LT’s debate team offers an opportunity for students to simulate Congress and debate hypothetical bills, allowing them to practice civil debate and develop a deeper understanding of political issues in the U.S., debate sponsor Maria Ricker said.

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, LT will host an Illinois Congressional Debate Association tournament on Dec. 7. This is the fourth tournament of the 2024-2025 season in which about 25 to 30 schools will be competing, debate sponsor Thomas Swiontek said. 

“The whole point of it is to give students an opportunity to really think critically about issues that are affecting our country, affecting the world, and consider with legislation how they could tackle these issues civically,” Ricker said.

Debate tournaments have three rounds, called chambers, which are two hours and 15 minutes long, in which student-written bills covering topics ranging from foreign affairs to domestic issues and the economy are debated, Swiontek said. The pro and con sides rotate between giving speeches with three minutes of speaking time and two minutes of questioning time for each, and then a vote is simulated. Everyone is expected to do refutations to demonstrate that they listened to the opposite side of the issue.

“It models good deliberation, it models the way people should learn and change because you have to listen to other people; you have to listen to evidence and facts,” Swiontek said. “Instead of creating extremist viewpoints, it creates people that recognize that there are multiple sides to every issue and that compromise is important, not just in people’s jobs, but in government.”

Three students are chosen to be presiding officers within the chambers who take on a similar role to the Speaker of the House in the House of Representatives. They decide who is called on to speak and enforce the rules for speaking and tallying votes. Elections are held at the end of the tournament in which the best presiding officer is voted on, incentivizing them to use their authority fairly.

“It’s tragic that the kids who do debate are held to higher standards than the politicians that are in charge of this country,” Swiontek said. “In debate, if you use disinformation, you get a zero. In politics, if you use disinformation, you get elected president.”

The tournament starts at 8:15 a.m., with students arriving earlier, around 7 a.m., and lasts until the awards ceremony ends at around 6:30 p.m., Ricker said. LT hosts the tournament around every five years. “I’m so proud of the kids who do this because they realize how important it is,” Swiontek said. “And hopefully, in the end, facts, information, deliberation, and civility win out over disinformation and instability.”