Judge Philosophies
ACU-Annah Samdi - ACU
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ACU-Diana Weilbacher - ACU
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Adam Naiser - LEE
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Adam Winningham - UTK
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Addisyn Brown - UCA
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Adrian Alvarado - LEE
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Aleea Murray - LSUS
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Alex Vanoy - Jeff State
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Alex Bope - UU
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Alexis Farino - DBU
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Angela Bastoparra - LSUS
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Anna McFetridge - WmCarey
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Anna Turgaeva - UCA
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Anthony Copeland - LTU
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Ari Merlos - Nevada
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Ashley Hale (she/her) - LTU
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Athena Shead - UTK
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Aun Jaffar - UTK
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Autumn Guizar - ATU
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Ava Koonce - ATU
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Ben Krueger - Nevada
Ben Krueger (he/him/his)
University of Nevada, Reno
I competed in Parli and IEs in the early 2000s at Northern Arizona University. After many years away from competitive forensics, I returned to judging in 2016. I have been the assistant director at UNR since 2019.
General Debate Views and Preferences
1. I come from a traditional policymaking background, but I'm open to multiple frameworks and interpretations of debate. It's up to you to defend and justify your framework choices in the round.
2. I don't do well with speed. The faster you spread, the more likely it is that I'll miss arguments on the flow and make a decision you won't like.
3. Structure is good and I appreciate signposting, but remember that it's not a replacement for substantive argument. Having a catchy tagline is not the same thing as having a well-developed warrant that supports your claim.
4. Rebuttal speeches should "zoom out" and give me a big picture overview of what's going on in the round. When the rebuttal is simply a line-by-line analysis, I inevitably have to do more work to weigh the issues myself.
5. I viscerally dislike "gut check" arguments and won't vote for them. Instead, give me more specific analytic reasons why I shouldn't believe a specific claim (for example, it doesn't have a clear source, it's based on a post hoc fallacy, it's based on a faulty analogy, etc).
6. Don't be jerks. It is possible to make assertive, highly competitive arguments while still recognizing the humanity of your opponents. Hostile verbal and nonverbal behavior cheapens the pedagogical value of competitive debate and drives students away from the activity.
My views on Parli
I rarely judge Parli anymore, but in case you encounter me in a Parli round, there are a few things to be aware of about how I approach the event: (1) I hate stupid T arguments and tend to default to reasonability over competing standards unless there's something really wonky going on. (2) K's absolutely must have clear links and clear alt-solvency that I can weigh against the plan. If they don't, I will have a low threshold for accepting any plausible-sounding answer to them. (3) I will not vote for poorly-explained technical arguments just because they're on the flow if they aren't properly weighed or impacted out.
My views of IPDA
IPDA is NOT parli-lite! If you treat the round that way, I will at minimum tank your speaker points.
I believe that IPDA should be publicly accessible as a debate format, by which I mean that speeches should be delivered at at a conversational rate and and should minimize use of technical jargon as much as possible. I will still evaluate IPDA rounds from a flow-centric perspective, which means that things like top-of-case and dropped arguments still matter. Eloquent oratory or witty comebacks alone will not be enough to win my ballot if you aren't winning on flow. I tend to be disinclined to vote on framework presses beyond the level of definitions reasons to prefer a specific criterion.
Although uncommon, I find myself giving more low-point wins in IPDA than I did in Parli. If I give you a low-point win, it typically means one of two things happened: (1) you clearly won on flow, but there was a major issue with your delivery/presentation style, (2) you weren't winning on flow, but your opponent collapsed to the wrong voting issues or made some major strategic blunder in rebuttals that led me to buy your voting issues instead.
A Final Note on Recent Political Developments (6/2022)
In light of recent developments in national politics, I am choosing to disclose that I am a gay man. Please be mindful that resolutions about legal rights of specific groups (such as LGBTQ+ individuals, women, or racial minorities) can be triggering to competitors and judges when framed as a binary either/or choice between maintaining civil rights or eliminating them. In such rounds, I will grant leeway to both affirmative and negative teams to frame their arguments in ways that avoid a morally problematic division of ground. If you find yourself on the "bad" side of such a resolution, some ideas for you how might reframe include: state-level counterplans, constitutional amendments, constitutional convention, secession, Northern Ireland-style consociationalism, etc.
Ben Harvey - MSU
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Bob Alexander - BPCC
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Brandon Knight - WmCarey
Compete with dignity.
Brandon Davis - Harding
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Brennan Curley - UCA
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Brooklyn Whittenburg - UCA
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Caleb Winston - UCA
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Cameron Thoele - LSUS
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Caroline Clements - UU
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Carter Schrum - UU
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Charlize Jackson - BPCC
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Cisco Soto - UTK
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Cory Tessman - UCA
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Daniel Walsh - Nevada
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Devin Walker - UCA
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Devin Hutchins - MSU
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Diego Moreno - LEE
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Drew Waites - UTK
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Elias Perry - LEE
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Elise Scudmore (they/them) - USM
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Elliot Certain (he/they) - MTSU
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Emily McDonald - ACU
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Emma Buck - UCA
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Emma Jaramillo - LEE
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Emmitt Antwine - LTU
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Ethan Fulkerson - Nevada
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Ethan Arbuckle - ACU
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Felicity Newby - DBU
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Grace VanLiere (she/her) - UU
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Gracyn McGathy - ACU
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Gregory Self - DBU
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Greta Hacker - UCA
Gretta Graves - USM
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Hallie Kennedy - UCA
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Hannah Dryer - UU
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Hengel Zelaya - Harding
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Jaci Palmer - ATU
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Jackson Csoma - BPCC
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Jacob Little - UU
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Jacob Hurbanek (He/Him) - UARK
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Jacqueline Maldonado Martinez (She/Her) - UARK
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Jacqueline Berntsen - UCA
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Jaina Bauer - ATU
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James Jovicich - UARK
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Jane Anne Carroll - ACU
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Janice Black - UCA
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Jasmine Brossett - NSU
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Jason Rogers - WmCarey
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Jazmyne Campbell - ATU
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Joel Martin - DBU
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Josh Danaher - ACU
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Jovanni Arellano - LEE
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Kailee Carter - LTU
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Katelyn Ah Puck - DBU
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Katie Rock - ATU
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Kierson Titus (He/Him) - UARK
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Kimberly Truong - LEE
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Kristina Rizzo - ATU
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LSUS-Mack Miles (They/Them) - LSUS
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LSUS-Shanisha Ford (She/Her) - LSUS
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Laney Aguilar - ACU
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Lia Portillo Cantarero (She/Her) - NSU
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Lindsey Nellis - DBU
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Lisa Koshcheyeva - Jeff State
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Liz Roa - UACCB
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Luke Thurmon (He/Him) - UARK
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Lyeneal Griffin - WmCarey
Lyeneal Griffin, M.F.A.
Assistant Coach, William Carey University
I will judge the flow. Please make sure that your arguments are clear and intelligible. This is important to me. Weigh impacts.
Neg, refute and build. Weigh impacts.
Draw your arguments from quality source material. Equity, inclusivity, and diversity in your evidence is a plus. Be clear on the scope of your resolutions. I like to review sources.
Be respectful. Bad sportsmanship will lead to a reduction of points. Do not talk down to your opponents or judge.
M. G. Jarzabek - LSUS
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Madalyn Ramirez - DBU
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Madison Plaisance - LTU
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Madison Hall - LEE
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Mariah Parker - DBU
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Mateo Moncaleano - MTSU
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Matthew Gedeon (He/Him) - LSUS
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Maurica Simpson (she/her) - ACU
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Megan Smith* - LTU
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Megan Veilleux - LSUS
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Megan Murphy - BPCC
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Molly Daugherity - ACU
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Myca Marotti - UACCB
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Nadia Amidu - UCA
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Nate Goldstein - LTU
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Nathan Mustapha - LEE
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Neel Patel - LTU
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Neetin Khadka - DBU
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Nick Truitt - UU
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Nyala Jefferson - UCA
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Olivia Shaw - UU
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Olivia Balentine - UCA
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Phillip Parker - NSU
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Priscilla Guerra - LEE
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Rebekah Whitaker - UU
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Richard Bilich - WmCarey
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Rufina Gonzalez - LEE
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Ruqayyah Smith - LSUS
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Sahori Hernandez-Quinones (she/her) - ACU
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Samantha Young - WmCarey
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Sean Peer - UACCB
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Seth Blair - UU
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Sha'Mya Lorden - NSU
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Shamar Hunt - MSU
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Skylar Lewis - UCA
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Teldrick Cooper - NSU
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Thad Abner - WmCarey
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Tommy James (He/Him) - LSUS
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Tory McCoy - LSUS
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Trinity Parks - ATU
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Valerie Colbert - DBU
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Vaughn Hogan - UCA
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Whitman McGee - LTU
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Zo Leatherwood - UU
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