Week 3: News Update

Week Three has arrived, and with it, many new events for the Debate Society!

We will be holding our first annual AGM on Tuesday 23 October, 6pm in CON 1.04. Be there or be square! We will be electing 3 first-year reps and 1 postgraduate rep to form a sub-committee. These reps will represent the interests of their batch mates on the main executive committee, help out at LSE-organised tournaments, attend committee meetings, help publicise debate-related events and many more exciting things.

If you feel somewhat interested by this, don't hesitate to come forward! Being a rep is a great way to get more involved with the debate society and we strongly encourage anyone who is keen to do so.

Now for the logistics of it... To run as a candidate, you must register your interest online at http://www.lsedebate.org/p/sign-ups.html on the form which states 'Freshers and Postgrad Rep'. All entries should be submitted by Tuesday morning, 10am. Also, you will have to show up punctually on Tuesday at 6pm and be prepared to make a 1 minute speech on why you deserve to be elected. We wish all interested participants the best of luck and welcome all debate society members to come down and vote.

Following the AGM we will have our usual Novice Training, at 6.30 pm in CON 1.04. Danny will be teaching the "dos and don'ts" of Definitions, and will also be covering the role of the First Proposition. Everyone is welcome to attend this training session, including newcomers who have never joined us before. We will be going over the rules of British Parliamentary debates again, albeit briefly, for those who missed the first session last week.

Experienced Training will be taking place this Thursday 25 October, 6:30pm in CLM 3.06. Jon Kay will be talking about the education system in the UK as well as debate topics pertaining to that. There will be a practice debate after that. We welcome those with some background in debating to attend this session. Novices, who are eager to sit in and watch, are also welcome.

Haven't yet planned anything for the weekend? Fancy some neuronal stimulation in one of the top Science universities in the UK? The Debate Society has the perfect solution for you! The Imperial College Open is a one-day tournament happening on Saturday, 27 October. If you are interested, please sign up online at http://www.lsedebate.org/p/sign-ups.html by Wednesday 12pm. It is vital that you register online prior to the competition so we can contact you and supply you with the relevant details. This tournament is only for experienced debaters and speeches will be seven minutes in length. Depending on the level of interest and the number of spots available, we may hold trials. More information will be provided to interested participants.

 On Sunday 28th October the Southern Debate Association Novice Tournament is taking place at Imperial College London (this is different to the tournament on the saturday, but in the same location).  It is designed specifically for new debaters.  We really encourage anyone who is new to debating, including if you participated at UCL Presidents' Cup, to sign up.  We will not be holding trials for the tournament so this is the perfect opportunity to try out debating without any of the pressure.

 If you're interested, please sign up at http://bit.ly/RQKKzq by Thursday 25th October, 7pm. 

Finally, we will be holding tryouts to select our teams for the World University Debating Championships 2012 next Wednesday, 31st Oct at 6pm.  Should you be interested, please e-mail lsedebate@gmail.com with your name, contact details, whether you are applying to debate or judge and a debate CV.  This should outline your past debate and judging experience and also contributions you have made to the society including volunteering at LSE-hosted tournaments and judging on behalf of LSE.  The deadline for applications is midnight, Friday 26th October. The Championships will be held in Berlin from 27th December 2012 to 4th January 2013.  LSE will be sending three debate teams and two judges to represent us.
(Please note,  should you be successful in securing a place (either as a debater or judge), you must undertake to bear the full cost of attending the tournament.  This includes a ?400 registration fee per person which will cover the cost of your accommodation and food for the duration of the tournament, as well as airfare to Berlin and back.)

Last but not least, LSE's internal Novice Cup will be taking place on Saturday, 3 November. For those who are interested either to participate or judge... Mark your calendars! And remember to register your interest online at http://www.lsedebate.org/p/sign-ups.html.

The committee looks forward to meeting the new sub-committee on Tuesday!