The Brooks Quimby Debate Council swelled in size this year due to a large class of novice debaters. These debaters have already found success in the APDA circuit, including two Bates novice teams breaking at the Harvard Tournament. Many first time debaters such as myself have learned quickly under the tutelage of our peers on the Bates team. Speaking from my experience, the most difficult thing to learn about parliamentary debate was how to organize our arguments and our opponents' arguments in a limited amount of time. That came only through practice and tips from other debaters. Another challenge was learning debate jargon, which is essential to understanding an APDA debate.

The months we have been debating have undoubtedly given us the public speaking experience and confidence that nothing but practice can give. I can speak for all Bates novice debaters when I say that we look forward to continued success in the next
semester, and in continuing the rich tradition of Bates Debate.