UNLV's competitive debate team will return to the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs. The Sanford I. Berman Debate Forum is named for the local donor who, along with Sande Mamaghani, has committed providing an endowment to cover general operations, including travel costs, materials, and scholarship support.
The program, absent since funding issues forced its end in 1998, was ranked in the top 20 nationally during the mid-1980s. Communication studies department chair Tom Burkholder says that current undergraduates and prospective students have expressed keen interest in a debate program.
Berman's gift places UNLV's program in distinctive ranks, according to Burkholder. Most university teams must seek support each year from their administrations or student governments. UNLV participants and the faculty advisor can focus on students' analytical and research skills, which Burkholder compares as equivalent to those needed to write a doctoral dissertation.
"Aside from these obvious benefits, students [in debate programs] are well-prepared for graduate and professional schools — any profession where poise and self-confidence are necessary for success," he says.
Berman, known by the stage name Dr. Michael Dean during his three decades performing on stage as a hypnotist, retired to Las Vegas 16 years ago. He holds the distinction of being the only stage hypnotist known to hold a doctorate and is a past-president of the International Society of General Semantics.neral Semantics.
