Ben Malcolm

Senior Caroline Ragland and freshman Maleena Barrientos compete in their third round of the West Texas National Qualifier Tournament. This is the pair’s first year debating together, and the two have spent the majority of the year attending online tournaments because of COVID-19 restrictions. Barrientos said the partners debate in suit jackets and sweat pants because they only speak sitting down at computers. “Debating on computers is different in terms of giving information,” Barrientos said. “You communicate in a whole new way. Debating is still fun though. We argue about legislation and how things get done in government. The topic this year is about federal reform on the criminal justice system and how we can solve problems when it comes to policing, sentencing or forensics. I can uphold my opinions in a manner where it’s fun, but we’re talking about things we can change.”