The newly elected RUDU EBoard in individual shots. Left to right: President Ashley Novak, Vice President Adam Bomeisl, Treasurer Quinn Maingi, Public Relations Chair Rachel Moon, Novice Mentor Kurt Falk, and Alumni Coordinator Gordon Morrisette.
The Rutgers University Debate Union (RUDU) took time out of practicing debating long enough to elect six officers to comprise the 2013 Executive Board on Tuesday night. Five of the six elections were contested in the three-hour meeting. The 2012 E-Board presided over one of the most successful years of Rutgers debate, capped by the second most successful semester in team history (just ended), in which the Union rose to 4th in the nation.
Junior Ashley Novak won the position of President without opposition after spending two terms as RUDU’s Treasurer. Junior Adam Bomeisl won the hotly contested position of Vice President after serving as the 2012 Co-Tournament Director. Sophomore Quinn Maingi joined the E-Board for the first time after being elected Treasurer. Sophomore Rachel Moon also debuted on the E-Board, winning Public Relations Chair. Sophomore Kurt Falk was re-elected to the position of Novice Mentor. And fourth-year junior Gordon Morrisette was elected Alumni Coordinator, having previously served as Webmaster in 2010-2011 before going abroad.
RUDU stands fourth in the American Parliamentary Debate Association (APDA) rankings at the end of the fall semester, just behind Harvard and just ahead of Johns Hopkins. The highest year-end finish for the club is fifth, in 2010-2011. While the E-Board officially begins its duties in January, transitional meetings will be held this month to acclimate the new Board to their tasks and the ongoing projects of the Board.
The information on the outgoing 2012 is archived below:
The 2012 Executive Board of the Rutgers University Debate Union
Chris Bergman is the President of the Debate Union. A rising senior majoring in Economics, Bergman joined RUDU in 2009. He finished 2011-2012 as the 23rd ranked speaker on APDA and part of the 22nd ranked team with regular partner Ashley Novak. He broke nine times last year, qualifying for Nationals, and earned Rutgers’ second-ever top speaker award, at West Point. Chris also holds the all-time RUDU record for possession of dinosaur T-shirts. He is planning on working in ratings agencies after Rutgers.
Bhargavi Sriram is the Vice President of the Debate Union. A rising senior majoring in Finance, Sriram joined the Union in 2009. She made the elimination rounds at UMBC last year, finishing the year ranked on APDA with regular partner Arbi Llaveshi. She also represented Rutgers at the National Championships in 2011. After graduating, she plans to pursue a career in business, though her loyalty is shifting from Taco Bell to Chipotle.
Ashley Novak is the Treasurer of the Debate Union. A rising junior in the School of Arts and Sciences, Novak started debating for Rutgers in 2010. The highest-ranking first-year woman on APDA in five years, she finished second in the prestigious 2010-2011 Novice of the Year (NOTY) rankings, the highest finish in any annual APDA ranking for a Rutgers debater in history. She finished 2011-2012 ranked 22nd team on APDA with regular partner Chris Bergman, breaking eleven times with four different partners. Known for frantically studying several languages with different alphabets at once in the Debate House, Ashley is looking at a career in linguistics after Rutgers.
Henry Phipps is the Public Relations Chair of the Debate Union. A rising senior studying Urban Planning, Phipps joined RUDU in 2011. He finished last year ranked 42nd Novice of the Year, winning two novice final rounds with regular partner Alex Jubb while breaking six times to novice outrounds. While new to the team, Phipps has established himself as one of the most enthusiastic members of the club, or indeed people to ever to set foot in the state of New Jersey. He hopes to eliminate suburban sprawl after graduating from Rutgers.
Kurt Falk is the Novice Mentor of the Debate Union. A rising sophomore in the School of Arts and Sciences, Falk joined the team in 2011. He won 10th Novice of the Year last season and won two novice divisions with regular partner Quinn Maingi, finishing third Novice Team of the Year and earning nine trips to novice outrounds. You might think Falk is moderate and even-keel, but he’d need more time to carefully consider that proposition… and then rant about it! He is currently undecided on career plans post-Rutgers.
Alex Jubb is the Alumni Coordinator of the Debate Union. A rising junior in the School of Arts and Sciences, Jubb started debating for RUDU in 2011. She finished 2011-2012 as the 29th ranked Novice of the Year and broke eight times to novice elimination rounds with three different partners, winning two novice finals with regular partner Henry Phipps. She may be the shortest E-Board member in RUDU history, narrowly swiping the previous record set by Ashley Novak and Nisha Kumar. She is still deciding her path after graduation.
The 2013 Event Director of the Rutgers University Debate Union
Deepta Janardhan is the Tournament Director of the Debate Union’s annual tournament, to be held this year on March 8-9, 2013. A rising junior majoring in Economics and Political Science, Janardhan joined RUDU in 2011. Debating mostly with regular partners Thomas O’Rourke and Nisha Kumar, she won 23 rounds last year. She also took a novice speaker award at Fordham, a tournament that also featured her ironwomaning a round. Much debate is ongoing within the club about whether or not she is lanky. Deepta is undecided on her career plans after Rutgers.
The 2012 Coaching Staff of the Rutgers University Debate Union
Storey Clayton is the Coach of the Debate Union. A graduate of Brandeis University in 2002, Clayton began coaching at Rutgers in 2009. During his APDA career, he won the North American Championship (2001), was the 2nd ranked speaker (2002), part of the 3rd Team at the National Championships (2001), 3rd ranked novice (1999), and part of the 5th ranked team (2000). Prior to coaching debate, he worked in non-profits in the Bay Area, including the Seneca Center for Children and Families and the Glide Foundation. Since his arrival at Rutgers, the team as a whole has gone from unranked in the prior eight years to 24th in 2010, 5th in 2011, and 9th in 2012. Storey is currently coaching full-time and writing novels on the side, one of which was published in 2003 and two more of which have been completed in the last two years. He gets a haircut at least once every half-decade.
Chris Baia is the Assistant Coach of the Debate Union. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University in 2008, Baia officially starts coaching in September 2012. During his APDA career, he was President of the league (2008), 2nd ranked speaker (2008), on the 6th ranked team twice (2007, 2008), 8th ranked novice (2005), and finished 12th at Nationals (2008). Prior to his arrival at Rutgers, Baia coached the Collegiate High School team in New York and earned his Juris Doctor at American University. He is the third Chris B. to join RUDU.
