Guided by Kids Hosts Online Middle School Student Congess Invitational Tonight!

We are hoping everything goes smoothly, as this is a first in the Omaha area, but 9 middle school students (from Guided by Kids, Millard North Middle School, and Papillion LaVista Middle School) are signed up to compete, we have 2 high school students from Omaha Marian and Millard North who have agreed to be presiding officers, and we have a slate of 6 bills and resolutions to debate.

GBK will host via Zoom teleconferencing, and all students who take part, along with the two high school volunteers, will designate a non-profit they would like to see supported. We will not be ranking any students and giving out awards; instead, I will make a donation of at least $25 to each of the designated non-profit organizations in honor of the students' work in preparing for and competing in Congressional Debate.

I hope to record the Congress session on Zoom and then, with permission of parents, show some of their speeches/questions/etc.

Thanks to Coaches Gregg Learned at Millard North M.S. and Kevin Wilkinson at Papillion LaVista M.S. for helping make this happen by getting their students engaged in writing bills and resolutions, and practicing. Also a huge thanks to several Omaha Marian students who helped students prepare and learn the ropes of congressional debate, and to their coach, Halli Tripe. Finally, thank you to my Guided by Kids co-teacher Payton Shudak for all of her coaching help on this project, and with all the work we do all year!

I also want to thank Adam Jacobi who helped me understand how valuable Student Congress can be, and Ed Williams, who told me many years ago that I should coach middle school students because they are cool.

He was right.

Fred Robertson

Director and Co-Teacher

Guided by Kids