Tripp Rebrovick, PhD
Workshop Director
Tripp Rebrovick, PhD, is the Coach of Debate at Harvard College and the Director of the Harvard Debate Council. He has been teaching and coaching debate every summer for over 20 years and has been director of the HDCSW since 2017.
Kim Shanahan
Residence Director
Kim is a longtime teacher and debate coach from Dracut, MA and has been the residence director since 2022.
She currently teaches at the Lowell Community Charter Public School, where she has worked for 15 years. Kim taught Kindergarten for many years and now teaches a course in World Cultures.
She was an instructor at the Wake Forest Summer Debate Workshop and the Dartmouth Debate Institute for 20 years. Kim is uniquely qualified both professionally as a teacher and mother to ensure the safety and well being of our students at HDCSW.
Ed Williams
Operations and outreach director
Ed Williams, the Assistant Debate Coach at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, brings over three decades of coaching experience at the highest level.
Before joining Westminster, Ed made significant contributions to the debate community at Pace Academy, Calhoun High School, Woodward Academy, Marist School, and Charlotte Latin School. Under his guidance, all of these teams successfully qualified for the prestigious Tournament of Champions.
Ed’s impact extends to the national stage, where he has coached champions at major tournaments such as Greenhill, St. Marks, The Glenbrooks, Barkley Forum, and the Harvard Round Robin. His achievements also include coaching the Top Speaker at the 1993 NSDA National Tournament and securing the Runner-up position in 1994. Additionally, Ed coached the 2000 Tournament of Champions Runner-up at Woodward Academy
Ed’s dedication to the global debate community is evident through his role as a judge at the WSD World Championships in Thailand and Mexico City and judging the finals of World School Debate at NSDA.
Ed’s commitment to education extends beyond coaching, as he has served as an instructor at Summer Workshops held at prestigious institutions such as Bates College, Colorado College, Dartmouth College, Emory University, University of Texas, Simpson College, Stanford University, and Wake Forest University.
Recognized for his outstanding contributions, Ed is a proud member of the Georgia Forensics Coaches Hall of Fame and the Barkley Forum Key Society. His accolades include numerous outstanding coach awards and recognitions, solidifying his status as a respected figure in the world of debate
Kristy Thomas, EdD
dei director
Dr. Kristy Thomas is a DEI consultant who also considers herself to be a lifelong educator. She received her DEI Certificate from Cornell University in 2020 and has jumped head first into the work. She started Thomas DEI Consulting in an effort to give organizations a safe outlet to address their concerns. Kristy believes that through education we can open and expand the way that we work together in our business organizations so that all people are represented, included, and feel as though their workplace is exactly where they belong and want to be. She is committed to strengthening communication and relationship building on topics dealing with DEI in work organizations. Her strength comes from her background as an educator with over twelve years in the high school and college classrooms. Kristy has worked with educational institutions, non-for-profit organizations, board members, created videos to address school districts’ work toward creating equality for all, workshops with teen leadership groups, executive counsels, human resource and recruiting officers and hopes to continue expanding her reach to other groups in need of her services.
Kristy presently lives in Los Angeles, CA and is working on her EdD in Higher Education. She operates Always Writing 4 U, a writing and publishing business. A core piece of her discussions is based on the idea that the information she shares with all of her clients is for them to take in and use within their organizations like a teacher would with their students.
The Harvard Debate Council believes it is important to immerse students in a safe, supportive, and structured atmosphere that balances the rigor of learning with fun and free time in one of the oldest academic atmospheres in America!