New Canaan Resident Heading to Hong Kong Championships

Last weekend, the St. Luke’s Debate Team competed in the DANEIS (Debate Association of New England Independent Schools) Parliamentary Debate Tournament at Choate Rosemary Hall.

New Canaan resident Eliza Posner ‘16 took the 2nd place advance speaker award which qualifies her to compete for the United States in the World Individual Debate & Public Speaking Championships in Hong Kong in April.

“This is a huge accomplishment!” exclaimed Debate Team advisor Beth Yavenditti. “The competition was very challenging and we are very proud Eli made this qualification.”

The entire St. Luke’s Debate Team held strong throughout the tournament. The advanced team, including Tom Howells ‘16, Chloe Kekedjian ‘16, Alex Levy ‘16 and Eliza Posner ‘16, took 3rd place, while the two person team comprised of Chloe & Eli took 2nd place overall. Four SLS students—Bilal Memon ‘18, Kathleen Neustaetter ‘18, Lucia Wiggers ‘18, Claire Wilson ‘18—performed well in the novice division.

photo L to R—Back row: Eliza Posner ‘16 (New Canaan), Lucia Wiggers ‘18 (Norwalk), Bilal Memon ‘18, Tom Howells ‘16 (Norwalk), Alex Levy ‘16 (Bedford), Chloe Kekedjian ‘16 (New Canaan)

Front row: Claire Wilson ‘18 (New Canaan), Kathleen Neustaetter ‘18 (New Canaan)