Kennesaw State University’s newly formed debate team recently competed in the 2025 University System of Georgia Regents Cup, marking a significant milestone for the group. The competition uses the International Public Debate Association (IPDA) format, which requires participants to quickly develop arguments and present them effectively while maintaining civil discourse.
Robin Mathis, Ph.D., associate professor of communication and director of debate for KSU, faced the challenge of assembling a team with no prior experience in less than three months. “Our first practice round, I remember I said, ‘okay… you get six minutes,’ and I think they spoke for maybe 90 seconds,” Mathis said.
Mathis and assistant coach Lorraine Cook focused on foundational skills during team meetings, combining discussions about current events with lessons on speech construction and information sourcing. Mathis noted the team’s rapid progress: “I don’t even know how to construct a speech to completing successfully a 26-minute round of debate, multiple rounds, in two and a half months.”
Cook, who is also a student in KSU’s Secondary and Middle Grades English Ed.D. program and coaches at Campbell High School in Smyrna, expressed pride in the team’s development. “The most rewarding part was working with the team and seeing how excited they were to go to the USG Regents Cup. They went up against more experienced debaters, but you wouldn’t know from watching them that this was their first tournament,” Cook said.
The students representing KSU were Jaylan Conwell, Zainab Wajid, and alternate Silvia Prisco—all aspiring law students who joined to strengthen their argumentation skills. Wajid reflected on her experience: “I could do more than I thought I could.” She placed seventh out of 26 debaters at her first tournament. “It turned out to be one of the best choices I’ve ever made, actually, and I learned I loved it through all of our meetings and all of our practices,” Wajid said. “It kind of just, like, sparked something inside of me.”
Prisco serves as an alternate debater while being active across campus as an orientation leader and president of the Honors Advisory Leadership Council. Mathis described her as “a tremendous… assistant coach in the prep room,” highlighting her research contributions.
Jaylan Conwell defeated the reigning Regents Cup champion by one point during his second round—a notable achievement for someone who describes himself as nervous about public speaking. He joined to build confidence for his future legal career. “Anyone that’s interested in debate should definitely join, no matter what their background is or what their major is. I feel like it’s a great experience for everyone,” Conwell said. “If you have a voice and want to put it out there, then definitely join debate.”
The KSU debate team welcomes students from all majors for roles including debating, researching, brief writing or case building. Interested students are encouraged to contact Robin Mathis via email.
