Competitions
The WPDU has participated in, and traveled extensively to intercollegiate debate competitions since its early history. A regular participant regional and national competitions, the WPDU has previously won the Pennsylvania State Debating Championship, qualified for the National Debate Tournament forty-one times, and captured the 1981 National Debate Tournament national championship. In addition, at the 1947 Grand National Forensic Tournament, a two-man affirmative debate team won the national championship competing against 89 other teams, while Pitt's negative team finished as runners-up. The WPDU has also finished first in the American Debate Association’s varsity rankings and its debaters have won hundreds of individual speaking awards. In the past the WPDU hosted major intercollegiate debating competitions, and through the years, the team has appeared on television and its success has enjoyed coverage in local and regional media.
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