I'm writing to give you information about the Lincoln Douglas program at UT-Austin this summer, which I will again be directing for my fourth year. The University of Texas National Institute in Forensics (UTNIF) will hold its two-week main session in LD from July 11-25 with a third week extension option through July 30. I believe you will find that UTNIF continues to remain one of the best camp deals in the nation. The two-week session is $1,350. For three weeks, the cost is $1,750. This makes our tuition among the lowest for debate camps nationally. For commuters, the rates are even cheaper.
Our 2008 Labs
We have finalized our lab leaders. I'm very proud of the UTNIF instructors and would like to share some information with you about them.
My name is Stacy Thomas, and I'm the LD director of UTNIF and the head coach at the Hockaday School in Dallas. I coached last year's NFL Nationals LD Champion, as well as the third place winner. When I formerly directed the debate program at S. F. Austin High School in Austin, TX, I coached a UIL 5A State Champion. I've also had students in finals of TFA State, and this year, one of my students was top seed and a semifinalist at the 2008 Tournament of Champions. I believe there is value in all the diversity of styles and approaches to LD and organize UTNIF to serve students regardless of their region or background. If you keep reading, my vision for UTNIF is summarized below.
I'm excited to announce that Eric Melin, who coaches LD at Southlake Carroll in the Dallas area, will be joining our top lab for advanced students with Andy Werner, who formerly competed for Strake Jesuit and who currently is studying philosophy at Amherst College. Both are former TFA State Champions. Last year, Eric's students closed out LD at the Heart of Texas NFL District, earning both spots to NFL Nationals. These students, both sophomores, then reached late elimination rounds at NFL Nationals. In addition, Eric has also coached students to the Tournament of Champions, which he attended twice himself as a student (reaching quarterfinals his senior year). He is a mature and thoughtful debate educator who is both experienced and current. Andy, who helped lead the Strake Jesuit team to the national prominence it enjoys today, is returning to UTNIF for his third summer as an instructor. Together, Eric and Andy should make for a dynamic and well-rounded lab experience.
Our varsity lab will be taught by Andrew Cockroft, who twice attended UTNIF himself as a student. Andrew was a quarterfinalist at the 2008 TOC and a semifinalist at St. Mark's, and he is this year's Churchill champion. Andrew will be teaching with Kristen Ray, who was part of the only LD finals closeout in TFA State history. Kristen is a highly experienced camp instructor, returning to UTNIF for her seventh summer as a lab leader.
Our JV lab will be run by Dan Jennis, a Northwestern student who received incredible reviews from his UTNIF lab last summer for his ability to help struggling students improve. He will be joined by Mack Coleman, the former assistant coach at Churchill High School. Together, I'm positive that they will be one of the best lab leader matchups for JV students you will be able to find this summer in terms of their teaching ability.
Our novice lab will be led by Jenn Miller, who is currently the assistant LD coach at Marcus High School in Flower Mound and who formerly coached at Grapevine. Jenn is returning to this position after receiving great reviews from the UTNIF students last summer. Joining Jenn will be Melanie Plaza, who is graduating from Bronx Science High School in New York. Her coach, Jon Cruz, has highly recommended her given the work that she has done with the novices on his nationally recognized team. Melanie will compete at NFL Nationals this summer and has previously competed at the Tournament of Champions. She is also this year's New York City NFL District Student of the Year. The two women are incredibly patient, supportive, and dedicated to making sure that novices receive the foundational skills they need upon which to build their debate careers.
Also joining us in assistant capacities will be Alex Ackroyd of Palo Alto High School in California and Ryan Lester of Dulles High School in Houston. With incredibly positive attitudes, both Alex and Ryan are dedicated to giving back to the debate community all that they feel it has given them.
You can find more information about UTNIF (in terms of our goals, curriculum, more detailed staff backgrounds, etc.) at our website: http://www.utdebatecamp.com/ld.html
What Former Students Say about UTNIF
Our website is admittedly plain, but I've always believed that our students are the best thing UTNIF can show for itself. On our website, you can find a link to comments from our former students about their LD experience.
Here are some samples from that site:
Eddie Elizondo, United HS, Laredo, TX: “The camp easily exceeded the high expectations I had for it. UTNIF is perfect for anyone who wants two tough weeks filled with great labs and great lab leaders, lectures, and a choice of electives that are of interest. I’ve learned more in two weeks than my full school year debating. I’ll enter the upcoming school year with the confidence that I can compete at a much higher level. I would never hesitate to recommend UTNIF to any debater. I don’t know where else you can find such a knowledgeable staff at one of the best college campuses in the nation.” (2007)
Nathan Abell, Marcus HS, Flower Mound, TX: "The educational experience of UTNIF is simply unparalleled anywhere in the nation. The camp does an absolutely incredible job of catering to any level of debate experience, really pushing students from one level to the next. In large part, in my experience, this was due to the incredible staff provided to each student quite literally 24/7 that was comprised of not just really, really good coaches and former debaters, but really, really good coaches and former debaters who can actually educate in an effective manner." (2006)
Jason Bourque, Van HS, Van, TX: “UTNIF is fun and creates champions. It is more than a camp. It is a big group of friends all trying to learn together. This was my third year at UTNIF, and every year, I improve drastically. UTNIF is about debate, whether its NFL, TOC, TFA, or UIL. It will help you understand how to debate on any circuit.” (2007, 2006, & 2005)
Emily Koehler, Caney Creek HS, Conroe, TX: “UTNIF has definitely helped me to reach the next level of my debating career. They’ve taught subjects more in depth than any school debate team would be able to do. In addition, they made me evaluate my true self and reasons for being a debater. I am now much more confident in my debating and communication abilities. I have transitioned from debating for a trophy to debating for the educational and personal benefits.” (2007 & 2006)
My Vision as the Director
I outline some of the things I care about in terms of our program on the website. But some highlights: My goal is to create a friendly and educational team environment at camp where the kids feel supported and comfortable in their learning. I think the diversity of views about debate enrich our activity and that students must understand both the "old school" and "progressive" approaches to LD (or whatever labels are currently in use) if they are going to be able to adapt to a variety of judges and maximize their success. We do not teach that a particular style of debate is correct or better. We know that we have students from many backgrounds and regions. We hope that by the end of camp that our students can understand where different people are coming from in terms of their approaches to LD and that they have gained the ability to independently evaluate their own choices regarding their growth as debaters. Put simply, we pride ourselves on fostering an environment of thoughtfulness and respect. If you look at our student's quote page on the website, I think you will find that debaters from highly diverse regions have all found something to learn at UTNIF. I also think you will see that our students in their own words reflect the vision of the camp, which I hope is a sign of our success as a program.
If you have any questions about UTNIF, please feel free to contact me at sthomas@mail.hockaday.org.
Thank you for your time,
Stacy Thomas
LD Curriculum Director at UTNIF
Director of Debate at the Hockaday School
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