JBU Forensics Team Has Several Named Co-Champions
SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. (November 1, 2013) - John Brown University Forensics Team had four competitors crowned co-champions of Parliamentary Debate at the Golden Eagle Invitational held Oct. 25-27 on the campus of JBU. The duo of Justin Burchfiel and Walker Martin "closed out" the final round of the tournament with their teammates Michael Burchfiel and Brad Johnson. They defeated teams from Texas Christian University and Kansas Wesleyan University in the semifinal level of competition.
Eighteen colleges and universities participated at the tournament, including Kansas State University, the University of Oklahoma and others from Missouri, Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana.
In addition to winning the tournament, Johnson was honored as the top overall speaker, Burchfiel received second place honors and Martin took home the third place speaker award.
“Our guys achieved something truly remarkable. Not only were both teams undefeated at the tournament, but also JBU has not closed out a final debate round since 2008,” says Erick Roebuck, assistant professor of communication and director of forensics.
“It's a high honor in the world of Parliamentary Debate to close out with your teammates. Instead of gearing up for the final round, they can relax and wait for the awards ceremony,” Roebuck adds.
Parliamentary Debate is a fast-paced competition format where students are presented with a political topic to debate, and then are given 20 minutes to prepare their case for the round.
John Brown University is a private Christian university, ranked No. 2 overall and No. 1 Best Value among Southern regional colleges by U.S. News and World Report. JBU enrolls more than 2,500 students from 42 states and 44 countries in its traditional undergraduate, graduate, degree completion and concurrent education programs. JBU is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities and a founding member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.
