After a break due to the Covid pandemic, the debate team has returned to Plant. With Ms. Goldberg as the sponsor and Ananya Bhalla as the president, the team is ready to compete against other schools and grow the community.   

“It may sound silly, but I took the initiative to bring the debate team back because I have the time. I was new to Plant in January, and I realized that we don’t have a team, because of Covid, it just kind of fell apart, so when a student last semester came up to me and asked whether I would be interested in sponsoring, I agreed. Really, it was the students push that made me want to do it, so this fall those two students, Luke and Ananya have helped me start it this year,” Goldberg said.  

But what is the debate team?   

“The best word to describe it right now is new. But basically students come together to practice different types of debate and argue about issues of morality and different policies. We later attend tournaments, and at those tournaments, the students are being evaluated at the effectiveness of their argument and the way they delivered it,” Goldberg said.   

The team has monthly tournaments, one coming up in November, hosted by other schools. With the goal for Plant to host one of those tournaments in the future, the team is still relatively new, so they attend the ones hosted by neighboring schools. Such means that students have to be prepared and represent Plant exceedingly.  

“The debate team is a huge commitment. It isn’t just a club for fun; while we do have fun, there is a lot of research involved and does require time of your own- looking up things, writing things- it’s a lot of work. Bottom line is that it is more of a commitment than people might realize,” Goldberg said.  

While the team has already had its first couple of meetings, it is still accepting new members. If students are interested in joining they can send a message through Canvas to Ms. Goldberg, indicating the students’ student number, and she will add them to our Canvas group. The application is short and simple right now because they are just trying to gather interest- so its your name, grade, the types of debates you are interested in, and the snacks you like.  

“The team is open to anyone, I would say it has mostly unlimited slots. But the actual people that will go to the tournaments are abased on the students that are showing up and putting in the work and effort. This is because we can’t bring 30 kids that aren’t trying, and leave the 5 kids that are passionate and invest their time in this team. So I am not putting a limit on the number of students that can join, because I want to encourage and promote it, but you get what you put in. It can be very exciting and rewarding to go to these tournaments and make new friends and meet new people,” Goldberg said.   

With the simple goal of getting started, the debate team looks forward to seeing dedicated students doing something they love, which can be exciting and rewarding. Going to these competitions and making new friends, meeting new people, and creating connections is the unspoken part of the debate team.   

But such wouldn’t be possible without dedication, brainstorming, and determination.  

“I was new to Plant in January, and I realized that we don’t have a team, because of Covid it just kind of fell apart, so when a student last semester came up to me and asked whether I would be interested in sponsoring, I agreed. Really, it was the students push that made me want to do it, so this fall, those two students, Luke and Ananya have helped me start it this year. I wouldn’t give myself credit for bringing the team back, but rather the students, especially Ananya Bhalla, she really spirited the whole thing and reached out to me to share her vision for the team. The two of us later really brainstormed and got in touch in order to know what we need to get started,” Goldberg said.  

As mentioned by Ms. Goldberg, without the students’ initiatives, the team would not have gotten back on its feet.   

“We did have a debate team since the years of Covid, but it wasn’t advertised at all. We had a sponsor, and she tried her best, but with all the conflicts the team just kind of died. So I came to this school my sophomore year, during Covid, so I couldn’t do anything. But junior year I realized that Plant does not have a debate team, and that was surprising because my freshman year in Kentucky, before I moved here, we had a rely fantastic debate and speech team- we would attend so many practices and conferences overnight, which was a great bonding experience and also helped a lot of kids to just express themselves and learn how to argue and speak up, which is a skill so important nowadays in regards to communication,” Bhalla said.  

And just as Ms. Goldberg reiterated, the Debate Team is a commitment. While students can join for a variety of reasons, there are tasks to be completed, meetings to be attended, and research conducted. 

“We will be accepting members again in semester two for those MUN kids and band kids who weren’t able to make it now. But the debate team is a commitment- if you want to compete and represent Plant at other schools- you are going to have to commit. We understand that Plant is a very competitive school where everyone has things going on, but you have to make it to the Monday meetings. You also have to come out of your shell and be willing to grow and accept criticism, because that is the only way you will be able to excel in our team,” Bhalla said.  

By being on the debate team, students will develop oral and written communication as well as critical thinking skills. They will too learn practical tools for research, organization and presentation and strategies to overcome fears of public speaking.  

“Students should join the team because it is a great way to learn how to communicate with other people and express your viewpoints because we live in a very polarized world, and students should be able too see both sides of an argument and be able to argue both sides and convey themselves regardless what political perspective they have or whatever their bias may be,” Bhalla said.  

With many new faces at Plant this year, student involvement in extracurricular activities has skyrocketed. Such, too, is an advantage to this team, which took a year-long break from operating.   

“Our goal is just to get started. That might sound silly, but more than anything we just want to get started so we can represent Plant well in the future and give students the opportunity to grow both as students and as citizens, and get more involved and engaged in the school community,” Goldberg said.   

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