Students Place 3rd in National Debate Championships

Rising juniors Asher Moll and Pranav Konduri placed third in the National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) Championships in Fort Lauderdale last week. Before advancing to the final round, they competed in the World Schools event, which put them on a team with three students from Lamar, forming the South Texas Blue Team.

This is the first time St. John's students have competed in the World Schools Debate, a relatively new event. World Schools Debate is a dynamic, international debate format. It asks participants to display both an understanding of current events and the ability to speak off-the-cuff about important issues. It truly is an international event -- Pranav and Asher competed against teams from China and Taiwan. Though the event draws on skills honed in other forms of debate, Asher and Pranav have only been practicing World Schools for a few months, with the help of Debate Coach Andy Stubbs. It is exceptionally rare for sophomores to qualify for the national tournament, much less advance in such a new event. St. John's is proud of Pranav and Asher’s success and excited to see what they accomplish over the next couple of years.