For Oyindamola Akintola and her teammates from Alief Independent School District’s Early College High School, 2025 was redemption for a missed opportunity one year ago. 

The senior and fellow classmates Deborah Akpeki and Marvellous Nans celebrated a championship in 2023, winning the World Schools Debate competition at the Houston Urban Debate League (HUDL) City Championships and advancing to the Urban Debate National Championship. They were the school’s first World Schools Debate champion, ending Alief Elsik High School’s three-year run atop the final competition. 

They came up short in 2024, losing in the semifinals. 

“We were very determined and told ourselves that we needed to put our names on there again,” Akintola said of the traveling trophy, which features the names of all first-place winners. “That really drove us, along with being able to go to nationals and the scholarships. We were able to channel that and use it as motivation.” 

The Alief students joined others from YES Prep Public Schools and Aldine and Spring Branch independent school districts in Harris County Department of Education’s (HCDE) CASE Debates program. Funded through the Center for Afterschool, Summer and Enrichment (CASE) for Kids, the initiative provides inner-city youth and aspiring debaters with training and access to both coaching and tournaments. 

The HUDL City Championships bring CASE Debates and Houston ISD competitors together to conclude a debate season that began in September. 

Alief ISD Speech Team Leader Derek Davis expressed his gratitude for the partnership following this year’s competition. 

“I tried to get into HUDL back when they first started 15, 20 years ago,” said Davis, the debate coach at Kerr High School. “But CASE later opened the partnership and made it available for Alief kids – they need it just as much as everyone else. So that’s been great.” 

Alief ISD students have shined on the stage, including the latest rendition on March 1. 

In World Schools Debate, Alief ISD has placed first every year but one (2024). That includes Elsik’s run of three straight championships (2020-2022). 

This year’s finals round was an all-Alief ISD matchup. Akintola, Akpeki, Nans and Hidayah Habeeb represented Early College. Across the courtroom were Abigail Nguyen, Erica Carranza, Sarah Abisaab and Leah Ghebrelul representing Alief Kerr High School. 

The two sides went back and forth, and after a close 3-2 decision, Early College came out on top. The debaters relished in their victory, knowing their names will again be added to the traveling trophy. But they also congratulated their fellow Alief ISD competitors.  

“We know Kerr being from the same district, but finals is a different animal,” Akintola said. “We’re both going to nationals but only one gets their name on the big trophy, so the tension is high because it’s high stakes. That being said, even after the round we’re able to hug each other and congratulate each other. That’s the power of debate – in the round, you’re serious and you’re clashing, but afterward you can connect with people and have those friendships you had going in.” 

Both teams advance to next month’s 2025 Urban Debate National Championship, hosted by the National Association of Urban Debate Leagues (NAUDL) and its 20 league partners across the nation. The tournament is April 3-6 at Emory University in Atlanta. 

Also advancing to national competition are the top two finishers in Policy (CX) Debate, including Alief Kerr’s Ai Tran and Gabrielle Brown. They advance to the National Speech & Debate Association’s National Tournament, scheduled for June 15-20 in Des Moines, Iowa. 

These opportunities are where CASE Debates has left its mark with the program. More access to coaching, research materials and higher-level tournaments has paid off with city championships and national tournament appearances. Program alumni have returned to judge local tournaments and pay it forward to the next generation of debaters. 

“The emphasis on helping us be successful is one of the things I really love about CASE,” Akintola said. “I’ve been a part of CASE for four years and CASE has been able to funnel a lot of kids to nationals, like us for the second time in three years. It’s a privilege and opportunity because outside of CASE, we’d have to go through a national qualifying event and find a way to fund it.”