Debating Update

Debating Update

5 students qualified for the Semi-Finals of the UCD/Trinity Leinster Senior Schools Debating Competition:

Stephen Ryan (TY) successfully opposed the Motion that ‘This House Supports Britain Leaving the EU’.  Stephen Rooney and Jordan McDonald (both 6th Year) who proposed the same motion but in a different room, made it through as a team.

Proposing the motion that ‘This House Supports the Boycott, by High Profile Celebrities, of this Year’s Academy Awards’ Scott Donohoe and John Heavey (both 5th Year) were successful in reaching the Semis but were, unfortunately, split up and now go through as Individual Speakers.  Commiserations must go to Hugh O’Leary (TY), Oisín Ryan (TY) and Mark Heavey (5th Year) who were unsuccessful.

Blackrock College was also well-represented at the year World Schools’ Debating Team Trials for Leinster and Connaught, even though none of our 3 speakers; Scott Donohoe

(5th Year), John Heavey (5th Year) and Simon Huggard (TY) was successful.  We commend them for their efforts.

At the Trinity Historical Society Mace Scott Donohoe (5th Year) reached the Semi-finals after 2 days of Mace Debate with his composite partner from Clonkeen College, Killian Farrelly.

The Junior Debaters are currently preparing for the Leinster Final of the Junior Debating National Mace which will be held on 27th February in Holy Child Killiney.  There will be 100 Speakers in total from Leinster competing for a place at the National Finals in Castleknock Community College.  Our Speakers include; Michael Ryan and Niall Meagher (both 3rd Year), John Huggard and Tom Dooley (both 2nd Year) and John Cawley and Michael Lucey (WP 1st Year).

The Juniors are also in the The Leinster Junior Schools Debating Competition.  Tom Dooley (2nd Year) and Niall Meagher (3rd Year) having proposed the motion that ‘This House Would Introduce A Gender Quota for Film Director Award Nominations’ have progressed to the Semi-Final.

I thank our Debating Committee Secretary Scott Donohoe for his report and my colleagues Ms Dobbyn and Mr Sheil for their organisation of the Society.