Intellectual Responsibility

"Where are the Black people in this discipline?" Deven E. Cooper Director of Debate, Communications Professor "Debate allows us to communicate with people who will be the leaders of this world. A lot of politicians, lawyers, doctors and educators come from debate." The Champ is here! On today's episode, we are joined by lecturer and debate champion, Mr. Deven Cooper. As a Black man with a Communications background, Deven reflects on his educational journey, as a student in Baltimore, and attending college in Louisville before planting roots as a lecturer in California. Why do Black debaters matter? Deven walks us through the power of debate, and why his style is a threat to predominantly white academic spaces. #Shoutout to the Urban Debate League and the Future Educators of America - it's amazing how those skills learned so early in life are being utilized today. Deven highlights the Black educators who influenced him, his debate partners who empowered him, and why critical race pedagogy and methodology are cornerstones within his classroom.