FOR RELEASE: Nov. 26, 2012
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina E. Fann, 615-898-5385 or gina.fann@mtsu.edu
MURFREESBORO — Late-night preparations are commonplace for MTSU’s debate team,
but a midnight competition with an Afghan student team via Skype is taking
“international debate” to a new level.
Two teams
of MTSU’s Blue Raider Debaters will face off against university students from
Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, beginning at 12:30 a.m. Central on Tuesday, Nov.
27.
Students
will use webcams to communicate via Skype, the popular Internet calling
application used internationally by government, business, military and
educational institutions as well as the general public.
“The
students from Afghanistan are literally risking their lives to participate in a
debate!” said Dr. Patrick Richey, team coach and director of forensics.
“I think
it’s a life-changing experience for our debaters. This gives them a chance to
put their skills to the test on a global level. Plus, they realize the
sacrifice the Afghanistan team is willing to make to debate.”
MTSU
students Hailey Lawson, Dale Sikkema, William Griffen and Tevin Mason are set
to participate. Lawson and Sikkema are on one MTSU team and Griffen and Mason
are on the other.
All have
been briefed on the cultural nuances to be observed during the debate as well
as security concerns and practices, Richey said. Richey, a professor in MTSU’s
Department of Speech and Theatre, also served as a civil affairs combat soldier
in Iraq, and his academic research involves post-colonial rhetoric in the
Middle East.
“This may
be why they chose MTSU and me,” he said.
The
unique opportunity arose following Richey’s communications with other members
of the International Public Debate Association and debate colleagues.
A U.S.
Department of State grant sent U.S. debaters and coaches to Afghanistan for
live debates two years ago. After that initial success, additional grant money
from the U.S. Agency for International Development allowed organizers to
continue the project via Skype. Tuesday’s debate is the “test run” for this
project, Richey said.
Working
through various governmental and organizational channels, Afghanistan is
establishing a vigorous debate program for university students. The International
Foundation for Electoral Systems sponsored two debates this past spring via
Skype between the IFES University Debate Club and students at Oregon’s Linfield
College.
Mazar-i-Sharif
is located in the northern province of Balkh and is Afghanistan’s fourth
largest city. In addition to its reputation as a major tourist attraction
because of its religious shrines and archaeological sites, Mazar-i-Sharif is
home to five universities.
“I hope
we can do more debates like this,” Richey said. “We are also trying to get a
SOROS grant to take the team to Thailand, but it’s in the review phase right
now.
“A long-term
goal of mine is to make the MTSU team a global team, but it is very, very
expensive, so we are starting small.”
MTSU’s
debate team, founded with the university in 1911, was revamped in 2011. It
immediately began recruiting members and hosting special debate events on
campus and participated in 11 tournaments in five states during the 2011-12
academic year.
In
October, MTSU's Blue Raider Debaters hosted their first tournament on campus in
nearly a decade, welcoming teams from around the country in a "double
debate-till-you-drop" competition.
You can
learn more about the team at www.mtsu.edu/debate.
—30—
MTSU is committed to developing a
community devoted to learning, growth and service. We hold these values dear,
and there’s a simple phrase that conveys them:
“I am True Blue.” Learn more at www.mtsu.edu/trueblue. For MTSU news anytime,
visit www.MTSUNews.com.
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