Leadership
Stanford Debate Society Executive Board 2023-24
The five member student Executive Board is responsible for running and overseeing all aspects of the Stanford Debate Society (SDS).
President: Muhammad Dhafer
Muhammad Dhafer is a junior from Singapore. He debated in World Schools and British Parliamentary circuits before joining SDS. Outside debate, he likes reading about urban transit systems, architecture and product design. In his free time, he enjoys visiting galleries and museums, finding historical fiction, and reading maps!
Vice President, Finance | Chief Financial Officer: Joseph Kim
Joseph is a senior studying Economics and Data Science. Born in Canada, he has lived in South Korea for most of his life, where he debated for Team Korea in WSDC. Besides debating, Joseph enjoyed working out at a gym, playing fingerstyle guitar, watching superhero films, and most importantly, eating lots of good food!
Vice President, Competition: Claire Beamer
Claire is a sophomore majoring in Mathematics. She competed in Public Forum debate in high school but now thinks BP is superior. Besides debate, she loves cooking, playing/watching sports, and spending time with her four siblings.
Vice President, Operations: Phil Chabaneix
Phil is a junior majoring in Economics and minoring in Computer Science. He lived in Lima, Peru, for 20 years before coming to Stanford. Before Stanford, he was heavily involved in Model UN in Peru and abroad. He pivoted to debate his frosh year, when he joined SDS. Phil loves traveling with SDS and enjoyed serving the team as SDS's Joint Chief of Staff his sophomore year. He is excited to continue serving the team as VP-Operations. His interests outside of debate include volleyball, historical fiction, podcasts, current affairs, business strategy, political TV shows, travel, and trying new food. He enjoys spending quality time with his friends, family and dog.
Vice President, Events | SSE Tournament Managing Director: Nadia Chung
Nadia is a sophomore interested in Political Science and International Relations. Having grown up her whole life in Los Angeles, she loves exploring other cities while competing at the east coast and international tournaments with SDS. Her background is in Lincoln Douglas debate and World Schools Debate, but BP has truly won her over. Outside of debate, Nadia enjoys performing classical ballet, going on picnics with friends, and finding new favorite coffee shops.
SDS Operations Team 2023-24
The SDS Operations Team members support the Executive Board to implement SDS's competitive goals, operations and team policies.
Senior Advisor to the Executive Board: Senkai Hsia
Senkai is a senior pursuing dual degrees in Mechanical Engineering and in International Relations. From 2021-2023, Senkai served as SDS's Vice President, Finance & Chief Financial Officer. This year, Senkai will advise E-Board on team policy and operations and will be the team manager for the Stanford delegation to the 2024 World Universities Debating Championships in Vietnam. Outside of SDS, Senkai serves as a committee member on the Stanford University Board of Trustees. Describing himself as a proud Londoner, Senkai enjoys playing tennis, rewatching Star Trek and eagerly anticipates the resurgence of his beloved Manchester United F.C.
Joint Chiefs of Staff: Amy Chang & Hailey Demars
Amy is a junior from San Francisco majoring in CS. This is her second year serving as Chief of Staff, and she loves that the position allows her to work directly on what the team needs most at any given time. Before joining SDS, she debated with the City College of San Francisco in NPDA and IPDA formats. These days, she likes to run (but not write) obscure historical fiction cases in APDA and badger opponents with POIs in BP.
Hailey is a sophomore who is majoring in Data Science with a focus on sustainability. She was raised in Minnesota but currently lives in South Carolina. Outside of debate she enjoys hiking, sustainability, and traveling.
Associate Financial Officer: Jennifer Lin
Jennifer is a sophomore double-majoring in political science and symbolic systems. She is from Maryland (or as she likes to say, from Washington DC). In high school, she competed on both the public forum and world schools circuits. She is now, like Claire, an avid BP-supporter. She loves meeting, becoming friends with, and learning from the diverse group of people that competes in debate. One of her favorite parts of being on SDS is bonding while traveling on the team. In her free time, she likes watching Gilmore Girls, trying various cuisines, and exploring the area with her friends.
Community Manager: TBA
Travel Operations Assistant: TBA
Past Presidents & Leaders of SDS
Vivian Jiahui Zhu, President 2022-23
Enshia Li, President 2021-22
Gaeun Kim, President 2020-21
Danielle Mitalipov, President 2019-20
Ben Anderson, President 2018-19
Harry Elliott, President 2017-18
David Slater, President 2016-17
Elana Leone, President 2015-16
Christina Gilbert, President 2014-2015
Rich Boltizar, President 2008-10, Director of Debate 2013-21
Professor Mark A. Lemley, Founder