April 24, 1997 Contact John R. Crosiar (541) 346-3135 Editor's Note: Student team members from your area are identified by their hometowns on page 2. EUGENE--Deep in the heart of the University of Oregon Annex on the west edge of campus resides the very epitome of modern critical thought--the forensics team. These are the left-brain movers and shakers of academia, but don't think for a minute that the right brain goes unused. It takes a great deal of creativity to argue the issues that these students debate. But argue they do and convincing they must be. The team has earned national acclaim and finished among the nation's top 20 programs many times during the last decade. The university's forensics program, now a part of the Robert D. Clark Honors College, is a tradition that dates back more than 100 years to the early debating societies. The program competes in the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA), the largest debate organization in the country. Each year, CEDA assigns a policy issue that will be debated on both sides by every team. This year's topic is "Resolved: That the United States federal government should increase regulations requiring industries to decrease substantially the domestic production and/or emission of environmental pollutants." This year's 20-member team traveled to Portland; San Diego and Sacramento, Calif.; Tacoma, Wash.; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Carbondale, Ill. They hosted the Northwest CEDA Championship in early March and traveled to Wichita, Kan., for the CEDA Nationals in late March. In addition to their own competitions, the UO forensics program hosts the Bower Aly High School Tournament, one of the biggest high school forensic tournaments in the western United States. The tournaments are organized into three divisions based on the debaters' experience. This allows students at all levels of debate an opportunity to participate. This year's team, comprised of many new students with little or no previous debate experience, is in a rebuilding season. But despite the inexperience of many team members, Assistant Director Rick Peacor believes the team has done very well. "We consistently have teams placing in the quarter- and semifinals of these tournaments. The reason we have been successful," he points out, "is because every member of the team has worked very hard. Without the help of many of our new team members, our seniors would not have had the success they have enjoyed this year." Two senior teams--Isaac Gottesman and Danielle Endres, and Katie Bauer and Kevin Kerwien--placed in the top 64 of almost 200 teams at the CEDA Nationals. This success is indicative of the high results the UO teams have achieved in recent seasons, Peacor says. Students in the forensics program gain a variety of benefits from participating, including a comprehensive knowledge of current events. "In order to keep up with the topics, students have to read newspapers and the current journals constantly," Peacor says. "We read the alternative press publications as well as the popular press to get a wide range of views." "I have more confidence in my ability to converse with people because debaters have to know both sides of an issue," says Endres. Gottesman is a senior political science major of 2290 Onyx St. Eugene, and Endres is a senior history major of 14762 14th Ave., San Francisco, Calif. Bauer is a junior political science major of 2912 14th St. S.E., Puyallup, Wash., while Kerwien is a senior political science major of W. 1430 Toni Rae Dr. Spokane, Wash. The other forensics team members and their majors include: ASHLAND--Jay Lininger, a senior political science major of 1253 Tolman Creek Rd. EUGENE-- Rachel Hewitt, a senior majoring in planning, public policy and management, and in German of 3811 Monroe St., and Laura Reed, a freshman environmental studies major of 719 E. Beacon Dr. GRESHAM--Laura Cadiz, a freshman journalism pre-major of 1371 S.E. 217th Ave. MEDFORD--Paul Bruch, a freshman political science and Latin major of 2601 Paloma Ave., and Ashlee Munson, a senior history major of 1535 Anglecrest Dr. OREGON CITY--Justin Kistner, a freshman journalism pre-major of 15881 S. Neibur Rd. PORTLAND--Michael Schmierbach, a junior journalism pre-major of 4505 S.W. Dosch Rd. SALEM--Eric Christenson, a sophomore mathematics and economics major of 547 King Arthurs Court S.E. SEAL ROCK--Noah Bean, a freshman political science major of P.O. Box 126. TIGARD--Brian Lee, a junior political science major of 11150 S.W. Eden Court. WOODBURN--Tom Suarez, a freshman journalism pre-major of 1394 Audrey Way. KENSINGTON, Calif.--Heather Gough, a sophomore political science major of 135 Highland Blvd. SAN JOSE, Calif.--Debra Mutnick, a junior biology major of 1145 Strada Almaden. ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill.--Alison Miller, a freshman political science major of 1919 N. Derbyshire Lane. -30- #H-2156/Hometowns/cs