KENNESAW, Ga. | Nov 4, 2025

Kennesaw State University’s new debate team is driven, resourceful, and ready to tackle any challenge that comes their way during the heat of competition. Their performance at the 2025 University System of Georgia Regents Cup gave no indication that becoming a team required a leap of faith.   

The USG Regents Cup brings colleges across the system together to compete in debates using the International Public Debate Association (IPDA) format, which focuses on the ability to quickly develop arguments, effectively communicate them with supporting evidence, and maintain civil discourse throughout competition. Each participating school can bring two debaters who must be prepared to speak on topics ranging from dire wolves to the Olympics to sporting equipment in strictly regimented rounds of competition.   

Robin Mathis, Ph.D., associate professor of communication, associate director of the School of Communication and Media at Radow College, and director of debate for the KSU team, said there were some challenges to overcome before the Regents Cup. She had less than three months to build a team from scratch, and none of the students involved had any prior debate team experience. 

“Our first practice round, I remember I said, ‘okay... you get six minutes,’ and I think they spoke for maybe 90 seconds,” Mathis said.  

Mathis and assistant coach Lorraine Cook started by going back to the basics during team meetings. Conversations about current events were interspersed between lessons about crafting an effective presentational speech, how to source information, and how to debate for and against a given topic. Mathis said it was inspiring to watch the team grow from “I don’t even know how to construct a speech to completing successfully a 26-minute round of debate, multiple rounds, in two and a half months.”  

Cook, a student in KSU’s Secondary and Middle Grades English Ed.D. program and the debate coach at Campbell High School in Smyrna, was similarly proud of the team’s growth. "The most rewarding part was working with the team and seeing how excited they were to go to the USG Regents Cup.  They went up against more experienced debaters, but you wouldn't know from watching them that this was their first tournament,” Cook said.  

The students who represented KSU at the 2025 USG Regents Cup were Jaylan Conwell, Zainab Wajid, and alternate Silvia Prisco. All three of them see law school in their future, and all three of them joined the debate team to sharpen skills that will serve them in their future careers.  

Wajid, a sophomore criminal justice major, said that being part of the team showed her that “I could do more than I thought I could.” Mathis described her as the personification of the phrase “dynamite comes in small packages,” and Wajid quickly learned that she loves the adrenaline rush from debating a well-crafted argument. It shows. She placed 7th out of 26 debaters at the Regents Cup in her first foray into the competitive debate space.  

“It turned out to be one of the best choices I’ve ever made, actually, and I learned I loved it through all of our meetings and all of our practices,” Wajid said. “It kind of just, like, sparked something inside of me.”  

Prisco, a junior political science major and the team’s alternate debater, is pursuing pre-law and is in the Journey Honors College at KSU. She’s heavily involved on campus as an orientation leader, is the president of the Honors Advisory Leadership Council, and is also a member of the university’s new Pre-Law Club. Mathis described Prisco as “a tremendous... assistant coach in the prep room,” whose research skills made her a valuable analyst for the team.  

The reigning Regents Cup student champion lost their perfect record because of the third member of the team, sophomore political science major Jaylan Conwell, who defeated them by one point in his second round of debate. Conwell described himself as “someone who gets nervous speaking.”  He joined the team to develop those skills as he pursues a career in law, and Mathis said she was proud to watch his confidence grow to the point where he networked with Georgia politicians at the competition.  

“Anyone that’s interested in debate should definitely join, no matter what their background is or what their major is. I feel like it’s a great experience for everyone,” Conwell said. “If you have a voice and want to put it out there, then definitely join debate.” 

The KSU debate team is open to all majors. Students can participate as debaters, researchers, brief writers, or case builders. Students who are interested in joining the KSU debate team are encouraged to email Robin Mathis at rmathi18@kennesaw.edu.

 

— Story by Noelle Lashley