New Debaters welcomed to the West’s most successful debating society!
The 2009/2010 academic year is shaping up for another triumph for debating at Coláiste Iognáid. The society has already met sixteen times this term and has debated subjects from the legalisation of Euthanasia to whether animals should be used for entertainment purposes. Additionally, the several school debating teams are well advanced in all national competitions.
The Transition Year Concern team is a mixture of pupils new to debating and veterans of the circuit: 2008 NUIG Mace Competition winner Jessica Hannon and 2008 AIB Finalist Cora Lenihan partner Dean Reidy, Eoin Coughlan and Naomi Lawless in this year’s campaign. The team await their opportunity to progress through the tournament with their next competition in Portumna to complete.
Debate society members, Jamie Folan, Ruth McMorrow and Padraig Folan recently represented the school in the Gael Linn debating competition.
In the national premier debating competition, The Denny’s Irish Schools’ Debating Championship, it would seem that Coláiste Iognáid hold key cards: four pupils are through to the National Quarter Finals. Last year’s provincial champions, Jake Hansen-Shearer and Cormac McGuinness, are back in play as a team and they are accompanied by individual speakers Robert Fitzgerald Bellone and Andrew Forde. Robert, (who as a Second Year, made an enormous impression at Trinity last year in the AIB debating finals), and Andrew hold the record for the youngest debaters to have reached National Quarter Finals in this competition and the future looks very promising for this talented pair. The All-Ireland Quarter Finals will be held on January 13 th, 2010 in NUIG. Support welcomed!
Jake Hansen-Shearer distinguished himself as being selected for the DES sponsored Irish National Schools’ Debating Team: an honour afforded to only five pupils in the country, and his debate partner, Cormac McGuinness, represented Ireland in Helsinki over the October break as a member of the European Youth Parliament. Cormac, who is also auditor of the Debate Society, has recently represented the school’s interests in a new competition for Galway schools organised by the International Centre for Human Rights. This will take place on the 6 th of March, 2010.
The society’s members await further opportunities to hone their skills in the 2010 AIB ‘Phil Speaks’ competition, the UCD international Junior Mace, and the 2010 NUIG Mace.
The society meet every Tuesday in the Library at 4:15pm. All members of the school are automatically members of the society and are entitled to both observe and debate at these meetings. All new speakers and audience will be welcomed. Parents, please encourage your First Year barrack-room lawyer to hone their arguing skills at school!!! Coaching is available.
In summary:
Concern TY Team (Cora Lenihan, Jessica Hannon, Dean Reidy, Naomi Lawless and Eoin Coughlan) still engaged in first round competitions.
Denny’s: Jake Hansen-Shearer and Cormac McGuinness (Jes A), Robert Fitzgerald-Belone and Andrew Forde through the National Quarter Finals.
Cormac McGuiness: Irish Representative to European Youth Parliament
Jake Hansen-Shearer: Selected to National Debate Team.
Jamie Folan, Ruth McMorrow and Padraig Folan represented the school in the Gael Linn Debating competition.
The society met sixteen times this term
Debating Society: 2008/9
As is now customary, Coláiste Iognáid has dominated schools’ debating in the West of Ireland and, indeed, nationally. In addition to the successes below, Cormac McGuinness’s and Jake Hansen-Shearer’s assault on the rest of the island of Ireland at the 2009 All-Ireland Final on Saturday 25 th April 2009 is to be noted for its spirit and determination.
Pupils from Coláiste Iognáid were National Finalists in two out of three of the country’s best known and most prestigious English Language debating competitions this year.
In summary, the following achievements portray a flourishing school society at the height of its powers:
2009 Denny’s All Ireland Schools’ Debating Competition.
West of Ireland Finalists: Ciaran Garrett,Manus Lenihan, Darragh O’Brien, Eve-Ann Allen, Cormac McGuinness, Jake Hansen-Shearer.
All Ireland Finalists: Jake Hansen-Shearer and Cormac McGuinnes
2009 Irish Schools National Team:
Final Selection Competitors: Cormac McGuinness and Ciaran Garrett
2009 NUIG Connacht Schools’ Mace:
Senior Champions: Manus Lenihan and Ciaran Garrett.
Junior Champions: Oisin Keogh and Andrew Forde
2009 AIB Phil Speaks:
National Semi-Finalists: Ciaran Garrett and Jake Hansen-Shearer
National Finalist: Cora Lenihan
2009/2010 European Youth Parliament
Cormac McGuinness selected to represent Ireland in Helsinki 2009/10.
2008/2009 TY Concern Team:
Niamh Codeyre, Katie Fallon, Clare Howley, Laura Kaar , Lauren Casserly enjoyed the first round of this competition
2009 First Year Debate Competition was organised by Transition Year pupils. The competition was won by 1G (Niamh Doran, Jamie Nolan, Ruth McMorrow, Padraig Folan). Best individual speaker: Ruth McMorrow (1G), Runner-up best speaker: Ann-Jane Kitt.
The Society met twenty times this year for formal debates after school. The 20 th motion, ‘THW not Restrict Freedom of Speech’, was defeated.
Staff v Student Charity Debate saw staff defeating students by a narrow majority. Mr. P.Kilraine, Mr. L. Parkinson, Mr. T. MacAodh and Mr. M.Harrison represented the staff and Daragh O’Brien, Eve-Anne Allen, ManusLenihan and Ciaran Garrett represented the student body.
Society meal: A large gathering enjoyed an end of term meal on Tuesday, May 19 th.
The society thank retiring auditor Ciaran Garrett for ensuring the success of school debating throughout the year. His enthusiasm and dedication to debating at the ‘Jes’ have ensured that the society maintains its position at the head of national schools’ debating. Ciaran is a founding member of the society and has enjoyed formidable success in schools’ debating whilst at the helm. Described as one of the finest summation speakers in his age-group, Ciaran is Runner-Up National Champion, winner of the NUIG Schools’ Mace, twice in the final selection competition for the Irish Team and he has a long list of other national awards. He has been involved in the initiating of a First Year debate competition, has adjudicated junior competitions and the society wish him the very best in the future.
The Society would also extend their thanks and best wishes to Manus Lenihan, who is Runner-Up National Champion 2008, Runner-up Champion in AIB Philspeaks 2007, winner of the NUIG Schools’ Mace and captain of a very successful 2007 Concern Debate team. The society will miss his often controversial, but always entertaining, witty and heartfelt contributions to House debates.
Finally, Sixth Year pupils Daragh O’Brien and Eve-Ann Allen also graduate after a similarly successful career debating at the school and must be thanked for their considerable contributions to the continuing success of the this society.
The society extends its best wishes to all four Coláiste Iognáid graduates and expects the Irish Times National Debating Championship, the Bar or the Daíl to benefit from their oratorical skills in the future!
Coláiste Iognáid win West of Ireland Debating Championship.
For the fourth consecutive year, the ‘Jes’ has won the ‘Denny’s West of Ireland Schools’ Debating Championship’. On Saturday, Fifth Year pupils at the school, Cormac McGuinness and Jake Hansen-Shearer, defeated schools from all over Connacht to bring the team trophy back to Sea Road. In front of a large audience in the Aula Maxima, NUIG, they successfully proposed the motion that ‘ Ireland was in need of a recession’. In April, McGuinness and Hansen-Shearer travel down to Trinity College, Dublin in their quest for the All-Ireland title in the national schools’ debating finals.
January 18 th 2009
The society started the new calendar year with a louder bang than usual with all speakers through to the West of Ireland Finals. For the Denny’s debating team, it’s another clean sweep!
The school Congratulates the entire ‘Jes’ senior debating contingent. All ‘Jes’ speakers progress to the West of Ireland Final (All-Ireland Semi-Final) on Saturday, January 31 st as a result of their clean sweep at the Semi-Finals at NUIG.
Beating schools from all over Connacht, the ‘Jes’ is the only school in the country to have succeeded sending all its permitted speakers to provincial finals.
Well done to:
Jes B: Darragh O’Brien, Eve-Ann Allen
Jes C: Cormac McGuinness, Jake Hansen-Shearer
Individual Speaker: Ciaran Garrett
Individual Speaker: Manus Lenihan
With many thanks to their loyal supporters who attended last night, the society would welcome an even larger audience at the Provincial Final on Saturday 31 st January. With the individual competition seeing Ciaran Garrett against Manus Lenihan: sparks will fly!
Winter 2009 has started with what has become customary success for the Coláiste Iognáid debating society.
The Transition Year ‘Concern’ Debate team (Claire Howley, Lauren Casserly, Niamh Codeyre, Laura Kaar and Kate Fallon) have gained three points so far in their campaign and meet Gort in January.
The Senior ‘Denny’s’ teams have all progressed through to the All-Ireland Quarter Final. Coláiste Iognáid is the only school in the country to have got 100% of its speakers through to this round. Team members Cormac McGuinness, Jake Hansen-Shearer, Eve-Anne Allen and Darragh O’Brien join individual speakers (and last year’s champions) Ciaran Garrett and Manus Lenihan for this particular showdown in January. The society awaits the clash of Garrett and Lenihan with relish.
With good speakers in First, Second and Third Year training regularly, the society is in a strong position to dominate in the forthcoming AIB and NUIG Mace competitions starting in January.
The society, under auditor Ciaran Garrett, organised eleven weekly in-house debates which regularly attracted a large number of speakers and audience from the school. Motions ranged from ‘This House Would Make the ‘Jes’ Fee-paying’, ‘This House Would Ban the Leaving Cert.’ to ‘This House Would Not Have Children’. The society meets every Tuesday in the Library at 4:10. Younger speakers, even if they have never debated before, are particularly encouraged to attend.
