The student voice of Pembroke Pines Charter High School ignited the stage with enlightenment at a series of debate competitions. On Feb. 21st and 22nd, the PPCHS debate team performed at districts, bringing home an array of accomplishments. The Jaguars effort was further represented at the state level on Mar. 2nd and 3rd.
Although it may seem that the two competitions are aligned, they are separate leagues. In the case for districts, competitors receive their topic about a month in advance to competition day. Students utilized this time to prepare their arguments and rebuttals to ensure that they have established a well-reasoning case. After familiarizing themselves with their topic, the debate team convened at Western High School to compete in six preliminary rounds.
After hours of discussion, three teams from PPCHS managed to advance through the ‘breaking’ session, carrying them to the elimination rounds. With the tensions remaining at a high, if the teams successfully make it past these last rounds they would proceed to nationals.
Senior Aarohi Bali shares, “I’ve qualified for nationals every year since my sophomore year, so I definitely feel a little pressure to do well.”
In the semi-finals round Bali and senior Carmine Young were able to win their case in a public forum regarding the International Criminal Court (ICC). Earning a spot at nationals, the duo placed second overall.
Competing since freshman year, Bali’s experience allowed her to assist the “younger kids for example, Finn Phelps Crossman, Martin Petkov, Nathalie Ralfelt and Kevin Sosa who are sophomores. It was their first district tournament, so I really enjoyed helping them with their prepping.” These sentimental moments became all the more valuable to Crossman and Petkov once they won fifth place overall.
Seniors Karina Garcia and Sahana Srinivasa also upheld major accomplishments. Participating in the debate team since freshman year, Garcia has spent countless hours and late nights dedicated to her work. She describes the process of prepping for districts to have been “nerve-wracking.”
Although it was a long process, Garcia’s efforts have been commemorated “after nine rounds of competition we earned a district recognition and a spot in the 2025 National Speech & Debate Tournament this summer.”
Following districts came the state competition held at the University of Central Florida (UCF). Contrary to last year, any student was eligible to enter the competition without having to qualify at regionals. In turn, this doubled the amount of participants on the PPCHS debate team.
All members throughout the event participated in the standard back-to-back preliminary rounds. Each team’s record, based on the judge’s evaluation, would then determine if they would advance to the finals. From around nine a.m. to seven p.m., PPCHS’s debate team showcased their quick thinking skills, with limited time in between each round to prepare for their upcoming argument.
Although none of the teams placed at states, Petkov and Crossman pursued dominance on the debate floor, proceeding through the ‘break’ round. Petkov expresses “it was an incredible experience. We were able to compete against some of the best teams in the state, and beat quite a few. It was a great performance.”
Another member of the debate team, junior Robertzsa Joseph, experienced a personal victory. Considering the atmosphere at states was different than the typical debate room, Joseph felt overwhelmed by the situation. Despite all this, Joseph “really locked in and focused to make sure nothing got to [her.]”
Expanding her horizons, Joseph also befriended new acquaintances. “I feel like states is more personal because you get to see people who you know are from Florida and are going through the same journey as you,” Joseph says.
Some participants were further able to branch out and explore new debate topics. Considering each event has its own style, this provided PPCHS’s debate team the opportunity to expand their skill set. Senior Sahana Srinivasa communicates, “I normally do public forums but a group of seniors and I did world schools debate. I was able to understand how I can apply knowledge about our government into different topics.”
With their dedication, Pines Charter’s debate team brought home a multitude of achievements, granting them their hard-earned award.
