Hawaii Media Profiles Students, Brewer Foundation Debate Program

March 30, 2024 – Hawaii News Now reports that students from Kealakehe High School have advanced to the "Sweet 16" round of a global competition sponsored by the Brewer Foundation and New York University. If the students advance to the next round of the International Public Policy Forum (IPPF), they'll win an all-expenses-paid trip to compete in the finals in New York City.

 According to the report, the high school has been participating in the IPPF for the last twelve years. Coach Justin Brown said he has always encouraged his students to sign up because the competition instills valuable skills that transfer to other academic programs.

 “It’s kind of our fall practice because they have to do a lot of research and understand argumentation. It’s very detailed writing using precise language,” he said.

 “Being a lifelong learner has always been my goal and I think the research aspect of IPPF…in general encompasses that value," said student Mei Kanada. "Knowing how to research different topics and perspectives you don’t necessarily agree with or know about is valuable because it teaches you and opens you up to so many different things." 

 The IPPF's advancing "Elite Eight" teams will be announced on April 1, 2024. The IPPF World Champion is awarded a $10,000 grand prize from the Brewer Foundation.

Read the report (subscription required).

International Public Policy Forum Announces 2023-24 "Top 64" Teams

November 8, 2023 - The Brewer Foundation and New York University today announced the “Top 64” teams for the 23rd annual International Public Policy Forum (IPPF) – the first and only contest that gives high school students around the world the opportunity to engage in written and oral debates on issues of public policy.

The IPPF begins annually in October, as teams submit a 3,000-word qualifying round essay either affirming or negating the IPPF topic. This year, students are debating the topic, "Resolved: Governments should provide a universal basic income." 

A record 311 teams, representing schools in 26 countries and 33 U.S. states, submitted qualifying round essays – making this the largest year in competition history. Judges evaluated each essay, and the top 64 teams now advance into a single-elimination, written debate competition.

In the top 64 round, schools will volley papers back and forth via e-mail. Judges review the essays in the order they were presented (affirmative constructive, negative constructive, affirmative rebuttal, negative rebuttal) and select the advancing teams. The process will begin anew as the "Top 32" teams compete for their chance to advance to the "Sweet 16" round.

In March, the "Elite 8" teams will be announced. These teams win all-expenses-paid trips to New York City to compete during IPPF Finals Weekend, which begins May 3, 2024. During the finals, teams supplement their written advocacy with oral argumentation. The IPPF World Champion is awarded a $10,000 grand prize. 

To view the list of advancing teams, click here.

NBC5 Reports on Brewer Foundation Future Leaders Program (FLP)

June 26, 2023 - NBC5 in Dallas highlighted the Brewer Foundation Future Leaders Program (FLP) in its “Carter in the Classroom” feature, which recognizes unique things school districts and teachers are doing to help children succeed.

Founded in 2001 by the Brewer Foundation, the FLP is an academic and leadership development program that benefits more than 150 students, ages 12-18, from urban communities within the Dallas Independent School District (DISD). Through year-round academic courses, leadership training, and exposure to a wide array of cultural programs, the FLP helps prepare its “future leaders” for success in college and beyond.

The video news report showcased a summer FLP class on financial literacy. The course covered topics such as filing taxes, learning about paychecks and deductions, budgeting, investing, savings, and more. The report noted that the FLP included the class in its summer programming at the request of its students. 

"Budgeting, finances, taxes, things we don't learn in school, they teach us here," Anaya Martinez, a student at Dallas ISD's Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet, told NBC.

Watch the report here. 

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Brewer Foundation Sponsors SMU Dedman School of Law Event

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Our firm recently sponsored the Order of the Barristers event recognizing top graduates from the SMU Dedman School of Law. This nationally recognized honor is conferred upon only a select few graduating students each year who have been recognized as having demonstrated outstanding skills in oral advocacy. Brewer Associate Ramon Hernandez (pictured, far left) represented the Brewer firm and joined other graduates from the Class of 2021 at the event, held at the Park Cities Club in Dallas. We are proud to have the law school as a partner in the legal community.  

Newsweek Reports on Brewer Foundation/NYU IPPF World Champion

May 9, 2023 – Newsweek reported today on the finals of the Brewer Foundation/NYU International Public Policy Forum (IPPF) – a global debate contest for high school students. As reported, the team from Potomac Oak of Rockville, Maryland was crowned the 2023 IPPF World Champion during the debate finals on May 6, 2023. The school won a $10,000 grand prize from the Brewer Foundation and the “Brewer Cup.” The Hockaday School from Dallas, Texas was runner-up.

As reported by Newsweek, “William Brewer, a lawyer and co-founder of the Brewer Foundation, a private, nonprofit organization that manages a variety of educational outreach programs in connection with the Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors law firm, and John Sexton, a debate coach, law professor and former NYU president, started the IPPF as a free contest that combines written and oral debate on international policy issues.”

Hockaday debater Sanika Agarwalla won the inaugural John E. Sexton Award – recognizing the outstanding speaker during the final round.

“Speech and debate programs like the IPPF change lives – helping students find their voice, promote conflict resolution, and see the world differently," Sexton said in a statement to Newsweek. “NYU is proud to partner with the Brewer Foundation to offer this academic program to students around the globe.”

Speaking of the inaugural award recognizing his life’s work as a debater, debate coach, and mentor, Sexton told Newsweek, “This award is an honor for many reasons, but most importantly because it represents so many students and mentors who shared their love of debate as a gift to me. The inaugural winner, Sanika Agarwalla, demonstrated remarkable poise and confidence. She is an inspiration to me – and represents the promise debate holds for future generations.”

To read more, click here.

Potomac Oak Students Crowned World Champion of Brewer Foundation / NYU Debate Contest

May 6, 2023 – New York – A team of students from Potomac Oak in Rockville, Maryland, were crowned world champions Saturday, winning the 22nd Annual Brewer Foundation/New York University International Public Policy Forum (IPPF) debate competition and a $10,000 grand prize. The final debate was held at The Harold Pratt House in New York City.

The teams that competed in the IPPF Finals on Saturday, May 6, were the final “Elite Eight” teams to emerge from a field of more than 220 teams, representing high schools in 31 U.S. states and 22 countries. The teams debated the topic: “Resolved: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an effective model for international cooperation."

As the new IPPF World Champion, the Potomac Oak team receives a $10,000 grand prize from the Brewer Foundation ($5,000 for the school’s debate program and $5,000 in individual scholarships) and the Brewer Cup. 

“This amazing team supplemented months of written scholarship with outstanding oral advocacy – earning the title of 2023 IPPF World Champion,” says William A. Brewer III, partner at the Brewer firm and founder of the IPPF. “The IPPF provides students with the opportunity to sharpen skills that are fundamental to academic achievement: the ability to research topics of critical importance, synthesize complex material, and advocate for a position. These students demonstrated a ‘best in class’ performance against some of the most accomplished debaters in the world.” 

The runner-up team, The Hockaday School, receives a $3,500 prize. Ms. Sanika Agarwalla from The Hockaday School received the inaugural John E. Sexton award – recognizing the outstanding speaker of the 2023 IPPF Finals.

The top eight teams competing in the IPPF Finals represented schools in five U.S. states, Canada and Singapore. Founded in 2001, the IPPF is the only competition that gives high school students from around the globe the opportunity – for free – to engage in written and oral debates on issues of public policy.

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Brewer Foundation Recognized by Dallas Independent School District

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May 5, 2023 – The Brewer Foundation received a special award from the Dallas Independent School District at the 2023 “State of the District” meeting. DISD Chief of Strategic Partnerships and Intergovernmental Relations Jon Dahlander presented the Foundation with the Emmett J. Conrad Extra Mile Award – awarded annually to those who champion community support for public schools.

The Brewer Foundation founded, funds and manages the Future Leaders Program (FLP) – a public-private partnership that provides academic resources, mentoring and leadership training to deserving students from DISD. The FLP has been recognized previously by the Texas State Board of Education and Governor’s Office. 

Since its founding in 2001, the FLP has helped hundreds of DISD students prepare for and attend four-year colleges and universities. These students have earned more than $12.5 million in scholarship offers. The FLP Class of 2023 will attend colleges and universities such as Northwestern University, Brown University, Cornell University, and The University of Texas, to name a few.

Newsweek Reports on Brewer Foundation/NYU Debate Contest

May 4, 2023 – Newsweek reported today on the Brewer Foundation/NYU International Public Policy Forum. Founded in 2001 by the Brewer Foundation, the IPPF is the first and only competition that gives high school students around the world the opportunity to engage in written and oral debates on issues of public policy. Now jointly administered by New York University, the contest annually reaches thousands of students.

As reported by Newsweek, “The IPPF is different from other public policy debates, which are largely comprised of oral arguments, because it includes rounds of essays that are exchanged by participants.” This year’s contest resolution is, “Resolved: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an effective model for international cooperation.”

The IPPF Finals take place Saturday, May 6 at the Harold Pratt House in New York City. Firm partner William A. Brewer III tells Newsweek about the unique finals format.

“Not only are these kids cross-examining each other, but now you've got lawyers and successful businesspeople and famous government officials sitting on a panel and asking you a bunch of questions about the topic that you've just debated. It's an exciting process,” Brewer said.

The final debate takes place at 3:30 p.m. EST. Log on to www.facebook.com/IPPFdebate to view all the action.

Read the full story here.