University of Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program

June 21-August 7, 2015

Why should I attend the 2015 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program?
1. A Pattern of Success: The Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program has produced the winners of 5 of the last 6 Tournament of Champions and 3 of the last 5 NSDA
National Champions. So far this year, alums of the 2014 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program have won Blake, St. Marks, Alta, New Trier, Dowling, Meadows,
Iowa Caucus, and Valley. They have also this year been in the Finals or Semifinals of The Glenbrooks, Greenhill, the University of Michigan, Ohio Valley, Texas,
Bronx Science, Georgetown Day School, and Scranton. Alums of the 2014 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program this year have won the Top or Second Speaker
Award at St. Mark's, The Glenbrooks, the University of Michigan, Texas, Ohio Valley, New Trier, Meadows, Notre Dame, and Iowa Caucus. They have also this year
won Top Five Speaker Awards at Blake, Greenhill, Georgetown Day School, Wake Forest, and Alta.
2. Practice Debates: Each member of the 2014 Seven Week Seniors Program participated in well over two dozen full-length practice debates during the course of the
summer. For example, 2014 alum Harry Aaronson from Notre Dame High School (CA) participated in 33 full-length debates.
3. Lectures: Everyone in the 2014 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program attended dozens of camp-wide and in-lab lectures.
4. Evidence: In numerous waves of assignments, the 2014 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program produced several thousand pages of evidence and received
thousands of pages of additional evidence from the other four Michigan Seven Week Labs.

After spending two seven-week sessions at the Michigan program, I don't think I could have made a better decision in terms of where to spend my
summers. Not only was the debate education unmatched, but my lab leaders were some of the most intelligent people I've worked with, in or out of
debate. I feel like Michigan has achieved the perfect balance of time in practice debates, lectures, and research. There are students from all over the
country, so you get practice debating kids from every region, which simulates the most competitive levels of debate. Each lab leader makes an effort
to speak one-on-one with every debater, which creates an extremely positive learning environment. The University of Michigan campus and city of
Ann Arbor are beautiful and the perfect setting for such a unique debate experience.
Jacob Goldschlag, La Costa Canyon High School (CA), 12/5/2014, Quarterfinalist at 2014 Meadows and Notre Dame Tournaments
The Michigan 7 Week Seniors program was one of the most rewarding experiences I've had. I left Ann Arbor, a more confident and competent
debater, picking up skills in argumentation, research, and communication from the fantastic one-on-one instruction, practice debates, and lectures.
Most importantly, all the lab leaders were entirely invested in our success and understanding, contributing to the safe and educational environment
that has since allowed me to excel in competitions.

Tiffany Haas, Wayzata High School (MN), 12/1/2014, Finalist at the 2014 Greenhill School Tournament
"The Michigan 7 Week program was one of the best experiences of my time in high school. The people I worked with, students and adults, create an
atmosphere that is warm, friendly, and accepting. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the relationships I formed here changed my life, and
seeing my friends from Michigan throughout the year has changed my debate experience. While lectures and practice debaters are a fixture of any
camp, Michigan truly rewards the students who are there to learn as much as possible. The lab leaders are always available to help you work through
any sort of problem even for kids they arent technically their responsibility. Nights are spent discussing everything from new-age philosophy to
Russian geopolitics to indie video games. The days are long and the work is hard, but the reward is greater than I could have possibly imagined. 7
weeks is a long commitment for any summer, and I can think of few more engaging ways to spend one."

Alex Petros, Ransom Everglades School (FL), 12/8/2014, Semifinalist at 2014 University of Michigan Tournament
Spending 7 weeks in Michigan for my senior year was one of the best decisions I've made. The University provided one of the best camp
experiences that I have had over my 3 years attending debate workshops. The lab leaders provided in-depth and helpful advice and skills that made
me both a better debater and communicator. The overall quality of the labs (including students, leaders, facilities, etc) allowed me to grow and
expand as a person and gave me one of the best summers of my high school career.

Caitlin Walrath, Rowland Hall (UT), 12/5/2014, Second Speaker at the 2014 Meadows School and Notre Dame Tournaments

University of Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program

June 21-August 7, 2015
Why should I attend the 2015 Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program?
5. Faculty:
Dr. Jarrod Atchison, Director of Debate at Wake Forest University
This will be Jarrod's eighth summer working at the Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program. He is voted the camp's most
popular lecturer each summer. As a debater at Wake Forest University, Jarrod was the top seed and third speaker at the
National Debate Tournament. He was also runner-up for the Copeland Award, given to the debate season's most
outstanding team. Jarrod is the former Director of Debate at Trinity University and a former assistant debate coach at the
University of Georgia. While at Georgia, he coached the Copeland Award winner and second speaker at the National
Debate Tournament. As a debater at Caddo Magnet High School, Jarrod won the Greenhill School and Harvard University
Round Robins.
Andres Gannon, Assistant Debate Coach at Carrollton Sacred Heart and the University of California at Berkeley
While debating at UC Berkeley, Andres was a four-time National Debate Tournament qualifier and three time NDT
elimination round participant. Prior to attending Cal, he attended Damien High School where he was a TOC Semifinalist
and NFL Quarterfinalist. During his four year-coaching career at Damien High School (CA), Andres coached two TOC
Semifinalists, two NDCA champions, and one NFL championship team. He joined the Carrollton School of the Sacred
Heart as assistant coach in 2012 and has coached two consecutive NDCA Semifinalists and two consecutive TOC 2nd
seeds. Andres also won NDCAs Rising Star Award in 2014. This will be his 8th summer teaching at debate camp.
Andres has previously worked at debate camps at Georgetown, UC Berkeley, and the Sun Country Forensics Institute and
played an active leadership role in the Bay Area Urban Debate League from 2008-2012.

Calum Matheson, Assistant Debate Coach at Harvard University

This will be Calum's twelfth summer working at the Michigan Debate Institutes and seventh summer working with the Seven Week
Seniors Program. He was the 2008 Acolyte Award recipient, given to the top assistant coach in high school debate. Calum's was an
assistant coach from 2005-2014 at Glenbrook South High School and since 2009 at Harvard University. He has helped coach the
finalists and the second speaker at the Tournament of Champions, the winners and finalists at NFL Nationals, the top speaker at the
National Debate Tournament, and the 2010 Baker Award winners. As a college debater, Calum was the Top Speaker and finalist at
CEDA Nationals and twice a semifinalist at the NDT. He won Northwestern and the Kentucky Round Robin and was Top Speaker at
Northwestern, Harvard, Kentucky, Georgia State, and Fullerton, twice the top speaker at Southern California and the Kentucky Round
Robin. Calum was voted to be one of the top five college judges and top ten debaters of the last decade in a poll of college debate
coaches, the only person to appear in both categories. He is a PhD candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Mimi Sergent-Leventhal, Debater at the University of California at Berkeley and Assistant Coach at Carrollton Sacred Heart
Mimi and her debate partner this season have reached the Quarterfinals of UMKC, Harvard, and Wake Forest. In previous years, she
has never missed qualifying for the National Debate Tournament and has appeared in elimination rounds of Kentucky, University of
Southern California, and Fullerton. Mimi debated at Edina High School in Minnesota where she was in the Octafinals of the
Tournament of Champions. This is her fourth summer as a lab leader and second at the University of Michigan. Mimi very much
enjoys teaching and has also previously coached at The Harker School.

University of Michigan Seven Week Seniors Program

June 21-August 7, 2015
Dr. Brett Bricker, Associate Director of Debate at the University of Kansas and Assistant Debate Coach at Carrollton Sacred Heart
As a debater at the University of Kansas, Brett won the 2009 National Debate Tournament. He won multiple other tournaments including Harvard,
the University of Southern California, West Georgia and the Kentucky Round Robin. Brett was also Top Speaker at Georgia State, Harvard, the
University of Southern California, West Georgia, the Kentucky Round Robin and twice at the Dartmouth Round Robin. In four years coaching at the
University of Kansas, he coached five teams to first round at-large bids to the National Debate Tournament, the winner of the 2010 Wake Forest
University Tournament and semifinalists and the 2010 and 2011 Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament. In five years coaching
at Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart, Brett helped coach multiple Georgetown champions, finalists of the Harvard Round Robin, and
semifinalists at St. Mark's, The Glenbrooks, Michigan and Montgomery Bell Academy. His previous workshop experience includes the Spartan
Debate Institute, Jayhawk Debate Institute and Arizona Debate Institute. This will be Brett's fifth summer working with the Seven Week Seniors
Program.

Miranda Ehrlich, Debater at the University of Minnesota and Assistant Debate Coach at Wayzata High School
Miranda Ehrlich is an Assistant Debate Coach at Wayzata High School and a Senior at the University of Minnesota, where she is
pursuing a double major in Political Science and Communications. In the 2012-2013 season, Miranda received a First Round At-Large
Bid to the National Debate Tournament and reached the Double Octafinals there the past two years. During the 2014-2015 season,
she has reached the Quarterfinals at Harvard and Octafinals at Wake Forest, Kentucky, and Georgia State. Miranda enjoys working
with students of all experience and skill levels and this will be her second year working with the Seven Week Seniors Program.
Jordan Foley, Assistant Debate Coach at Wake Forest University and Notre Dame High School
Jordan is entering his sixth consecutive summer in the Seven Week Seniors Program at the Michigan. He coached back-to-back TOC champions in
2008 and 2009 at the Westminster Schools and has dependably coached students to compete in deep elimination rounds, receive numerous speaker
awards, and collect a copious amount of TOC bids ever since. Every year as a college coach, Jordan has coached Michigan and Wake Forest to
receive the maximum number first round bids possible and has had a team advance to the Quarterfinals of the National Debate Tournament each
year. As a competitor, he was a four-time elimination round participant at the NDT, receiving a first round at-large bid in 2010. Jordan is also a twotime Quarterfinalist at the Cross Examination Debate Association national championship. He debated at Missouri State University and Little Rock
Central High School.

Melanie Johnson, Debate Coach at Niles West High School

This will be Melanie's fifth summer working with the Seven Week Seniors Program. Prior to coaching at Niles West, she was the Director of Debate
at Iowa City West High School. While there, Melanie coached the 2012 Tournament of Champions winner and the NFL national champion. Her
teams have reached the elimination rounds of many regional and national tournaments and earned numerous top ten speaker awards (including the
top speaker at the Glenbrooks), been invited to national round robins and won three state championships. Melanie's debaters have won Michigan, the
Iowa Caucus and the Valley Mid-America Cup, reached the Semifinals at The Glenbrooks, and reached the Quarterfinals at Greenhill and St. Mark's.
She is a former college debater and National Debate Tournament qualifier.

Brian Rubaie, Assistant Debate Coach at The Barstow School and the University of California at Berkeley
Brian has nine years of experience as a high school debate coach. He has coached high school teams to several deep elimination debates, including
the 2012 Tournament of Champions final round, and led Coppell High School to its first four qualifications to the TOC. Brian also helped his college
teams secure invitations to the Kentucky Round Robin and appearances in the late elimination debates at the National Debate Tournament. As a
college debater, he won Georgia State University and reached the Semifinals of Harvard, Berkeley and CEDA Nationals, and earned speaker awards
his last two years at the NDT. Brian has previously worked at Wake Forest University, Gonzaga University Scholars, University of North Texas,
Baylor University, University of Missouri Kansas City and the University of Vermont. This will be his fifth summer working at the University of
Michigan.