Judge Philosophies
AJ Edwards (He/Him) - LSUS
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Aiden Bennett - MSU
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Alex Gibson - LTU
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Alexandria Ritchie - ACU
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Allison Winter - UF
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Alyx Dickson - Lewis & Clark
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Amelia Little - ACU
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Amie Clarke - GCU
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Anna Wooten - MSU
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Anna McFetridge - WmCarey
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Annah Samdi - ACU
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Arbaz Khan - LSUS
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Asahi Lama Sherpa - MSU
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Ash Bridenbaker - LSU
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Ashlee Roberson - WmCarey
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Aubree Watkins (She/Her) - UARK
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Audrey Oberle - MSU
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Audrey Taylor - UU
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Bailey Brown - LAC
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Beau Farrar - LTU
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Ben Mann - Lewis & Clark
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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.
Benjamin Shoptaw (He/Him) - UARK
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Bethany Stanford - MSU
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Billy Owens (he/him) - LTU
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Bob Alexander - BPCC
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Braeden Helmick - UU
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Brandon Reynolds - LSU
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Brandon Knight - WmCarey
Compete with dignity.
Braxton Ganey - LSUS
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Bryson Sexton - UARK
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Carissa Moore - ACU
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Carolyne Smith - UU
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Carter Stainton (he/him) - UARK
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Celie Dixon - MSU
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Charles Culliford - LAC
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Charlie Grunloh - MSU
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Cole Fairchild - MSU
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Colten Nichols (He/Him) - UARK
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Colten Harris - UU
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Courtnae James - LSUS
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Daisy Murfey - UU
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Daniel Murrah - BPCC
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Daniel Wilkerson - LAC
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Daniela Pineda-Vizcaino (She/Her) - UARK
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Danielle Duffield - USM
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Devesh Sarda - LSUS
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Diana Weilbacher - ACU
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Dominick Mercer - BPCC
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Dylan Hall (He/Him) - UARK
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Eliana Snyder - UU
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Emma Powell (She/Her) - UARK
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Emma Jaramillo - MSU
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Emy Pablico - ACU
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Ephraim Mensah - LSUS
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Eric Wooten - MSU
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Erick Aguilar - ACU
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Evan Smith - UF
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Evan Garrison - MSU
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Finn Spoerl - Lewis & Clark
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Freya Steed - Lewis & Clark
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George Urling - Marshall U
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George Moisant - MSU
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Grace Dunning - UU
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Gretta Graves - USM
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Haiven Potts - UU
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Hayden Braziel - LSU
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Hazel Hernandez - MSU
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Jace Godfrey (He/Him) - UARK
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Jaci Sabatini (They/Them) - UARK
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Jack Duncan - UARK
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Jackie Garcia-Torres - ACU
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Jacob Rose - MSU
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Jacob Davidson - Jeff State
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Jade Vasquez (She/Her) - UARK
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Jake Leckrone - UU
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Jake Reed - MSU
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Jane Anne Carroll - ACU
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Jasmine Forck - LSUS
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Jasper Millsaps - ATU
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Javan Elzie - BPCC
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Jeff Peterson - GCU
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Jessi Boaz (she/her) - ACU
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Jessica Rogers - TN Tech
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Jessie Paxton - UCMO
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Jewel Thomas - LSUS
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Jodeyah Mills - ACU
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John Wallis - UCMO
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Johnathan Hebert - LAC
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Jonas Lansford (He/Him) - UARK
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Jonathan Bridenbaker - LSU
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Jonathan Conway - UCF
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Joseph Miller - LTU
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Joshua Hendricks (they/them) - USM
Debate better.
Justin Jetton - BPCC
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Kameron Dowling - SUBR
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Kaylee Reid - MSU
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Kendrick Kruskie - LTU
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Kennas Shah - UARK
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Kennedy Hartman - LSU
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Khubaib Islam - LSUS
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Lianne Kho - LSUS
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Lillian Stevens - UARK
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Lily Bridges - USM
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Lilyane Calhoun - LAC
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Lindsey Brown - BPCC
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Luke Thurmon (He/Him) - UARK
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Lydia Stinnett - UU
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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.
Maddie Fritz (She/Her) - UARK
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Madelyn Allison - Jeff State
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Makayla Mills - LSUS
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Marlo Linan (She/Her) - UARK
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Matthew Cook (He/Him) - UARK
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Matthew Gedeon - BPCC
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Max Green (He/Him) - UARK
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Maxime McClatchey - LSUS
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McKenna Roberts - LTU
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McKenna Crain - LAC
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Mia Denner - WmCarey
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Michael Guzman (He/Him) - UARK
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Michael Dvorak - GCU
Michael Shirzadian - Marshall U
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Michael Banks - MSU
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Mike Gray - Troy
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Molly Watson (She/Her) - UARK
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Molly McLemore - MSU
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Muizat Ayoola-Abioye - LTU
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Myca Marotti - UAMONT
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Nathan Nuulimba - UU
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Nicco Stacey - UU
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Nicky McHugh - UCF
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Noah Dancy - MSU
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Noel Martin - LAC
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Nora Galvan - UARK
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Olivia Shaw - UU
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Owen Iddings (he/him) - UAMONT
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Percy Blaich - UARK
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Peyton Willoughby - MSU
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Philip Sharp - Nevada
Phil Sharp- University of Nevada-Reno
Pragati Gautam - MSU
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Presley Jones (She/Her) - UARK
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Price Morgan (He/Him) - UARK
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Rakesia Wilson - MSU
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Ray Wooten - MSU
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Rebecca Currie - BPCC
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Rhea Neugebauer (She/They) - UARK
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Richard Sayers - Jeff State
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Ronin May - Jeff State
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Ruqayyah Smith - LSUS
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Ryan Seiter (He/Him) - UARK
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Ryan Wagy - UU
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Ryann McClure - LTU
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Sam Mahony - ACU
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Sam Harvey - MSU
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Samantha Young - WmCarey
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Sarah Thompson - WmCarey
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Scarlett Leake - WmCarey
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Sean Ye - MSU
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Sean Bell - LTU
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Seth Blair - UU
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Shamar Hunt - MSU
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Shelby Cumpton - UCMO
Love good speaking, strong argumentation, and a little humor here and there. Don't run preponderance of evidence in front of me; I care about actual argumentation, not just evidence. If you want to win my ballot, don't get caught up in the technicalities or terminology; just make a better argument.
Shelley Wooten - MSU
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Sierra Robinson-Clark - MSU
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Sophie Fox - UU
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Sophie Barrentine (She/Her) - UARK
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Stephanie Littlefield - ATU
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Susie Utz - MSU
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TJ Jones - BPCC
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Tanner Marlow - MSU
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Tate Blondin - BPCC
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Tess Robertson - ATU
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Tim Walker - UU
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Tory McCoy - LSUS
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Trakevious Thompson - WmCarey
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Tristan Balderacchi - MSU
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Tyler Sullivant - MSU
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Will Crews (He/Him) - UARK
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Zoe Lenters - LAC
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