On Thursday, March 26, in the University of Georgia’s Hatton Lovejoy Courtroom, the South’s oldest rivalry was on display for all of those in attendance.
“The University of Georgia continues to be a strong partner with the Clarke County School District, and we appreciate this book donation from the Phi Kappa Literary Society. Literacy is a key focus in our district, and this certainly helps support that,” said Clarke County School District spokesperson Anisa Sullivan Jimenez.
The annual Inter-Society Debate showcases the university’s two rival literary societies, the Phi Kappa Literary Society and the Demosthenian Literary Society, as they debate on a pre-selected resolution in front of a panel of judges that will determine which society will win bragging rights for the next year.
This year’s resolution was Be It Hereby Resolved: The University of Georgia should institute a test-optional policy for admitting undergraduate students.
Before each society’s team members took the floor, Shreya Singh, the Chief Justice of the hosting Phi Kappa Literary Society, reminded each member in the audience that “our rivalry is the type of necessary competition that fosters mutual growth and ambition.”
With the formal introductions completed, Phillip D. Grant, Jr., a second year Ph.D. student in educational administration and policy and member of the Phi Kappa Society, began the first affirmative constructive argument by highlighting the cultural bias inherent in standardized tests like the SAT and asserted that at a world-class research university everyone is obligated to make the campus a more diverse learning environment.
“There’s a cultural bias in a test required policy and we are obligated to make it (the university) more diverse,” Grant said.
Grant’s speech served as an introduction to a policy solution that would be contested by the Demosthenian Literary Society for the next hour and a half.
The first negative constructive for the Demosthenian Literary Society as presented by Katie Googe, a second year double major in comparative literature and romance languages, equated removing standardized tests from admission considerations to stripping away one of the pillars of the University of Georgia arch.
Both societies tackled issues relating to the latest revisions of the SAT, other universities that have implemented test-optional policies and increases in minority enrollment.
Every speech given by the two societies – two constructives, two cross-examinations, a rebuttal and a summation each — demonstrated the immense amount of research and effort that went into the construction of arguments and masterful presentation needed to have a shot at capturing the title.
After an arduous half hour deliberation, the judges returned to the courtroom to name the best speakers for each society and the overall winner. The award for best Demosthenian speaker went to Cameron Greene and the award for best Phi Kappa speaker went to Richard Banton.
Despite each argument having its flaws, the title of the Inter-Society Debate was ultimately awarded to the Phi Kappa Literary Society by Dean Stefanie Lindquist, the dean of the School of Public and International Affairs, breaking a four year losing streak.
In an interview following the conclusion of the debate, Lindquist highlighted the importance of both societies stating, “Young people that are going to be involved in Georgia, the nation or the world will learn the skills here that they need to be effective and persuasive.”
The teams were as follows:
Phi Kappa – Phil Grant, Sarah Anne Owens, Kristin Henry, Richard Banton and Halle Hammond
Demosthenian – Katie Googe, Nolan Hendricks, Cameron Greene, John Ashley and Lauren Cole