Christopher Columbus High School

A Catholic School for Young Men in the Marist Tradition since 1958
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Debate Qualifies 11 to State Tournament

The Columbus Debate Society had a great weekend at districts and qualified 11 students to the varsity state tournament. 

Those that qualified will be wearing their medals today on campus. 28 Explorers competed across five events on the Ransom Middle School campus on Saturday. After putting in a 12 hour day, we had students placing in the top 10 in all events and qualifying in three divisions to the Florida Forensic League Varsity State Championship at Olympia High School, later this month.

In the newest debate format, World Schools Debate, the team of Andrew Castro, Javier Hidalgo-Gato, Marcos Ortega, Albert Sanchez, and Marcel Van Hemert went undefeated to claim the first district championship in the event! The boys faced tough competition from Braddock and Southridge on their path to first place. The topics they encountered throughout the weekend were:

1)      This house would place sanctions against Russia
2)      This house would reinstate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy
3)      This house would eliminate predictive policing

In Lincoln-Douglas Debate, thanks to coach Ciocca, the Explorers maintained their dominance in the event and qualified three students (including two freshman) to the varsity state tournament. Leading the way was the freshman duo of Nicholas Gonzalez and Alan Munschy who finished in 5th and 6th place respectively. Closely behind them in 7th place, making it to states, junior Michael Denis held his own and squeezed onto the states roster. All of the LD students were debating the topic:
             
Resolved: States ought to eliminate their nuclear arsenal.

In International Extemporaneous Speaking, senior Ryan Yglesias returned after a two-year hiatus and finished in 5th place overall. Ryan went through topics such as climate change adaptation, foreign economies, and refugee migration issues. Narrowly missing the cut and finishing as first alternates, the team of Vince Viamontes and Hansel Heres finished in 8th place in Public Forum Debate. Also narrowly missing the cut was sophomore Lucas Hurley, who finished as first alternate in Lincoln-Debate. Lastly, auto-qualifying in policy debate, the team of Nicolas Sosa and Gabriel Lafee, also made it to the State Championship.

The varsity state championship will be held at Olympia High School in Orlando, Feb. 29 – March 1. The teams will split up for their next competition. Coach Ciocca will be taking half the team to the Harvard Invitational. Coach Martinez will be taking the other half to the University of Toronto for the first international debate tournament in school history. 
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Christopher Columbus High School | 3000 SW 87 Avenue | Miami, FL 33165 | (305) 223-5650
Brotherhood, Faith, and Scholarship define the Marist Brothers Catholic education at Christopher Columbus High School.  By making Jesus Christ known and loved and creating an inspiring academic and extracurricular environment, we prepare young men for higher learning and a life-long commitment to leadership and service through Gospel and Marist values.

Columbus is fully accredited by Cognia and is a member of the Marist Association of Secondary schools, the National Catholic Education Association and the Independent Schools of South Florida.