An aspiring criminal defense lawyer, Jacob Scholl graduated with a juris doctor from the Sturm College of Law at the University of Denver. He is preparing to attend the Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers College in Wyoming to further his studies in criminal law. Jacob Scholl gives back to the community by volunteering in programs with worthwhile causes, such as the Denver Urban Debate League (DUDL).

DUDL was created to engage students with speech and debate competitions. These experiences are not always available in the classroom setting. DUDL believes that these opportunities develop the growth mindset in the students, which is proven to be valuable in attaining success in life. In addition to competition, DUDL’s speech and debate programs also enlist volunteers to serve as registration table/ballot table operator or ballot runner, debate judge, or speech judge.

The registration table/ballot table operator or ballot runner, who is supervised by the DUDL operations staff and tournament director, helps in the registration table, collects and runs ballots to the tab room, assists in meal distribution and provides support in the operational needs of the events.

At the preliminary round of the debates, several groups of two teams may compete simultaneously, and a debate judge is sorely needed in each venue. The responsibility of a debate judge includes listening to the debates, keeping time, taking notes, naming the winning team, and assigning points to each speaker. At times, a debate judge may be asked to provide a brief oral critique to each debater or team.

Without the need of prior knowledge or experience in debating, the speech judge judges the competitors in impromptu or drama competitions. Based on specific instructions provided, the speech judge fills the ballots that rank each participant and assigns speaker points.