Around seven years after a USD 1 million donation from actor-director Denzel Washington restored a debate program, Wiley College’s debate team won the top title at the 2014 Pi Kappa Delta National Tournament, making their own mark in history. They competed against more than 80 colleges and universities nationwide at the time, and the 23-member team emerged victorious. They were able to bring national recognition back to the historically Black college whose 1930s origins inspired the acclaimed 2007 film ‘The Great Debaters.’
About Wiley College and its debate team
Wiley College, which is famously known for being a Historically Black College/University (HBCU), was founded all the way back in 1873 in Marshall, Texas. The debate team, which Washington donated to, was established by English professor and poet Melvin B. Tolson back in 1924. In 1935, Wiley’s debate team defeated the national champions from the University of Southern California (USC). This victory also inspired the 2007 film ‘The Great Debaters.‘
Denzel Washington starred in ‘The Great Debaters’, which was inspired by the debate team of Wiley College. This prompted him to donate USD 1 million to the college to revive their debate team. (YouTube)
However, because of Jim Crow laws at the time, Wiley debaters were barred from joining formal collegiate honor societies like Pi Kappa Delta. When Tolson departed in 1947, the program stopped entirely, and the situation remained the same for almost 60 years.
About ‘The Great Debaters’ and Denzel Washington’s USD 1 million donation
The beloved actor got to know about the college’s ordeal with the debate team when he starred in and directed ‘The Great Debaters,’ which follows the story of four former students: Hobart Jarrett, Henry Heights, James Farmer Jr., and Henrietta Bell Wells. According to the University’s official website, this was when Washington was inspired to invest USD 1 million to Wiley College to re-establish the debate program, which had been stagnant for the past 60 years. He set up a plan and paid the amount at USD 100,000 per year over a decade through the Washington Family Foundation. The funds that the ‘Equalizer’ actor provided helped cover student scholarships, recruitment, tournament travels, and operational costs.
Denzel Washington’s donation proved fruitful for 7 years after he started the donation program; the Wiley College debate team competed against 80 colleges and won the championships of the same fraternity that they were once barred from entering. (YouTube)
The debate program was renamed the Melvin B. Tolson/Denzel Washington Forensics Society and was led by head coach Christopher Medina.
More about the 2014 championship after Denzel Washington’s donations
Seven years after the actor started donating to the college, the Wiley debate team made history when it won at the 2014 Pi Kappa Delta Comprehensive National Tournament, held in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was the largest tournament in the organization’s 101-year history. The Wiley College team competed in the tournament against 80 talented colleges and still emerged victorious. This win even took place within Pi Kappa Delta, where more than 80 years ago the same national forensics fraternity had barred Wiley’s Black debaters from membership. Not only that, but across the 2013-2014 session, the debate team made history and won around 373 awards in total. Under the leadership of Coach Chris Medina, the team of debaters that year ended up excelling and proving everyone wrong.