Pepperdine has many student-run organizations but there is only one that teaches students how to argue and how to argue well — Pepperdine Waves Debate.
Pepperdine Waves Debate is an academic co-curricular program that offers opportunities for the development of argumentation and public speaking skills, according to Pepperdine’s Seaver College Website. Members said the team is broken into different sections, that a typical week can differ according to the section you’re in and that they have formed meaningful connections.
“Although we do a lot of hard work at our meetings, the community makes debate really worth it to me,” sophomore Nikki Quartuccio said.
Senior Ellie Scoggins said there are four different debate sections: Civic Debate, Spanish Debate, a discussion group called “What’s Happening” and a Community Outreach group.
“Since I work with the Civic Debate team, I will always remember my first tournament to Chicago and placing 11th overall,” Scoggins said. “Taking a boat on the Chicago river with the team was so fun, and winning with my teammate Hanmo was even better.”
Quartuccio is an on-campus programming student coordinator for the team. She said a typical week involves all leaders holding office hours and each section having a one-hour meeting per week.
“We often start [meetings] with an icebreaker to get to know each other better, and then the meetings depend on the section,” Quartuccio said. “For example, for the voting rights debates, we often do individual research on specific questions related to the topic, then move into a more collaborative time where we share and bounce ideas off each other.”
This year she will be participating in the Schuman Challenge along with junior Emily White, Quartuccio said.
“The Schuman Challenge is a single-elimination bracketed tournament,” Quartuccio said. “Emily and I are writing a policy about the future of Arctic cooperation and presenting it to the European Union Delegation to the United States.”
Sophomore Nikki Quartuccio and senior Chris Hamdan hard at work during the Reagan Debate Series hosted by Pepperdine at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in October 2025. Quartuccio said she loves the ability to meet new people through debate. Photo courtesy of Nikki Quartuccio
Senior Christopher Ballance, along with Scoggins, is also a member of the Civic Debate Team. Ballance said he has been part of the team since fall 2025.
“A typical week for Civic involves meeting once per week,” Ballance said. “When we meet, we unpack arguments from previous tournaments, polish our research and methods and engage in mock debates that help us prepare for future tournaments.”
Being a part of the team also brings the ability to travel to competitions, Scoggins said.
“I was chosen to compete in France last summer where we discussed with the French military how misinformation is harming the transatlantic atmosphere and what solutions we believed were most effective,” Scoggins said.
This past fall, Ballance said he is grateful to have had the opportunity to compete in the Reagan Debate Series hosted by Pepperdine at the Ronald Reagan library.
“We engaged in tremendous conversations about the state of education in the United States, and met a number of great people from schools all across the nation who were passionate about the issues that affect us so deeply,” Ballance said.
From left to right: senior Ashleigh Weinstock, alumni Chase Jackson (’25) and senior Ellie Scoggins smile for a picture at Ecole de Guerre in Paris, France in June 2025. Scoggins said the experience is one of her favorite memories from her time on the team. Photo courtesy of Ellie Scoggins
Similarly, Quartuccio also said hosting the first Pepperdine and Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Debate is one of her highlights from her time with the team.
“I was able to debate with students from many universities across the country about the future of educational policy,” Quartuccio said. “It was so rewarding to go from writing and researching a case to actually being able to present it at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.”
Scoggins said Debate is a great program she is grateful to be a part of.
“Debate is such a good program for leadership opportunities and I’m very thankful to have found it,” Scoggins said.
The community that the team has formed is one of her favorite aspects, Quartuccio said.
“I have gotten very close to other members of the debate team, and it has allowed me to not only grow professionally but to grow as a person and find my voice,” Quartuccio said.
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Contact Alicia Dofelmier via email: alicia.dofelmier@pepperdine.edu or via Instagram: @aliciadofelmierjournalism