Advice about summer debate camps for novice Public Forum student

Pre-College Issues Summer Programs
1

Hello
I am looking for advice about which summer debate camp would best meet the needs of my son. He will be going into 9th grade next year (but is taking high school classes in middle school) and has only participated in one school sponsored debate. However, he really enjoys debate and I was thinking I would sign him up for a 2 week summer camp.

I am considering the following camps and would love advice from those who have gone or are knowledgable.

Since he is a beginner, I want the camp to be a fun experience, not super competitive and for him to meet and become friends with like minded individuals.

The Dartmouth camp is most convenient but I am not sure how suitable or how well-run it is. I asked his high school coach about Dartmouth and he said that they do a different style of debate in Vermont (where we are) and the skills wouldn’t transfer. This makes no sense to me.

These are the camps I have researched for Public Forum debate
:Dartmouth Debate Institute, either Fundamentals for students new to debate or Public Forum

VictoryBriefs Institute:

Institute for Speech and Debate

Thanks in advance for any advice.

2

I went to ISD last year in Carolina and I can vouch that it was a rigorous but rewarding experience. I was a PFer who did debate for two years and was fairly decent, and I can say that I learned more during those two weeks than I did for my first two years of debate.

I wouldn’t necessarily say that most debate camps are oriented towards new students, as many concentrate the resources at the top labs (debaters). However, at ISD, I felt that even if you weren’t a hardcore debater, you had the potential to learn a lot. For example, Carol Green’s lecture on weighing impacts is one of the best of the country, and your son would have the opportunity to not only listen to her but work on skills and cases with her and other top-tier coaches and debaters. It felt like a community, and I felt that while it was competitive, your son will make a lot of friends with debaters across the nation.

Feel free to PM me with any questions.