The single digit to "preteen" temperatures outside and the fluctuating temperatures in the classrooms did not deter coaches, debaters, parents, judges and City support staff from coming in droves to the January 17 Middle School Tournament.

Quite the contrary, we stayed the course and moved through the labyrinth of CIVITAS, KIPP, ConneXions and MATHS with burgeoning facility to support the hundreds of elementary and middle school debaters poised to compete on this day, and ready to make their own indelible marks on the city and state far beyond the tournament's walls. These young people must forge their own pathways in society better equipped to make, discuss and assess complex situations with a multiplicity of informed reactions.

This time we need an entire band to applaud the administrative support we received for our second debate tournament in the 4700 block of Greenspring Avenue. "Two Thumbs Up" for the principals of each individual school in the Dr. Roland N. Patterson Academy space for allowing us to inhabit their hallways and classrooms once again. They include host Principal Matt Wernsdorfer - CIVITAS as well as the following administrators:

• Principal Dana Polson - ConneXions
• Principal Shawn Toler, KIPP and
• Principal Rebekah Ghosh - MATHS

Once again, Mr. Tyson Beale - Chief Operations Officer for KIPP, was available to lend a supportive, encouraging hand throughout the day. His continued presence is greatly appreciated.

Major Props to Officer Tony Atkins and Officer Cynthia Sanders

We have been most fortunate to have very effective school police officers at every middle school tournament. I must sing the praises of Officer Atkins and Officer Sanders for working both our January 17^th tournament and our November 15^th tournament. They support the efforts of BUDL in working to provide students with such positive activities beyond the school day. Many thanks to Ms. Angela Thompson and Mr. Paul Turner at BCPSS's Central Office and to Police Chief Marshall T. Goodwin for enabling Officers Atkins and Sanders to be with us again.

Whether consuming a morning breakfast of juice and hot oatmeal, or lunch fare of pizza, debaters used every opportunity to huddle with their teammates and refine their strategies for the various debate rounds. Resolved: The United States federal government should increase restrictions on medical testing of animals. This was the topic debated for the first two rounds. Once again the debaters were joined by family, friends and community guests many of whom arrived at 7:30AM with the BUDL staffers! Talk about dedication!

Our surprise third round topic looked at animals from a different vantage point as debaters considered how pet owners might respond to an age old question regarding which animals make better pets, cats or dogs. Resolved: Pet owners should have cats as pets because cats make better pets than dogs. The debaters found out whether they were debating the affirmative or negative case just minutes prior to the announcement of the surprise topic!

BUDL débuted some new divisions this tournament to accommodate the rapid growth of the middle and elementary school program. We now have four competitive divisions:

• 4^th and 5^th Grade Division
• Novice Division
• Junior Varsity (JV) Division
• Varsity Division

The awards now reflect those four divisions and we are working diligently to make the transition between divisions as seamless as possible. As many of you have heard us say, "Without Judges, There is No Debate". The newest judges come from the ranks of supporters at various participating schools, former national debaters in urban debate leagues and home school leagues, parents, high school debaters and community stakeholders. We thank our newest judges and all of our "regular" judges for continuing to support these young debaters as they develop and make their voices heard.

CIVITAS was the recipient of the Cardin Cup in the midst of a banner day of celebration. City Springs, Holabird and Northeast tied for 6^th place for top schools. All three schools had eight wins each! Major props to the following schools, teams and speakers:

Elementary Division - TOP FIVE TEAMS

• Alexis Wilson and Shakiya Pitts - Winston
• N'Dia Langhorn and Dakota Krommer - City Springs
• AyAnna Saunders and Foster Jones - City Springs
• Julie Chatteron and Breonna Davis - Francis Scott Key
• Foster Jones and Myesha Scott - City Springs

Elementary Division - TOP FIVE SPEAKERS

• Dakota Krommer - City Springs
• Shakiya Pitts - Winston
• Brianna Davis - Francis Scott Key
• Foster Jones - City Springs
• N'Dia Langhorn - City Springs

Novice Division - TOP FIVE TEAMS

• Jack Moore and Deairus Spencer - Holabird
• Selia Sequoia and Shionea McCarty - Stadium
• Shawntae White and Andrea Neal - Margaret Brent
• Deja Cobb and Dominic Barnes - Winston
• Erica Gibson and Carl Jefferson - Stadium

Novice Division - TOP FIVE SPEAKERS

• Selia Sequoia - Stadium
• Jack Moore - Holabird
• Dearius Spencer - Holabird
• Andrea Neal - Margaret Brent
• Kyle Baylor - Crossroads

JV Division - TOP FIVE TEAMS

• Jaela Clark and India Hamilton - Roland Park
• Annika Johnson and Jeremiah Parker - Winston
• Kody Little and Maya Thomas - Calverton
• Shaquel Marshall and Alexis Funari - Roland Park
• Genice Sambda and DeAndre Honeyblue - Stadium

JV Division - TOP FIVE SPEAKERS

• Khalil Smith - Stadium
• India Hamilton - Roland Park
• Jaela Clark - Roland Park
• Kirk Edmonds - Bluford
• Khareem Curtis - Roland Park

Varsity Division - TOP FIVE TEAMS

• Khai Elmore and Kimi Reid - Stadium/CIVITAS
• Sophie Sweeney and Olivia Henry-Jackson - Roland Park
• Destiny Tames and Shania Kerina - Northeast
• Travis Carroll and Kamau Miller - Winston
• Kylie Kinson and Ashley Crockett - Stadium

Varsity Division - TOP FIVE SPEAKERS

• Oliver Robinson - Stadium
• Mati Baker - Bluford
• Kimi Reid - Stadium/CIVITAS
• Terrell Rogers - Garrison
• Zach Thomas - Roland Park

TOP FIVE SCHOOLS

• STADIUM
• ROLAND PARK
• WINSTON
• CALVERTON
• FRANCIS SCOTT KEY

See you on February 14, 2009 when our resolution will focus on elementary schools and middle schools and whether or not recess is included in the daily learning opportunities provided for the school levels mentioned. Resolved: All Baltimore City elementary and middle schools should have daily recess. What do you think?