Student debating has been a part of campus life in San Luis Obispo since the university opened its doors as California Polytechnic School in 1903. In fact, Cal Poly debaters won the school's very first trophy. This impressive silver loving
cup is inscribed with the names of the three students who are recognized as Cal Poly's first debate team -- H. Floyd Tout, George S. Coonradt, and Charles J. Emmert.
Cal Poly Debate continues to be an integral component in the university's "Learn by Doing" approach to higher education. Each year, Cal Poly students compete against students from the most prestigious universities in the nation. These debaters recognize that tournament competition is an outstanding vehicle for developing advocacy competencies they will use throughout their academic and professional careers.
There are three primary components to the Cal Poly Debate Program:
The Intramural Competition component sponsors quarterly on-campus competition in debate and public speaking. Participation in the intramural debates is required of all students currently enrolled in SPC 250. The intramural public speaking contest is open to any student currently enrolled in SPC 201 or SPC 202; many instructors provide extra credit to students who compete in the contest.
The Community Service program matches student judges with campus and community speaking contests needing trained debate and public speaking judging. Some of the program clients include: Arroyo Grande High School, Atascadero High School, Cuesta College, Lucia Mar School District Gifted and Talented Education Program, San Luis Obispo County Academic Decathlon, Arroyo Grande Kiwanis Club, and the Cal Poly intramural contests.
The Cal Poly Debate Team is the flagship component of the program. Cal Poly Debaters compete with the brightest students from some of the nation's most prestigious universities in a select schedule of intercollegiate debate tournaments. debaters conduct in-depth research on questions of major contemporary importance, participate in strategy sessions with instructors and other students, and engage in intense oral debates with students from other universities. Tournament competition is the capstone experience for Cal Poly Debate.
For more information about Cal Poly Debate, visit the links on this site. If you are a Cal Poly student or prospective student who is interested in learning how to debate, the Speech Communication Department offers a quarterly 2-unit introductory debate course, SPC 250 (Forensic Activities). The course is designed to provide a low-risk classroom environment where you can learn the principles of academic debate. If you have previous academic debate experience and are interested in joining the debate team, you should get in touch with the program director through the e-mail link on this page.
