This past weekend, I participated in my first ever Ethics Bowl competition, with one of two teams from my university, and I had way much more fun than I could have ever anticipated.
At first, I was beyond nervous about the prospect of choking or messing up, in front of crowds of scholars — both new and veteran competitors, judges, and coaches — but, just as importantly, I was terrified of letting my team down. What if I misspoke? Contradicted our argument? I would come to learn that as important as it was to represent our team in a positive way, it was just as important to not get so caught up in the details, that I would make the experience miserable for myself. As soon as I relaxed, as my teammates continually encouraged me to do, not only was it easier for me to speak clearly, and with conviction, but I was reminded that I was doing this because I enjoyed it, not just because we wanted to win.
For those of you who don't know, this past weekend, Marist College hosted the 2016 Association for Practical and Professional Ethics Northeast Regional Ethics Bowl. As the APPE website proudly boasts:
Hundreds of students and teams across the United States and Canada compete in 11 Regional Ethics Bowl competitions each fall. The teams argue and defend their moral assessment of some of the most troubling and complex ethical issues facing society today. Questions address a wide array of topics in business and professional ethics, in personal relationships, and in social and political affairs.
Competing students must be able to do the following things, in order to be successful in the competition: understand the facts of the case, articulate the ethical principles involved in the case, present a well-defended argument on how the case should be resolved, and respond effectively to challenges or questions put forth by both the opposing team, as well as the panel of expert judges. I rather affectionately refer to the Ethics Bowl as the Nerd Convention, because those interested in all of the above skills are often referred to as stereotypical "debate club" nerds, but that doesn't make it any less fun!
How can you have fun at such a serious-sounding competition, you ask? Your team, and the other teams around you. Despite the fact that my university sent two teams to competition this year, we were all so close. We played the most insane games of Head's Up! I've ever witnessed, sang a plethora of sometimes ridiculous songs, and bonded over the course of the three days we spent together. We all worked so hard toward the same goal for months, and all of that work finally came to fruition. We got to interact with people who had spent just as much time discussing our 15 assigned cases as we did.
While my team did make it to the quarterfinals and that was an amazing success, it was about so much more than that for me, for all of us. It was about the fact that I stepped outside of my comfort zone and joined a club I never anticipated being so much fun. It was about all of the friends I made through being apart of a team. It was about being around people who wouldn't judge how much of a nerd I truly am. It was about all of us working together, and utilizing each other's strengths. It was about helping each other out when the time came. It was about supporting each other. It was about being a part of something amazing.
The only drawback? Now I'm impatient, waiting for the next competition, next fall.
