Mark's Private Coaching

Titus and I had just done pretty badly (especially with our aff) at a tournament one weekend, and we were getting ready for another the next weekend, when we had a meeting with Mark in which we took a look at said aff case. During this one hour, we completely changed the way we ran our case, and rewrote about 90% of our 1AC. Keep in mind that this was the day before we had to leave for the tournament. Just a few days later, we broke to semi-finals for the first time and did probably the best we have ever done with our aff, without Titus (the 1A) even having read the 1AC out loud before the tournament. This is just one example of how Mark has completely changed the way both of us debate, and made us into a team that people have actually started to recognize as a threat. If you're looking for a TP coach, Mark is your man.

Mark emphasizes what the Flynn family values: integrity and principled stances in debating. He takes experienced debaters to the next level with round narrative and impacting each argument. He inspires each student, no matter his/ her level. All our children have been mightily blessed by Mark mentoring them in more than just debate!

As a parent, private coaching with Mark has been THE BEST investment in helping my son grow as a debater. Just read these kids' comments. It is 100% heartfelt.

When I started coaching with Mark, I was two years into Team Policy debate and had never even broken to outrounds. However, after countless hours of learning to argue and communicate effectively, writing and analyzing affirmative cases, and reviewing negative strategy and evidence, my partner and I won 5 tournaments, placed 9th at nationals, and finished the season ranked #6 in the nation. This was after one year of coaching with Mark Roose. Mark is very accomplished in his own right, but I hope my own testimony supports what is already known about the man: Mark is an impeccable debate coach, profoundly intelligent, and an invaluable mentor. I cannot recommend coaching from Mark enough and I genuinely believe that with the skills he teaches any smart and motivated student will have the tools to shape the future of STOA.

I'm not the one to buy coaching for TP. I think most of it is a waste of money (Isaac would probably agree). For the significant majority of our TP careers, Isaac and I never paid for coaching (and not to glaze, but we did pretty well). Mark is one of the few coaches that we would 100% tell younger us to talk to.
Mark has completely changed the way Isaac and I approach debate. What stands out the most about him is his ability to teach narrative. He doesn’t just tell you to make arguments, he shows you how to tell a story with them. One of the most important skills in debate is the ability to weave everything into a clear, compelling narrative that judges can follow and remember. Mark has this gift for taking even the most technical policy issue and turning it into something simple, persuasive, and impactful, and he pushes his students to do the same. Because of his coaching, we’ve learned how to frame rounds in a way that makes our case feel like more than just a list of points. It feels like a story with stakes, characters, and direction. If there's one coach we can say that will genuinely improve your chances of winning as well as be a fella, we would tell you to get coaching from Mark.