Sofia Ishal
Education:
Apple Valley HS (MN) ‘23
University of Minnesota, Honors College, ‘26 (Expected)
Philosophy of Law, Sociology of Law
Experience & Education
Competitive Background & Highlights:
Events: Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Big Questions Debate, Public Forum Debate, World Schools Debate
Academic & Debate Highlights:
I qualified to the 2023 NSDA national tournament getting second overall in my district, also I championed and placed consistently at minnesota local tournaments my junior and senior year. I have coached multiple state and national qulifers in PF, WSD and LD. I am an honors student at the University of Minnesota were I have been on the deans list 4 semesters in a row. I am fluent in 3 languages and proficient in 5. I am a double major ( Philosophy and sociology) and planning on attending law school.
Relevant Experience:
I coach pretty full time at Apple Valley(Primarly LD and PF). along with coaching debate I have been a mentor at VBI ( in LD). I also worked as a tutor for studetns 5-10 looking to get better at grammar and english. I also taught martial arts for 6 years after getting my black belt. Along with that I also work at an RA at the University of Minnesota.
About Me
Hello! My name is Sofia Ishal, and I’m an assistant debate coach at Apple Valley Senior High School in Minnesota. I’ve been coaching for the past three years and absolutely love working with students to help them grow as debaters.
In high school, I competed in Lincoln-Douglas (LD), and now I coach a bit of everything—primarily LD and Public Forum (PF). I specialize in tutoring students who want to improve in lay debate, with a focus on philosophical frameworks, line-by-line refutation, and judge adaptation.
For students outside of LD, I’m also a strong resource for building foundational skills in argumentation, such as crafting uniqueness, link, and impact arguments.
I’m excited to meet and work with you all!