Timothy O'Donnell

Associate Professor of Communication and Director of Debate

If Timothy O’Donnell had his way,
every Mary Washington student
would learn how to argue.

“It’s one of my goals to bring the benefits of a debate education to more and more Mary Washington students,” said O’Donnell, associate professor
of communication and director of debate.

In fact, he considers himself a “teacher of argument because argument is what makes us human.”

After all, argumentation is about giving and receiving reasons as well as the ability to see both sides of an issue, skills that make debate valuable.

“Debate is the quintessential American art form,” he said.

O’Donnell, who got hooked on debate in middle and high school, brought his passion for debate to UMW when he arrived in 1999.  Currently, the UMW debate team consists of about two dozen students, many of whom who compete at the varsity level.

In intercollegiate debate, a smaller school like Mary Washington can go head-to-head with larger universities.

 “There aren’t many arenas where we can compete on a national stage against Ivy League institutions and Big 10 football schools,” said O’Donnell.

Under O’Donnell’s leadership, the Mary Washington debate program consistently ranks among the top 10 debate programs in the country. In 2009, the UMW team finished fifth at the National Debate Tournament.

While honing Mary Washington’s debate talent outside the classroom, O’Donnell has enlightened his classes about another great debater with ties to UMW. Along with courses in public speaking and communication, O’Donnell has taught a first year seminar about civil rights leader James Farmer, who concluded his distinguished career at the university. Farmer, one of the most famous members of the 1935 Wiley College debate team, was depicted in the 2007 movie “The Great Debaters.”

O’Donnell also is advancing the cause of debate nationally as chairman of the National Debate Committee. 

In January 2009, O’Donnell helped organize the Inauguration Debate Series—which brought six schools to Washington, D.C. on the eve of the presidential inauguration to debate the priorities of the Obama administration.  He also is working to revive the legacy of debate at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in conjunction with the White House Initiative on HBCUs.