DEBATE COACHING STAFF

Ross Smith, Director of Debate
smithr@wfu.edu

Ross edits the Debaters' Research Guide directs the Summer Debate Workshops. He was named National Coach of the Year in 1994 and 1998, and District VI Coach of the Year in 2000. In Best of the Decade polling he was named Best Judge of the 1990's and Second Best Coach of the 1990's. He has qualified more teams to the elimination rounds of the National Debate Tournament than any other coach in the last decade.

Ross is a candidate for the Forsyth-Winston-Salem School Bd.
Ross' Class in Argumentation & Debate

JP Lacy, Debate Coach
lacyjp@wfu.edu

A former Assistant Coach, JP reached the elimination rounds of the NDT as a debater, directed teams to the eliminations at the NDT and coached a CEDA National Champion team at Whitman College. JP Edits the Debate's Research Guide

Blog: http://jplacy.blogspot.com/

Brian DeLong, Assistant Coach
delobl6@wfu.edu

Brian began his debate career in the rough tundra of the Wyoming High school debate circuit, where under the watch of Cheyenne East High school, he successful won state and was in the top ten status at NFL nationals. He has now graduated from the University of Wyoming with a bachelors in Communications. While at UW he managed to arrive in the outrounds of nearly all major intercollegiate tournaments, including Northwestern, Wake Forest, Texas, Fullerton, and Harvard.

 

Brad Hall, Assistant Coach
hallbc2@wfu.edu

Brad graduated from Wake Forest in May, hailing from Manhattan Kansas. He followed a successful HS career with an even better Collegiate Record. Brad received three first round bids to the NDT, reaching the octa-finals his soph year, Q-Finals his Junior year and the finals of the NDT this last year. He majored in political science. He reached the elimination rounds of every major national tournament entered his last two years in college as well as placing at the KY and Dartmouth round-robin tournaments.

Casey Harrigan , Assistant Coach
harrcd6@wfu.edu

Casey is originally from Holland, Michigan. He recieved his Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Michigan State University. While at MSU, he earned 2 first rounds bids to the NDT and won the 2006 NDT. In his senior year, he also won the Georgia State and University Texas tournaments and was the runner-up at the Franklin R. Shirley Classic and the University of California at Fullerton Tournament.

 

Taylor Hahn , Assistant Coach
hahntw7@wfu.edu

Taylor debated for Clarion University under former Wake Forest assistant debate coach, Jim Lyle. At Clarion, Taylor earned a number of speaker awards and continually set new standards for Clarion's debate team. In his senior year, Taylor was part of the first team to qualify for the NDT from Clarion. Beyond his own debating, Taylor acted as an assistant debate coach for JV and Novice Clarion debaters. He began his policy debate career at Bethel Park High School in Bethel Park, Pa.

 

 

 

 

Sean Luechtefeld , Assistant Coach
luecsd7@wfu.edu

Sean comes to Wake Forest by way of Tallahassee, FL, home to Florida State University where he finished his Bachelor's Degree in the Spring of 2007.  Originally from Chicago, Sean was a Lincoln-Douglas debater in high school and spent three years as the team captain at Florida State. Sean is now working on his Master's Degree in Communication at Wake.

Andrea Reed , Assistant Coach
reedac7@wfu.edu

Andrea joins the Wake team as a new graduate assistant.  Andrea debated for four years at Michigan State University, reaching the elimination rounds of the NDT, CEDA Nationals, and every major regular season tournament.  Her undergraduate degree is in International Relations with a minor in Western European Studies.

Virginia Bannigan Administrative Assistant
Bannigva@wfu.edu.

 

Virginia debated at Northwestern and UNC-CH. She has been working with Wake Debate for seven years and is raising four cute kids, all the while keeping financial integrity and working as administrative director of the Summer Workshops.