Harvard Parliamentary Debate Reaches Final Round of Zipcar Contest

As part of their December Students with Drive contest, Zipcar and Ford are giving out $5,500 worth of Zipcar credits to five different student groups across five categories, and the Harvard Speech and Parliamentary Debate Society has reached the final round.

HSPDS President Coulter P. King '13 said that he fears having to limit the number of students who can attend the approximately 30 tournaments in which HSPDS participates due to limited funds and car space.

As HSPDS, unlike many student organizations, allows any undergraduate who wishes to participate to join their group, the group faces growing travel costs as more students become involved. HSPDS Vice President of Recruitment and Training Madeline R. Zhu '14 said that the prize would help alleviate these costs by providing for about a year and a half of the organization's Zipcar expenses.

"We train everybody, even people who have no experience, and we turn them into national champions," Zhu said.

HSPDS is one of three groups listed under the Academic category in the Students with Drive competition. The group has already won $1,000 as a finalist, but must receive the most votes in its category to win the big $5,500 prize.

Voting through Facebook will continue through Dec. 7.