Meet the Debate & Forensics Team

Amy

My major ... Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology (BBMB)
I’m from ... China
I’m currently a ... Second Year
A fun fact about me ... I’m a harpist!
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I would like to improve my communication and reasoning skills

Patrick

My major ... Computer Science and Pre-Engineering (Double Major)
I’m from ... Bukavu, Dominican Republic of Congo
I’m currently a ... First year
I do Debate & Forensics because ... [it’s helped me] get better at public speaking

Juan Asencio

My major ... Politics and Economics (Double Major)
I’m from ... Osorno, Chile
I’m currently a ... Second Year
A fun fact about me ... I love theatre
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I want to improve my writing and speaking skills

Kaela Babasin

My major ... Politics
I’m from ... Portland, Oregon
I’m currently a ... Second Year
A fun fact about me ... I love nerd gummy clusters!
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I love to argue and yell at people

Nico Brenneman-Ochoa

My major ... Politics
I’m from ... Burlington, Vermont
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... My left ear is pointy (it’s a hereditary thing in my mom’s family)
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I love it, the skills it taught me in public speaking, research, thinking on my feet, and the community of brilliant and passionate people that I became a part of

August Brown

My major ... Math
I’m from ... Draper, Utah
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I do pole dancing for fun
I do Debate & Forensics because ... of the community and shared knowledge

Anissa Cherif

My major ... Economics and Prelaw
I’m from ... Dallas, Texas
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I am allergic to cats but I have 2
I do Debate & Forensics because ... it is fun and challenging

Ana Dillard

My major ... History
I’m from ... Seattle, Washington
I’m currently a ... Fourth Year
A fun fact about me ... My southern accent returns when my mom or grandparents are present
I do Debate & Forensics because ... It lets me learn new things every day

Valeri Garcia

My major ... Undecided
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I have gone to 11 different schools and lived in four different states
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I love doing new things and I want to be an attorney in the future and thought this would teach me some useful skills for that

Artemis Gilbert

My major ... Undecided Major
I’m from ... Portland, Oregon
I’m currently a ...  First Year
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I do Debate & Forensics because I like ethics bowl and model UN

Alexa Grechishkin

My major ... English
I’m from ... Mount Vernon, Washington
A fun fact about me ... I own a Monchichi
I do Debate & Forensics because ... it’s really fun to get to show my competitive side in an activity that is competitive and fun

Dylan Koerselman

My major ... Economics 
I’m from ... Salt Lake City, Utah
I’m currently a ... Second Year 
A fun fact about me ... I can drive a slapstick, but not a stick
I do Debate & Forensics because ... so I could get better at public speaking

Taona Mapindani

My major ... Economics
I’m from ... Harare, Zimbabwe
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I am interesting
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I think it is fun

Isabel Mathy

My major ... Politics
I’m from ... Denver, Colorado
I’m currently a ... Fourth Year
A fun fact about me ... I can do that fraction stuff in class really fast
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I love it and scholarships

Finnegan Motz

My major ... Rhetoric and Philosophy (Double Major)
I’m from ... Dallas, Texas
I’m currently a ... Second Year
A fun fact about me ... Red hair and blue eyes are the rarest hair-eye color combo
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I do Debate & Forensics because it’s super fun and I’ve been doing it for a long time

Sunita Nepali

I’m from ... Nepal
I’m currently a ... Second year

Sophia Pilling

My major ... Politics and Philosophy (Double Major)
I’m from ...Denver, Colorado
I’m currently a ... Junior
A fun fact about me ... I sail!
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I love Debate & Forensics too much to not debate

Henry Priebe

My major ... Politics
I’m from ... Nampa, Idaho
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I’ve climbed the 9 tallest mountains in Idaho
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I find it a valuable opportunity to hone my communication skills and to develop knowledge in areas such as politics, economics, and culture

Heather Romero

My major ... Astronomy-Physics
I’m from ... Caracas, Venezuela
I’m currently a ... Second Year
A fun fact about me ... I can rollerblade backward!
I do Debate & Forensics because ... it’s something I, a year ago, thought would be unbelievably difficult, and now being on the other side of that gulf I cannot wait to work on improving for the next 3 years

Louis Stark

My major ... Physics
I’m from ... Portland, Oregon (not Maine)
I’m currently a ...   Sophomore
A fun fact about me ... I have six pets!
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I highly enjoy speaking and informing

Shree Tamang

My major ... Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology
I’m from ... Nepal
I’m currently a ... First Year
A fun fact about me ... I have participated in Debate Star back home
I do Debate & Forensics because ... I want to catch up on it

Cedar Tatarek

My major ... Geology
I’m from ... Portland, Oregon
I’m currently a ... First Year
I do Debate & Forensics because ... [It helps] build confidence and stay engaged with the world

Emily Yee

My major ... Undecided
I’m from ... San Francisco, California
I’m currently a ... First Year