Students

Jun Kwon of Port of L.A. High School told Newsweek that the honorific is "a testament to how much I love the activity."

NYU pre-med student Emmanuel Makinde engaged "bizarre ideas" via meaningful discourse when he joined debate at his Washington, D.C., high school.

Jazmine Chaves says that debate has given her "a sense of belonging and home" that she hasn't felt elsewhere to the same degree.

"I feel like throughout my life, I'm always going to be tied back to debate," one college debater, who will soon begin work as a teacher, told Newsweek.

Marianny Torres-Collado says participating in debate makes her "feel good" because she is able to engage with similar people, "so maybe I do belong."

Isabella Long told Newsweek that many young people are more informed than adults about key issues and should be taken seriously.

Ruby Trejo Ontiveros says debate can benefit students in the future by helping them "express what they think without a fight."

Noemie Durand admits she has had "some stage fright and, I'm not gonna lie, I still have it, but debate has helped me get over that fear to a certain extent."

Sanika Agarwalla said debate not only taught her how to speak but also "how to listen and how to be open to altering my perspectives."

The Washington Urban Debate League programing and development director says Liv Birnstad isn't "the hardest-working person…she is the smartest-working person."

The judge said high school senior Erick Zaragoza "doesn't really care that he got the win" and instead focused on helping his opponents do better next time.