Samuel Chen — the former fetus of the debate team — is graduating. It’s so strange to think that the debater and captain who has defined BLS Speech & Debate for the past six years with his unwavering passion and vision is leaving us. When you first met us as wide-eyed eighth gradesr, you were already a rising star. We were shocked and inspired by your commitment; it seemed as though you competed every weekend (and you probably did). Every team email and announcement came with notes lauding your achievements. One day, we thought, we’d be varsity debaters like you. As we are writing this (sitting behind you on an airplane bound for nationals), we are reminded that your passion has never wavered. Where lesser debaters have been washed up or torn asunder by life’s various strains, you are the rock that has grounded our community. Your leadership and experience have been invaluable.
You are not just a pillar for our team, but for the whole community too. Whether you are serving on the National Student Leadership Council or organizing forums to increase equity in forensics, you have always had your eye on making real and meaningful change. Never content with having just a single focus, you’ve also founded an inordinate number of debate camps, institutes and academies which have cultivated a new cohort of debaters across the country.
A man of many talents, you have also ventured into the worlds of business and the classics, with great success. In business, you qualified to the Distributive Education Clubs of America’s international conference three times (including in freshman year!) — an accomplishment which remains unbeaten in BLS history. Through it all, you have always been a mentor for those looking for guidance, teaching the basics of roleplays and test-taking. In the classics, your inspired leadership as Consul made Junior Classical League one of the most successful clubs at BLS, reaping in accolades and making the Certamen team nationally competitive.
We’ll always remember you most for debate, however. When anyone thinks of BLS Speech & Debate, they think of Sam. No matter what tournament or scrimmage we are at, when our fellow competitors hear that we are BLS students, the first words that come to their mind are: “Do you know Sam Chen?” “We do know Sam Chen” is invariably the answer. This truly speaks to your ability to break down barriers in an activity where competition is fierce. You embody the best in all of us. We are losing a generational leader to Harvard; they don’t deserve you.
