The FDI

This is the sacred mission: students who can read deeply, reason clearly, work hard, live with virtue, and build meaningful lives. Education should open doors, reward mastery, respect families and teachers, and prepare every student for purpose, citizenship, and meaningful work. All in!

Some 350 students. 144 all-volunteer judges. 68 schools from across Florida. They’re about to compete in the @civicsanddebate’s first online speech and debate tournament of the 2026–27 season — completely free. No registration fees. No training fees. No shipping fees for awards. Just access. Opportunity. Competition. Learning. Florida leads again in education, and @FloridaDebate is honored to be a part of it. 🎤🏆🇺🇸

It takes a lot of preparation, teamwork and shared purpose to run one of the nation’s largest speech and debate leagues while also helping prepare Florida’s next generation of leaders and workforce. This weekend, our team dug in. We trained elementary, middle and high school educators who understand the urgency of this work. They know this is about more than competition. It is about preparing young people with the communication, critical-thinking, civic and leadership skills they need to succeed in college, build meaningful careers, strengthen Florida’s workforce and fulfill the responsibilities of citizenship. But one of my favorite moments was sitting down with our 7 new FDI Fellows. These college students will spend the year working alongside our team on real projects, improving real processes and helping us innovate. No busy work. They will be contributing members of our team while gaining professional experience that will move them closer to their career goals. I listened as each of them introduced themselves and shared their “why.” Then I shared mine. We talked about a vision for Florida where every young person understands the role they play in making our state and nation stronger. Where they understand and value our system of government, appreciate the responsibilities that come with citizenship, and are prepared to lead with character, confidence and purpose. They bought into that vision. Tomorrow, we continue the work. But today was a good day. A very good day for Florida’s future workforce and its next generation of leaders.

Everyone needs a why. This is mine.

A child’s ZIP code should never determine whether they get the opportunity to find their voice. Grateful to Sen. @jasonbrodeur, Rep. David Smith, and @erikaboothFL for investing in both @SeminoleState and @FloridaDebate, in the hands that will build Florida’s future and the voices that will lead it. Proud of what this means for students, educators, families, and communities across our state.

Florida is tackling this challenge at the root by investing in civics education through speech and debate. The answer to bad ideas isn’t less speech. It’s better speech, stronger critical thinking, and greater civility. Through competition, students learn how to defend their beliefs, challenge opposing ideas, listen with respect, and disagree without dehumanizing one another. Grateful to see @ErikaDonalds leading this important conversation on the national stage. At @FloridaDebate and @civicsanddebate, we’re helping build a generation of informed, confident citizens ready to lead, serve, and strengthen Florida and our republic. 🇺🇸🐊

Congratulations to Dr. @HenmackIII on his unanimous appointment as Florida’s next Commissioner of Education! Dr. Mack brings a tremendous amount of experience in education, workforce development, and public service to this important role. On behalf of the Florida Debate Initiative, we look forward to working with him as he continues expanding opportunities for Florida’s students and supporting educators across our state. -Abraham López @FloridaDebate president and the entire board.

So grateful for your “yes” to pouring into Florida’s future leaders today! We truly can’t do this work without our incredible community of dedicated coaches and our partnership with @civicsanddebate. We’re also deeply thankful to @realtrishduggan for her life-changing investment in the education of our students. And even with all this momentum, I believe the best is still yet to come.🇺🇸

The momentum behind our Speech and Debate Education bill in the Florida House of Representatives is out of this world. We just picked up another sponsor, bringing the total to 12 new sponsors who signed on following our presentation at today’s House Education & Employment Committee meeting. Thank you to our new sponsors for joining us in the effort to codify civics, speech, and debate education in Florida statute. And yes, that’s a picture of me being completely inspired by Fort Walton Beach Senior Caden Bell’s speech today. These students fuel me! 💪🇺🇸

“Are you always that passionate?” That’s a question I’m frequently asked. I take no offense to it. If you’re not passionate about your work, you probably don’t truly believe in its mission. One of the things I care most deeply about is helping students understand, and maybe even appreciate, our systems of government. My hope is that they’ll value them enough to one day help make our union more perfect. One community we’ve been proud to engage, and are committed to reaching even more, is our state’s homeschool community. I recently had the privilege of joining a rising star in the @civicsanddebate circuit, Cooper Campen, on the Home Education Foundation podcast alongside Florida’s original “Homeschool Hero,” Brenda Dickinson, and the new “Homeschool Defender,” Jason Crawford. We had a great conversation covering all things debate and homeschool. Check it out below! youtu.be/qwzvGGde63Y

As President of @FloridaDebate, I’m proud to celebrate one of our outstanding Rickards High School students who was featured in the @TDOnline for participating in our Civic Immersion Experience in Washington, D.C. As I shared in the article, this experience is about helping students see that government is not something distant or abstract. It is accessible, and they have a place in it. When students step into the rooms where decisions are made, it changes how they see their role as citizens and leaders. Congratulations to Chetan and the entire Rickards community on this well deserved recognition.

Yesterday, the mission took us to the State Capitol — speech in hand, microphone on, advocating for civics education in the halls of government. Today, we’re back at headquarters — mop and bucket in hand, taking care of the space where the real work happens. Different day. Different tools. Same mission. Whether we’re speaking before legislators or cleaning our own office floors, the goal doesn’t change: using speech and debate to strengthen civics literacy across the Sunshine State. No less passion. No less purpose. This is our sacred work.

I first encountered speech and debate through the American Legion Boys State program in high school. It opened my eyes to our constitutional system, the power of civil discourse, and the responsibility of citizenship. I often reflect on how different my journey might have been had my urban school offered a speech and debate program earlier in my life. That’s why this matters. I was moved to tears because I believe in our students. I was moved to tears because I believe in my @FloridaDebate team and our ability to reach the unreached. I was moved to tears because I believe in this bill with every fiber of my being. I will never forget today. Thank you, Chairman State Representative @TeamAlexRizo and Representative @erikaboothFL, for your leadership and for helping us plant this bill in the House. With continued support, it will bloom. 🌱