Overview

Congressional Debate

Congress lives at the core of Ascend. We offer both 1 and 2 week programs in Congressional Debate at Ascend California.

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Camp Details

Ascend California will run from July 12th to 26th, 2026 at the University of Pacific (“UOP”) in Stockton, California. Stockton is conveniently served by nearby Sacramento International Airport (“SMF”). For an additional fee, we will be offering transportation from the airport to our campus.

Safety

We understand that safety is a prerequisite to learning. Our campus is the crown jewel of Stockton. During camp, students are constantly supervised, have nightly room checks, have 24/7 access to a nurse; additionally, our campus has 24/7 public safety department. All staff are background checked per California State Law.

Join us at the University of the Pacific and explore Ascend California with our CEO, Quest Sandel, in the video below!

FAQs

  • Welcome to speech and debate! We’d love to chat with you to help you learn about speech and debate, please feel free to find a time that works for you on our Calendly. Our general recommendation for new comers is Congressional Debate because it combines both speech and debate skills.

  • Absolutely! Over 60% of our students are typically from states other than California. We have students who come from all over the country, including from Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, and Texas, among other states.

    You would fly into Sacramento International Airport ("SMF"), which is the closest airport to our campus in Stockton, CA. We offer a convenient and affordable shuttle service between the airport and our campus on July 12 and July 26, 2026. Direct flights to SMF are available from many cities across the United States, including:

    • Pacific West: Burbank, Eugene, Honolulu, Kahului, Kailua-Kona, Lihue, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Ontario, Orange County, Palm Springs, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Seattle, Spokane

    • Florida: Miami, Orlando

    • Mid and South Atlantic: Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Washington D.C.

    • Midwest: Chicago, Detroit, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Nashville

    • Mountain West: Boise, Denver, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Tucson

    • Northeast: Boston, Newark, New York City

    • Texas: Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston

    If you live in a city other than one of the above, SMF can be reached from almost any airport in the United States with only one layover. Underlined cities represent those from where Ascend alumni have previously flown to us from.

    Disclaimer: the above locations are listed for informational purposes; Ascend cannot control if and when an airline may choose to discontinue service to SMF. An airline's decision to discontinue direct service to SMF is not basis for requesting a refund for your registration.

  • July 12: please aim to arrive between 9am and 4pm; we offer a shuttle service from Sacramento International Airport ("SMF") that works for flights arriving until 4pm.

    July 19: for our 1 week residential campers, you are welcome to leave at your convenience throughout the day. We currently do not offer a shuttle service on this day.

    July 26: for our 2 week residential campers, you can leave at your convenience. Our shuttle service from Sacramento International Airport is a good fit for flights departing after 10am.

    As indicated above, Ascend offers a shuttle service on July 12 and July 26. Our shuttle service is our recommended transportation option from SMF to our campus as the shuttle service is chaperoned by an Ascend staffer who will also meet you at the baggage carousel upon arrival. The shuttle service costs $60/way. If you have already registered for Ascend California and have booked your flights, you may register for the shuttle service in our camp platform.

    We highly encourage you to fly into Sacramento International Airport; we do not offer a shuttle service from SFO/OAK/SJC and will note that a ride service to/from these airports may cost $150-$200/way. If you intend to use an airline's official "unaccompanied minor service," please contact us before booking your flight to confirm that we can accommodate your request; please note that this service is typically optional for students who are 15 to 17 years old. If you confirm Ascend's approval to arrive/depart on a day other than those outlined above, please note that we do not offer a shuttle service to any airport. Additionally, we do not permit our students to arrive prior to July 12 or depart after July 26. If you have any questions, please email us at info@ascendspeech.org

  • Due to costs that we incur prior to the summer beginning in preparation for your camp experience, we are unable to offer refunds at this time. However, if a conflict emerges, you can defer your camp enrollment to the next summer by May 31st. We’re confident that you will have a first-class experience with us this summer.

  • Please feel free to schedule a time on our Calendly and we’ll give you a call at the time you select!