Ripon College students to debate Syrian conflict April 13

The Center for Politics and the People at Ripon College presents a student debate, “Should the United States Intervene Militarily to Mitigate and Solve the Syrian Conflict?” on Wednesday, April 13. The debate will run from 4:15 to 5:45 p.m. in Great Hall, Harwood Memorial Union, on the campus.

The debaters will be:

• Wyatt McGillen’19 of Kilispell, Montana. He is studying politics & government and national security, and is a member of the Ripon College Democrats.
• Andy Paloumpis ’17 of Tampa, Florida. He is president of the International Relations Club and has participated in bringing in multiple high-profile speakers to campus. He also is an active member of the swim team, Sigma Chi Fraternity and the Department of Politics & Government.
• Christian Ryan ’19 of Raymond, Wisconsin. He is studying politics & government and global studies. He served as a county board representative from 2014-2015. On campus, he is vice president of Young Americans for Freedom, College Republicans, Student Senate, Campus Christian Fellowship and ROTC.
• Ben Valdez-Hempel ’16 of Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is majoring in politics & government with a national security studies minor. He is chair of the Ripon College Democrats, on the student advisory board for the Center for Politics and the People, and a senator on the Ripon College Student Senate.

The moderator will be Meg Carne, Ph.D., special assistant to the president, liaison to the Board of Trustees, and adjunct professor of politics and government

Free pizza will be served after the program.