The New Horizons Debate Circuit

The New Horizons Debate Circuit

We are delighted to welcome you and your school to the opening tournament of the 2026–2027 season.

The New Horizons Speech and Debate Team has a proud tradition extending back several decades. Initially focused on Model United Nations, debate became an independent program around 2015. Since then, our students have competed in numerous national and international tournaments within the National Speech & Debate Association circuit.

In 2014, New Horizons became one of the first Dominican schools to attend the Harvard University debate tournament, now known as the Harvard National Forensics Tournament.

In 2016, we were the only Dominican school to advance to the elimination rounds, beginning our rise as the most dominant debate program in Dominican history.

In 2017, we became the first Dominican debate team to advance a team to the national division at Harvard.

In 2018, we placed the largest number of international teams in the elimination rounds, outperforming even the powerful Chinese delegations.

In 2019, we became the first and only Dominican debate team to reach the finals of the Georgetown University Debate Tournament. Our finalists completed the tournament with an extraordinary 9–0 record, while also earning the first- and second-place speaker awards.

In 2020, we became the first and only Dominican debate team to advance three teams to the national division at Harvard. That same year, we became the first—and remain the only—Dominican team ever to win Harvard’s International Division.

In 2022, we became the first Dominican team to attend the University of Florida’s Blue Key Speech and Debate Tournament.

In 2023, we returned to the Harvard International Division final and finished as reserve champions following a 2–1 split decision.

In 2024, we once again reached the Harvard International Division final, earning our second consecutive reserve championship in another 2–1 split decision. In April, five of our teams attended the University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions—the largest delegation ever sent by a Dominican school to the TOC. Our teams also achieved the best performance ever recorded by a Dominican program in open categories outside an international division.

In 2025, we became the first International Division champions at the University of Florida’s Blue Key Speech and Debate Tournament.

In 2026, we advanced farther than any other team in Harvard’s International Division. We finished the season as the only program in the NSDA International Division to achieve Club 400 status, an NSDA charter school, and the division’s top-ranked program—a position we have held for the past five years.

Today, our team continues to grow and improve. We breathe debate, and we hope to share that passion with you.

We sincerely hope that you enjoy your visit to our school and have a fun, safe, exciting, and enriching learning experience.