Summer Activities:

(1) Inaugural Elementary School Tournament
June 7, 2006 @ Catherine Blaine Elementary:
Over 60 4th and 5th graders from Blaine, Coe, Lawton
and Hay competed in two, one-hour rounds on the topic of Mandatory
School Uniforms. The team meetings and tournament was funded by
Successful Schools in Action.

(2) Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle (ULMS)
Children's University at Seattle University, June 24-July 31:
The Children's University is a six week day camp for public school students in grades K-8. ULMS approached SDF to teach debate to 24 youth in grades 4-8 during the institute. The students will participate in fun, hands-on activities to learn debate skills, theory and to prep for next year's national topic.  The students will compete in a camp tournament and in the sixth week they will participate in an exhibition debate for the community (followed by an awards ceremony).

(3)Seattle Debate Institute
University of Washington, August 13-27:
SDI is an intense, two-week summer institute/workshop for youth going into grades 9-12. Housed on the University of Washington’s campus, program includes individual research, brief writing, speaking drills, and practice debates with experienced faculty and low student-teacher ratios.  In addition, this summer, SDI will be pioneering our incorporation of hip hop as an alternative argument for our students to use in their 90-minute evidenced based debate rounds.  The goal is to teach students how to use hip hop to speak to the issues that they will be debating.  We hope that in doing this we can not only create a more inclusive activity, but also stimulate a broader commitment to create a more inclusive politics that values the richness and voices of all cultures and forms of expression. The institute will also feature judges, lawyers, professors, political activists, entrepreneurs, and hip hop artists as guest lecturers.  SDI is sponsored by the SDF, Seattle Parks and Recreation, University of Washington Department of Communications, and Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) at Seattle Public Schools.


Recent Grants Awarded:

$3,975.00 from City of Seattle, Seattle Parks and Recreation - for
Seattle Debate Institute 2006

$40,000 from Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate
Programs (GEAR UP) at Seattle Public Schools - for Seattle Debate
Institute (funds 27 full-ride scholarships for GEAR UP scholars in
grades 9-12)