The Frederick Douglass Institute Collaborative is pleased to invite you to the 11th Annual Douglass Debates. We are pleased to announce that plans are in the works to return this year’s Douglass Debates to an in-person experience.

Information about the tournament will be posted below and the pages linked on the right-hand sidebar as tournament details are finalized.

Tournament Director: Dr. Robert J. Green Ph.D. (Contact information is provided on the sidebar.)

Format: Two-person team debate. Any undergraduate student currently enrolled in a PASSHE institution is eligible to participate. Please contact your university's Frederick Douglass Institute for further information.

Topic:Resolved: The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education should mandate the use of Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education.

Tournament Registration: Each competing university may register up to two (3) two-person teams, with additional teams waitlisted. It is possible to register teams that are TBA with entries finalized by the registration deadline.

New for 2025:We are planning to organize a "Debut Division" for debaters with minimal debate experience. Details forthcoming.

Point Person: One person from each school, usually the head coach, will need to be a designated "point person" responsible for knowing the whereabouts of their debaters and judges and have ways to communicate with them quickly over the course of the tournament.

Judging Requirements:Because no tournament can happen unless there are enough judges to hear all of the debates, each school that enters the tournament is required to bring qualified judging. Each school is expected to provide 2 rounds of judging for every team they enter into the tournament.
• If you enter ONE team into the tournament, then you are expected to provide TWO rounds of judging.
• If you enter TWO teams in the tournament, then you are expected to provide FOUR rounds of judging.
• If you enter THREE teams, then you are expected to provide SIX rounds of judging.

Schools should report judges who might have a conflict of interest to the tournament director. Undergraduate students are not allowed to judge in the tournament.

To Register for the tournament:Please email Dr. Green with your tournament entry information. This should include

• Entry information for each two-person team and an email address for each student. If any of your students have prior debate experience, please report that with your entry.
• The name and email address for each judge, include a list of any schools each judge should be constrained from judging.