Who is Calvin?

Calvin is a junior Government major with a track in American Politics and Policy at Patrick Henry College. 

Calvin has extensive Team Policy Debate experience. He competed in Stoa for five years and dual-affiliated with Stoa and NCFCA in his last year. He made it to NITOC four times and NCFCA Nationals once. In Calvin’s last three years in debate, he was always part of the number one or number two Team Policy Debate team in his state. Additionally, he placed 6th in Parliamentary Debate at NITOC 2016. 

Calvin has also been very successful in college forensics. For the last two years, he has competed in both Mock Trial and Moot Court. He has qualified for Nationals in both forensics activities, placing second in Moot Court at his first-ever regional tournament, beating the #1 seed in outrounds on a 3-0 decision. Calvin also was a part of the PHC team that took 7th in their division at Nationals. 

In addition to his forensics acumen, Calvin has real-world experience in the areas of law and policy. This past summer, he worked for the Federal Communications Commission as a legal intern. As a legal intern, he conducted legal research, searched through complaints to help the FCC in matching them to a suspected robocaller, and analyzed whether companies were operating in accordance with FCC STIR/SHAKEN implementation guidance. Moreover, Calvin serves as the Research Editor for the George Wythe Review, an award-winning undergraduate policy journal. As the Research Editor, he is responsible for the accuracy and compliance with APA standards of all citations in papers submitted to the George Wythe Review. This process is rigorous: every citation is checked and every source is verified. 

Calvin has always had a passion for coaching Team Policy Debate, serving as a coach for his club in the three years before he went to college. As a coach, Calvin is laid-back but attentive to the minute details. Details are important and Team Policy Debate is the perfect place to appreciate them. 

Coaching Philosophy

When asked about his coaching philosophy, Calvin replied:

“I believe that Team Policy Debate should be fun. The whole purpose of this activity is to encourage high schoolers to think critically and deeply about serious policy issues. However, and perhaps paradoxically, that serious critical thinking usually only happens when the students are having fun. My goal is to cultivate excitement to research and learn more about how to debate well.”

Accomplishments

COLLEGE

• 2nd place finish at Mid-Atlantic Moot Court Regional Tournament
• Quarterfinalist and Recognized Oral Advocate at the South Central Moot Court Regional Tournament
• 7th place finish at 2021 AMTA National Championship

HIGH SCHOOL

• 1st Place Team Policy Speaker, NCFCA Nationals 2018
• 10th Place Team Policy Debate Team, NCFCA Nationals 2018
• 6th Place Parliamentary Debate Team, NITOC 2016
• Three first place Team Policy finishes in last year competing