- This event has passed.
Coolidge Presidential Debate and Policy Institute
Event Navigation
FAQ | Meet the Experts | Transportation | Testimonials
Train for Debate Excellence
The Coolidge Presidential Debate and Policy Institute takes place this summer at the Coolidge Foundation from June 28 to July 5. Students will train with top debate coaches and internationally-renowned content experts to make themselves more competitive debaters in their own leagues. What really sets this institute apart is its unrivaled focus on public policy and content instruction. World renowned experts like Amity Shlaes, Roberto Salinas-Leon, and others will all join you as instructors to provide a one-of-a-kind course in political economy and geopolitics. Debate sessions will be led by top debate coaches, including Dr. Ben Voth of Southern Methodist University. Superior debate alumni will spend the week with you sharing tips and strategies to win debates.
This institute will be held in an unparalleled setting, Plymouth Notch, Vermont, the historic presidential birthplace of America’s thirtieth president, Calvin Coolidge. Nestled in the picturesque Green Mountains of Vermont, you will enjoy a debate experience unlike any other. This institute also includes the opportunity to tour Dartmouth College, an Ivy League institution located a short distance from Plymouth Notch. A Dartmouth College admissions representative will meet with students during the camp to explain the Dartmouth admission process.
Learn from the Experts
The quality of our content experts is what sets this institute apart from other debate camps. You will learn from many superstar policy experts on the topics you need to know about to win in your league. It is highly unusual to have this kind of access to world-renowned experts. Sessions will focus on economics, history, international relations and forms of government, security, the environment, migration, and much more.
Dr. Ben Voth teaches and coaches students in order to equip them to have a voice in society at Southern Methodist University. Voth works with a variety of individuals such as Holocaust survivors, national speech champions, top speakers in debate, community advocates, and government leaders to ensure that the human value of being heard is instilled. Voth has coached top national debate programs such as the University of Kansas, Baylor University and Miami University.
Amity Shlaes chairs the board of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation. Miss Shlaes teaches economic history at The King’s College, and previously taught in the MBA program at NYU’s Stern School of Business. She spent a decade at the Council on Foreign Relations as a Senior Fellow in Economic History and directed the economic programs of the George W. Bush Presidential Center. Additionally Miss Shlaes is the author of four New York Times bestselling books and was an editorial board member at the Wall Street Journal. Her syndicated column has been carried by the Financial Times, Bloomberg, and Forbes.
Roberto Salinas-Leon is president of the Mexico Business Forum. He is an expert on trade, monetary policy, and economic liberalization in Latin America and co-editor of Money and Markets in the Americas: New Challenges for Hemispheric Integration. A frequent media commentator on policy issues in Latin America, Salinas-Leon has advised policy makers across the globe.
Opportunity to Learn About Dartmouth College
The campus of Dartmouth College, an Ivy League college, is only 35 miles from the Coolidge Foundation. This institute will feature the opportunity for students to learn more about Dartmouth. Students will tour Dartmouth College and a Dartmouth admissions representative will meet with them to give them an overview of the Dartmouth admissions process.
Program Tuition
Tuition is $1,700, with a deposit of $700 due upon admission to the Institute. The full balance is due by June 1, 2017.
Do not let the price tag discourage you! We have scholarships available for those who cannot afford the full tuition, and will make decisions about scholarships by May 1. Please let us know if you would like to be considered for a scholarship.
The cost of the Institute includes tuition, housing, meals, and transportation during the institute. Transportation to the institute is not included in the tuition, nor are incidental purchases.