterfinals, meaning their debate careers were finished. However, every judge on the nine person panel plus the two debaters to whom they had just lost took the opportunity to tell the KU debaters how much they enjoyed them as people and appreciated the way that they approached the activity. I think being able to see students grow up and develop into thoughtful, kind adults is one of the best parts of the job." - Alaina Walberg

• "The best moments I've had have been seeing my students use debate as a vehicle to help them reach college aspirations; also winning state 8 times at BVSW, nationals 3 times, and seeing student dreams come true, each time knowing that it is a specific moment in their lives that they'll keep forever. The funniest moments find themselves in the debate squadroom, which is like a small and dysfunctional family. There are too many stories, but all of them are entertaining." - Jared Zuckerman