We’re Debate Matters

Independent
Thinking

Debate should teach students how to think—not what to think. We help young people develop the confidence and clarity to form their own ideas, make their own decisions, and defend them with purpose.

Schools Should Support Debate

We believe every student deserves access to debate through their school. That’s the most equitable, scalable, and community-driven way to grow the activity. We work to support and expand school-based programs—not replace them.

Who We Are

Mike Bietz is one of the most accomplished debate educators in history, known for combining competitive excellence with a deep commitment to mentorship and community leadership.

Over the course of his career, he has coached 98 Lincoln-Douglas entries to the Tournament of Champions—more than any other program head during that period—including three seasons with over ten qualifiers. His students have earned national titles across the Tournament of Champions (TOC), NSDA Nationals, NDCA Nationals, and Novice Nationals.

He is the only coach in history to win both the NSDA and TOC national championships in the same season with two different debaters, a feat achieved while building the Lincoln-Douglas program at Edina High School from scratch. At Harvard-Westlake, he established one of the most dominant debate programs in the country, leading the team to sustained national success and a culture of intellectual rigor and integrity, where he coached 12 national champions.

Mike also served as Director of Victory Briefs, where he expanded the summer institute from 90 to over 600 attendees and helped create VictoryBriefsDaily.com—the most visited debate blog of its time. His leadership extended beyond coaching, serving as President of the National Debate Coaches Association (NDCA), advising the TOC, and directing major national tournaments at Berkeley, Stanford, and USC.

His contributions have been recognized with induction into the TOC Hall of Fame (as the first Southern Californian and first Asian American coach to receive the honor) and the Barkley Forum Gold Key Society at Emory University. More than accolades, however, Mike is known for his mentorship. His students and assistant coaches have gone on to become program directors, and educators in their own right, carrying forward a legacy of excellence and purpose-driven debate education.

Chris Theis ranks as one of the most accomplished combined competitor-coaches in Lincoln-Douglas debate this millennium, coupling sustained competitive excellence with disciplined mentorship and community leadership.

Now, as a part-time coach at The Marlborough School he has help build a national powerhouse, mirroring the success he achieved at Palos Verdes Peninsula, Lexington, Apple Valley, and Trinity Prep—sending debaters deep into elimination rounds at nearly every major invitational on the circuit, including Harvard, Berkeley, Greenhill, St. Mark’s, the TOC, NDCA Nationals, and often contending, and winning the Dukes & Baily Cup.

Theis’s competitive résumé remains singular: one of only three juniors ever to win the TOC and the contest’s only two-time champion, he also claimed titles at Blake, Emory, the Iowa and Greenhill Round Robins, and St. Mark’s, qualifying four times to NSDA Nationals across three events.

As Executive Director of Victory Briefs, he has guided its summer institutes to nationwide expansion while broadening the organization’s portfolio—overseeing the publication of widely used textbooks and topic analyses and launching products that help schools and teams strengthen their debate instruction. He also serves on the TOC Lincoln-Douglas Committee, the NSDA Lincoln-Douglas Wording Committee, and the NDCA Executive Committee, shaping national standards for the activity.

Former students and assistant coaches now direct programs of their own, extending a legacy of meticulous preparation, integrity, and purpose-driven debate education.