Cecil A. Partee Memoir - University of Illinois Springfield

Q: 1've never been involved with a debate team sort of thing. When you went
to one of these other colleges or universities to debate, was it on a
single subject? Of did you go for two or three days and . . .
A: No, it would be on a single subject. On a single subject and you would
have an allotment of time to both sides. You divide up your time, as you
decided, between, say, two or three contestants on either side and then there
would be time for rebuttal and surrebutter. That would be it. Then somebody
would make a decision.
Q: Were these debate sessions well-attended by the student bodies?
A: Well, fairly well attended. Sort of relative, wouldn't be as many
people as you would think might be interested. Sometimes it would be more
than you would think would be interested, you know.
Q: So you were on the debate team then for the balance of your career there
a t . . .
A: Actually, I guess it was only a couple of years because, I don't know, it
just sort of faded. They didn't have it after that, I don't think. If
they did, I wasn't aware of it. Couple of years I took it.
Q: Yes. And you don't recall any specifics on any of these other clubs like
the Physical Science Club or the English Club.
A: No, I don't.
Q: How about sports, sir? When did you get involved with sports there?
A: Well, always, as a kid, I played baseball and tennis, and basketball in
high school. When I went to college, I had not the size, physical size, to
make the teams, nor the prowess. The only sports I played in college were
intramural sports. We played intramural football teams and intramural
basketball teams. Physical ed., of course, was a requirement so you played
in those areas. But no, none of the college sports, on any af the teams, you
know. I didn't play that much tennis in college either because I was
working and really didn't have that much time.
Q: Which courses did you like best at the university? Or at the college?
A: Well, I think probably, American government, English--were probably my
favorites. And the math courses, statistics and tests and measurements and
college algebra. I liked the math courses. Math, English and political
science courses, I think, were my favorites.
Q: Which helped you most in later life?
A: I don't think there's a most, I just think they all sort of blend.