Our Team - Rose Debate

Meet Our Instructors

Abhay Acharya

As Co-founder and CEO, Paul heads teacher training and development at Rose Institute.

Paul is a two-time national debate champion. He holds national accolades in competitive Drama, Impromptu, and Platform Speaking.

In his free time, Paul enjoys singing, baseball, and classic cars.

Nina Rose has a passion for teaching and communications. She qualified for the Stoa Nationals in all four years of debate in high school, ranking 2nd place in the nation for Team Policy Debate. She has won numerous tournaments in both Team Policy and Parliamentary Debate in both Stoa and the California High School Speech Association. Nina has more than seven years of teaching experience, coaching with Rose Debate for four years, as well as tutoring piano.

Nina studied English at UCLA and graduated Summa Cum Laude in June 2020. In her spare time, Nina enjoys reading, hiking, and camping.

Christina Monaco is a senior at Vanderbilt University pursuing an individual major in Creative Arts Production. Her experiences in student leadership, acting, and improv comedy have taught her the confidence, comedic intuition, and presence in front of a crowd that she believes all kids should have the chance to learn. Christina works as an instructor and Assistant Operations Manager and in her free time, she enjoys singing, painting, videography, and scheduling.

Adeline Martin is an undergraduate student at Harvard University, where she studies Molecular & Cell Biology and Social Anthropology. She has been an instructor at Rose Debate for one year working directly under the Director of Rose Debate, teaching several programs, hundreds of students, and helping run 3 tournaments. She is incredibly passionate about using her extensive teaching experience and public speaking background to foster youth development.

Starting in elementary school and continuing through high school, Adeline competed in several public speaking competitions, delivered speeches for school ceremonies, and performed lead roles in countless theatre productions. She thus knows the importance of helping students to gain confidence in public speaking at a young age. Adeline also has years of experience with leading classes and communicating with children. She has been a successful swimming instructor for six years and has worked as a camp counselor and retreat leader.

Joseph Caruso excelled in speech and debate competitively for four years and enjoys using his experience to teach others as an instructor at Rose Debate. He placed 19th in team policy debate at the national level in 2018. Joseph is currently studying biology at Santa Clara University. In his free time, Joseph enjoys being with family, reading, cooking, practicing falconry, and being outdoors.

Alyssa O’Connell is a senior at Vanderbilt University double majoring in Secondary Education and English with an Italian minor. In high school, Alyssa spent all four years on the speech team, where she competed in numerous events and led her team to two state championships. She qualified for state every year, placing 8th in Special Occasion Speaking as well as becoming a National Qualifier in Humorous Interpretation. When she isn’t working with Rose Debate, Alyssa instructs at a sailing camp and employs her passion for education in middle school and high school classrooms. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, playing her guitar, and frequenting local coffee shops with a CS Lewis book in hand.

Anna Hvidsten is a Rose Debate alumna. While in Rose Debate, Anna excelled in Monologue, Duo Interpretation, and Impromptu; she was the first place winner in Monologue at the Cambridge Classic as well as the MHMS Classic. In high school, Anna has competed in Play Reading, Team Improv, Multiple Reading, Impromptu, and Humorous Interpretation, qualifying for States in several events. In addition, she has participated in musical theatre with leading roles and serves as the Speech Team Captain. In her free time, Anna enjoys playing soccer, biking, and spending time with family.

Jack McKinnon is an undergraduate student at Stanford studying Philosophy and Classics. He hopes to study both theology and philosophy at a graduate level. Jack has been involved in public speaking since his toddler days, being a child actor for various commercial companies. He also has had an extensive background in speech and debate through his high school league, of which he was the Captain during his senior year. Jack enjoys playing golf in his spare time.

Abhay Acharya is a junior at Cupertino High and part-time student at De Anza College, focusing on Business Law. He has been involved in competitive speech and debate for 4 years, achieving success at both state and national levels. In middle and high school he competed in Public Forum debate, Impromptu speech, and a variety of supplemental events, qualifying and placing Top 32 at the Tournament of Champions in 2021 as well as attending the California State Championship in Public Forum debate. Abhay is also the Vice President of his school’s speech and debate team, directing administrative activities for over a hundred competitors. In his free time, Abhay loves spending time with his puppy and reading.

We’ve had 1000s of Happy Students

"Anthony enjoys the class and likes the teachers. He was happy every time after the class.
He reads to me every week day and has tried to remember speeches assigned to him. ... Thanks a lot!"

– Lingling Sun

"Rose Debate's class was really fun and engaging. I learned a lot as a public speaker, and the tournament was REALLY well organized and enjoyable."

– Isabelle Shi

"Rose Institute helps our students fine tune their public speaking skills and
students are eager to attend and return each year."

– Fabienne Esparza, Principal, St. Catherine School