Introducing Uplift Debate

Uplift Debate brings free, in-person workshops to students who do not otherwise have access, taught by high school debaters partnered with schools around the Bay Area.

A group of students huddled around a table, working together on a worksheet with pencils.

Debate is Enriching

Speech and debate is an activity that builds critical thinking, oral advocacy, and civic engagement. These skills have translated directly into academic performance and long-term opportunity. Studies have shown that students of debate see a 0.66 GPA increase, 100 SAT score increase, and award-winning debaters have a 22% higher chance of college admission. Furthermore, students of debate enter a welcoming and tight-knit community that can lead to lifelong friendships. In other words, participating in debate can be one of the most transformative academic experiences a young person can have.

Students at a debate competition, seated at desks labeled with team positions, taking notes.

The Opportunity Gap

However, in the San Francisco Bay Area, competitive debate is far too often an activity of privilege. The region's most competitive and well-resourced programs are concentrated in wealthy private schools and expensive independent organizations, creating a large gap for youth without meaningful access to these powerful developmental opportunities.

The Golden Gate Bridge at dusk, overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

Our Solution

Seeing these barriers first-hand, we founded Uplift Debate to close this opportunity gap by bringing high-quality and in person debate instruction directly to students who would otherwise be unlikely to ever encounter it. We recognize that the barriers keeping these students out of debate are not barriers of talent or interest, but of access. Through Uplift Debate, we are directly solving for this by expanding equitable access to instruction, meeting students where they are and building the skills and confidence that competitive debate has historically reserved for its highly resourced participants.

Four Uplift Debate volunteers standing in front of a presentation slide reading 'Evidence to Argument.'

Mission

Our mission is to develop critical thinking and argumentation skills for middle school students through exposure to debate.

Programs at a glance

Uplift Debate combines direct instruction and near-peer mentorship to give students a legitimate pathway to continue debate enrichment.

In-person workshops

Recurring after-school debate instruction by qualified high school volunteers at Bay Area schools.

Adaptive Curriculum

Student instructors adapt lesson plans based on class needs to stay responsive to what younger students actually want from the program.

A pathway forward

Uplift Debate provides a newsletter to keep students and parents informed on debate opportunities to keep students engaged outside of the classroom. As our program expands, we will look to award scholarships to prestigous paid debate programs including Golden Gate Academy and NDC.

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Bring debate within reach.

Whether you're a student, parent, club, or school, reach out to see how you can benefit from Uplift Debate.

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