The William Pitt Debating Union (WPDU) is the debating society of the University of Pittsburgh

University of Pittsburgh

The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...

. Falling under the auspices of the Department of Communications, the WPDU is a co-curricular program and hub for a wide range of debating activities, including intercollegiate policy debate, public debate, and debate outreach. One of the oldest collegiate debating organizations in the nation, the WPDU grew from the University’s Division of Public Speaking in 1912. Throughout its history, the WPDU has regularly participated in national and international competitions, including capturing the affirmative team two-man debate national championship at the 1947 Grand National Forensic Tournament, and appearing 41 times at the National Debate Tournament

National Debate Tournament

The National Debate Tournament is one of the national championships for collegiate policy debate in the United States. The tournament is sponsored by the American Forensic Association with the Ford Motor Company Fund.-History of the NDT:...

, where it captured the 1981 national championship. The WPDU is located in the heart Pitt's campus and occupies the eastern wing of the eleventh floor of the Cathedral of Learning

Cathedral of Learning

The Cathedral of Learning, a Pittsburgh landmark listed in the National Register of Historic Places, is the centerpiece of the University of Pittsburgh's main campus in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States...

. The WPDU also offers scholarships to top team participants.

Competitions

The WPDU has participated in, and traveled extensively to intercollegiate debate competitions since its early history. A regular participant regional and national competitions, the WPDU has previously won the Pennsylvania State Debating Championship, qualified for the National Debate Tournament

National Debate Tournament

The National Debate Tournament is one of the national championships for collegiate policy debate in the United States. The tournament is sponsored by the American Forensic Association with the Ford Motor Company Fund.-History of the NDT:...

 forty-one times, and captured the 1981 National Debate Tournament national championship. In addition, at the 1947 Grand National Forensic Tournament, a two-man affirmative debate team won the national championship competing against 89 other teams, while Pitt's negative team finished as runners-up. The WPDU has also finished first in the American Debate Association

American Debate Association

The American Debate Association began in 1985 as an intercollegiate debate association. It uses the resolution selected by the Cross Examination Debate Association and the National Debate Tournament. Currently they have 66 member schools...

’s varsity rankings and its debaters have won hundreds of individual speaking awards. In the past the WPDU hosted major intercollegiate debating competitions, and through the years, the team has appeared on television and its success has enjoyed coverage in local and regional media.

Public Debate

Throughout its history, the WPDU has frequently convened public debates on salient and pressing topics facing local, regional and national communities, sometimes drawing large crowds and media attention. Today, these debates typically feature a mix of student and expert advocates, audience participation periods, and formats tailored specifically for each debate. Topics have included school vouchers, the merging local governments, and transportation issues, peer-to-peer file sharing, textbook pricing, and sex education. In 2000, the Cross Examination Debate Association recognized the Union’s public debate efforts with the Public Sphere Award.

International Debate

The Union regularly hosts foreign national teams on their debating tours of the United States, having entertained the British, Japanese, Russian and Irish national teams, and has also traveled for international debates. In 2000, the WPDU hosted a public debate between the national high school select teams from New Zealand and South Africa. From 2001-2006, WPDU coaches worked with the U.S. State Department to teach the public debate process as a strategy of civil society empowerment to high school students from Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Romania, Macedonia and Montenegro.

Outreach

The WPDU has a long history of outreach exemplified by its history of hosting high school debate clinics and tournaments as far back as at least the 1930s. Since 1995, the WPDU has reached thousands of elementary and secondary school students through its outreach initiatives, including the College in High School Argument program and the Middle School Public Debate Program.

Coaches

The WPDU employs two full-time directors and numerous graduate teaching assistants working with debate therefore making it one of the largest and most experienced debating coaching staffs in the United States. The current WPDU faculty includes the following:

Current

Director of the William Pitt Debating Union: Gordon Mitchell

Director of Debate: Shanara Reid-Brinkley

Associate Director of Debate: Paul Johnson

Assistant Coach: Matt Gayetsky

Assistant Coach: Sydney Pasquinelli

Assistant Coach (specializing in public debate pedagogy): Odile Hobeika

Assistant Coach: Taylor Hahn

Former

Joseph Packer - 2007 to 2010 - Coaching at University of Mary Washington, finishing PhD at University of Pittsburgh

John Rief - 2006 to 2010 - Finishing PhD at University of Pittsburgh

Brent Saindon - Finished 2008 - Finishing PhD at University of Pittsburgh

Matt Brigham - Finished 2007 - Lecturer at James Madison University, finishing PhD at University of Pittsburgh

Thomas Kane - director of the 1981 national championship team

External links

• William Pitt Debating Union homepage
• William Pitt Debating Union streaming media site