Georgia Southwestern excels at prestigious Regents Cup debate tournament

AMERICUS, Ga. (April 30, 2025) — Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) students excelled at the Regents Cup debate tournament, securing impressive achievements against a talented field of 13 schools and 26 debaters from across the state. The tournament, created and hosted by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, is intended to highlight the importance of civil debate about important issues as part of a university education.

GSW was represented by freshman Emery Evans from Albany, Ga. and junior Noah Miller from Warner Robins, Ga., with research and preparation support from alternate Gabrielle Foster, a freshman from Atlanta, Ga.

GSW emerged as the only university with two debaters placing to the top 8, with Evans placing 5th and Miller 8th in the competition. Both GSW representatives achieved winning records of 2-1.

Through the combined efforts of the three students, GSW placed first out of schools in the state university group and finished 4th in the overall team rankings, behind only debate powerhouses University of Georgia (1st place), Georgia Tech, and Valdosta State University (tied for 2nd).

This year marked the first time schools without established debate programs could participate in the tournament, with GSW delivering the strongest performance among these newcomers. GSW was the only institution without a formal debate program to reach the top 5 in team standings.

"I could not be prouder of our students," said Jonathan Carter, Ph.D., assistant professor of Communication and Emerging Media at GSW. "Despite the fact that we have no debate program here at GSW, they worked hard and were able to hold their own against teams with students recruited for debate who go to competitions year-round."

Carter, who coached the GSW participants, also served as co-tournament director for the event, his second year in this leadership role.

"Interacting and competing with other students from all over Georgia opened my eyes even further to the importance of discussing and debating issues with true respect and civility for the other party," said Evans. "Thank you to Georgia Southwestern, Dr. Carter, and all of those involved with providing this experience to us!"

Foster, who assisted with research, added, "I decided to attend the Regents Cup because I am new to the debate world, and I have always admired and been intrigued by the tournaments. So, when Dr. Carter expressed the idea, I was very excited. Getting to learn from my peers was amazing. I got the opportunity to connect with important individuals from the USG and build relationships with students from other schools. I can't wait to attend next year."

GSW's debate performance at the Regents Cup highlights the university's commitment to fostering excellence in public speaking, critical thinking, and civil discourse, even without a formal debate program infrastructure. Carter added, “Communication skills are some of the most important skills universities can impart for civic and business success, and our performance in this tournament shows that GSW can compete with any school in the USG in making sure our students are ready to speak up and be the leaders Georgia needs.”

For more information about GSW's communication programs, please visit gsw.edu/CommMedia or contact Dr. Carter (Jonathan.carter@gsw.edu) in the Department of Communication and Emerging Media.