Congratulations to ninth grade debaters Collin Chan, Ophelia Cherry-Pulay, Caroline Keiper, Rhea Nachnani, Zinnia Nichols Loller, Ellie Rothman, Lexi Straus, and Siddhi Voona for an outstanding start to their high school debate careers.
By Bill Wilson, HS Debate Coach
USN's first year debaters started their season this weekend virtually and rocked the Marist Ivy Street Invitational. All four teams in competition reached the elimination round Saturday night, Sep. 25. Three USN teams claimed a co-championship in the division.
Ophelia Cherry-Pulay '25 and Ellie Rothman '25 finished preliminary competition with a 4-1 record, good for the second seed in the bracket. They won their elimination round in a 3-0 decision over Alpharetta HS (Georgia). Ophelia and Ellie earned the first and second place speaker awards in the division.
Lexi Straus '25 and Rhea Nachnani '25 finished with a 3-2 record, good for the eighth seed where they met the ninth seeded USN team of Collin Chan '25 and Caroline Keiper '25 (3-2). Lexi, Collin, and Rhea claimed the fourth, seventh and ninth place speaker awards in the division, respectively, while closing out one slice of the bracket. Zinnia Nichols Loller '25 and Siddhi Voona '25 finished 3-2, also. As the 13th seed they lost their elimination round to Montgomery Bell Academy.
What a fine start to these debate careers — looking forward to watching what this group can accomplish together.
Ninth graders Collin Chan, Ophelia Cherry-Pulay, Caroline Keiper, Ellie Rothman, and Rhea Nachnani pose for a pre-debate picture on the day of the Marist Ivy Street Invitational.
The Quiz Bowl team traveled to Bowling Green, Kentucky, to face several top teams from across the country at this year's South Warren Tournament. USN's second-place finish earned the team an invitation to the National Academic Quiz Tournaments' National Championships in May.
In an inspiring new initiative, USN's health care career spotlight, organized by Ruchika Ramachandran ’27 and Yvonne Wang ’27, brought a wealth of alumni back to the school for an evening of shared expertise and personal stories. This first-of-its-kind event was a great example of the power of connection, mentorship, and community evident throughout the USN community.
Ahead of the All Bands Winter Concert, students got to play for Larry Clark, the composer who arranged the holiday medley that the band will perform at 7 p.m. Tuesday, December 9 in Durnan Auditorium.
USN Mission: University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.