Debate sharpens critical thinking, builds empathy, and teaches students to understand and respect diverse perspectives—skills essential for leadership and academic success. The OSM Debate Club is an after-school program that introduces students to policy debate and equips them to analyze real-world issues, develop persuasive arguments, and communicate effectively.
Who Can Participate?
Debate is open to all students in grades 5–8.
Eighth-grade students will need to have at least one year of debate experience before joining the OSM Debate Club.
Debate Coaches and Sponsors
Nandita Manglavil will serve as the parent sponsor and head coach with Ms. Samantha Douse, a parent volunteer and assistant coach. Mr. Matt Evenstad will be our teacher liaison.
The coaching team will guide students through this year’s policy debate resolution, support debaters at different experience levels, lead weekly practices and workshops, and assist at tournaments and other debate events.
Additional parent sponsors, volunteers, and coaches will support the program throughout the year. We welcome parent involvement.
OSM alumni who are currently in high school will also volunteer as debate coaches:
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Mathew Manglavil — OSM Debate Champion and sophomore at Whitney M. Young Magnet High School
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Brooklyn Bobb — OSM Debate Champion and sophomore at St. Ignatius College Prep
Practice Information
Practices will be held at OSM on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., beginning Tuesday, September 8th. The debate season will run from September through March.
Debate is a rigorous activity, and students are expected to attend practices regularly. Families should notify the coaching team as early as possible about anticipated absences. Repeated absences may affect a student’s eligibility to participate in tournaments or continue in the program.
Tournament Information
OSM is a member of the Midwest Middle School Debate League (MMSDL). Tournaments are full-day events, and debaters are expected to remain for the entire event. Four in-person and virtual tournaments are planned:
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Tournament 1 — October 24 at Avery Coonley School, Downers Grove
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Tournament 2 — December 12 at OSM, online
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Tournament 3 — January 23, location to be determined
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Tournament 4 — February 27 at OSM, online
Coaches, volunteers, and experienced debaters will provide support throughout each tournament.
Debate Topic
This year’s topic is: Resolved: The United States federal government should establish a national health insurance program by eliminating private insurance and creating a single-payer system.
Debaters will learn to argue both the affirmative and negative positions.
Student Expectations
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Arrive on time, prepared, and ready to learn.
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Use practice time for debate activities rather than homework or socializing.
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Use the scheduled break between the end of school and the start of practice appropriately.
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Bring all required debate materials to every practice and tournament.
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Maintain the filing system provided by the coaches.
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Complete assigned work, including learning debate rules, understanding speaker responsibilities, and participating in practice rounds.
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Work with assigned partners and understand that pairings may change when necessary.
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Check email regularly for announcements and assignments.
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Attend all tournaments and confirm attendance at least two weeks in advance.
Parent Expectations
Parents are expected to support the program in the following ways:
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Judge Duty: Parents, we need you to judge at least 2 tournaments and attend the judges' training. The league requires a judge for every 2 teams, and we always need more judges. Don't worry, we'll train you and get you ready!
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Debate Filing Help: Novice debaters will need help filing the debate materials in the beginning. Please help your debater file and always check if your student needs help with refiling documents before each tournament to ensure they have all the necessary materials on hand for the tournament.
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Volunteer: We always need volunteers during tournaments and sometimes during practice sessions. We'd love to have anyone who's available to help!
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Snacks: We would love any snack donations for our practice sessions!
For any debate related questions, contact debate@osmschool.com
Check out our 2025 Debate season photos!