Over this past summer, Dr. McFarland and Mr. Lingel taught at a summer debate program at Harvard University called the Sophomore Champions Lab from June 29th to July 25th. Forty rising sophomores from all over the country were able to improve their debating skills while also getting a feel for the college experience at Harvard.
Who They Are
On top of being one of the debate coaches at Jesuit, Mr. Lingel serves as a counselor for our Juniors students. Our second elite debate coach, Dr. Tracy McFarland, teaches Government, Comparative Politics, and International Relations at Jesuit. She also serves as a distinguished ambassador for the Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank that works to help make factual learning accessible to others by providing resources for things like simulations and more. The two have been at Jesuit for 32 and 25 years respectively. This was not their first rodeo as they had assisted in similar programs at other prestigious universities like The University of Michigan, Dartmouth and most recently Gonzaga U.
What Happened
The summer debate programs serve 2 purposes: to strengthen students’ debating skills and begin looking into the theme of next year’s debate season. This year, the focus is on arctic exploration. During the 4 weeks of the Sophomore Champions Lab, participants had the opportunity to research in Harvard’s library as well as practice their debate skills by doing mock debates with fellow sophomores. As instructors for the program, Dr. McFarland and Mr. Lingel had helped strengthen foundational concepts about debate and build on them to ensure that all of their students would be prepared and confident for the upcoming school year.
Highlights of the Summer
Dr. McFarland enjoyed getting to work with a diverse group of students who came from public and private schools all over the country. This is because students were carefully selected from across the nation, including those from schools with fewer resources. Mr. Lingel also enjoyed taking a break from the Texas heat by spending time in Boston. One of the rising sophomores who went to the Harvard summer debate program, Keshav Giridhar, also attends Jesuit. He remarked about how,
“It was a new experience that allowed me NOT TO just grow as a debater, but as a person too.”
– keshav giridhar ’28
This is because during his time at Harvard, he was able to get a feel for what college life is like by living in a dorm and engaging in other activities and routines of a college student while forming long-lasting relationships with fellow debaters.
Final Thoughts
Something that stood out to Mr. Lingel about spending time on Harvard’s campus was how similar their values were to the Jesuits, with him even saying that,
“Working at harvard was like working for the jesuits on steroids.”
This is because he felt that values such as that of Catholic social teachings were very prominent throughout the university. For Dr. McFarland, she enjoyed how she was both able to build community with others and help students find themselves, staying in contact with several students to mentor them after the program. The debate program at Harvard not only served as a way for students to strengthen their mastery of the art of debate, but it also served as a way for the instructors, Mr. Lingel and Dr. McFarland, to cultivate a group of rising adults who are both intellectually competent and passionate about asking questions and exploring their own interests.
Stay tuned into The Roundup for Jesuit Debate coverage!
Thanks to Dr. McFarland and Mr. Lingel for all of their help with the making of this article!
Additional info and a photo were found here: Policy Debate (Novice & Sophomore Labs) – Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshops
