The 2024 National Speech and Debate Tournament took place in Des Moines, Iowa on June 16th-21st. The Lincoln East High School Debate Team worked very hard to be able to bring 18 students to compete in 5 events at Nationals.
Qualifying to be able to participate at Nationals is extremely difficult and is a very impressive achievement. The competition was tough with nearly 6,000 students competing from 1,500 teams, coming from all across the country. The team had made it to nationals before, but had never previously placed this high. The Lincoln East debate team finished among the top 5 teams in the nation.
“It felt amazing,” head debate coach John Holen said. “It was definitely a career-making experience. I was incredibly happy that the kids worked as hard as they did.”
The team has a long history of success, so this win was coming their way. The team worked hard throughout the season, racking up lots of wins along the way. Sarah Cai, current senior at East, along with her partner, competed in policy at nationals and placed 14th.
“We were hoping to beat our result from last year (37th place),” Cai said. ”But we were extremely surprised at how far we made it in the competition. Policy Debate is saturated with lots of huge teams with tons of resources, so the fact that a duo from a smaller school like East could pull off such a result was amazing.”
Holen has been the head debate coach here at East for 9 years and the team has thrived a great deal under his leadership.
“I really enjoy seeing kids grow and develop as students,” Holen said, “as well as people throughout their academic career. I love seeing the success they can have and what kids can accomplish with their skills.”
The varsity team is looking to be very successful this year, along with lots of new debaters who will form the novice team. The season is just now starting and the team is actively recruiting new members, so it’s not too late to join this winning Spartan team.
“I’m excited to see how this year’s team steps up to fill the shoes of last season’s huge results,” said Cai. “We have a lot of new debaters joining the team this year, and I can’t wait to watch them grow in their experience.”
Based on last year’s successes the team is bound to have another outstanding season. Make sure to be on the lookout for more updates on the team’s progress throughout the year. The Lincoln East Debate Team’s legacy is just another reason to be proud to be a Spartan.
