(Courtesy of Southern Scholars Debate Classic)
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The second annual Penny Games kicked off Thursday in Birmingham, this time with an expanded slate of intellectual games for participants from several colleges and universities across the country.
Students are taking on white-hat hacking competitions and trying to solve enduring Birmingham problems this weekend, as well as debating social issues and working to best each other at video games.
“There’s nothing like The Penny Games,” said Penny Foundation founder and CEO Lyord Watson. “I believe they’re very important because if we are not putting forward these opportunities for students, in many cases, these opportunities would not be there.”
In addition to the Unheard Arguments debate and the Unseen Champions Esports tracts that were held last year, student teams this year also are competing in the Uncredentialed Hackers cybersecurity and the Unfunded Ideas case study tracts.
The games will follow a hybrid schedule, with the only in-person event being the debate competitions that kicked off Thursday and continue Friday at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex. Finals will be Saturday at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church at 10 a.m.
Thursday’s opening topic focused on the environmental impact of hyperscale data centers. Friday will focus on the role of public philanthropy in large communities. The debate competition wraps up with an exchange on the intersection of non-violence and social justice.
All in-person debates are free and open to the public. Tickets are available at thepennygames.com.
Cybersecurity teams will compete virtually through Saturday. Esports teams face off online until Sunday.
The Penny Games evolved from the 2023 Southern Scholars Debate Classic, another Penny Foundation initiative designed as a debate between Samford University and Howard University, a historically Black university in Washington, D.C. The Classic also featured a career-prep showcase for high school students.
“It was built on this concept of having intellectual conversations or making intellectual conversations more present and more mainstream,” Watson said of the Classic. “It was during a time in the country where you have a very divisive presidential campaign going on. I was concerned with how we model having civil discourse.”
The goal of both The Penny Games and the Classic is to provide a haven for intellectual games by offering an opportunity for college students to participate while also promoting the concept to younger students.
“The Penny Games gives them an opportunity to showcase their skills and, in many cases, sharpen their skills,” he said. “It’s meant to have many different layers. We want to give students a chance to showcase their talents; you also want to connect with other universities who want to have these types of programs.”
A new look with young, fresh eyes
The programming additions are natural continuations of the 2025 games, Watson said. The new events, such as the case study competition, give participants a chance to come up with new solutions for some of Birmingham’s enduring problems.
“What better way to talk about these needs, to elevate these needs and come up with creative solutions than to have people who are studying to create solutions to come and look at it with fresh eyes?” he said.
Students participating in the competition will focus on creating a Black arts district in the historic Ensley neighborhood. Texas Southern University, Virginia State University, Oakwood University, Alabama A&M University and Tuskegee University will participate. Teams will present their cases Friday, and awards will be announced the same day.
Watson said Birmingham is the perfect place for The Penny Games.
“I felt like Birmingham has a lot to say,” he said. “Oftentimes when I travel and people hear my Southern drawl, they have preconceived notions about Alabama and Birmingham. What better way to educate people about Birmingham than to have an intellectual competition in Birmingham?”
He said that in the first iteration of The Penny Games, 40 to 50 college students visited the city, with the majority coming here for the first time. Before the games began, students toured landmarks such as the Smithfield neighborhood, the Birmingham Public Library’s archives and Vulcan Park & Museum.
“You’re exposing these honor students from across the nation to Birmingham,” he said. “This is Birmingham, this is our history, and this is what we can be.”
Watson said that, in addition to exposing the audience to both sides of the issues, he hopes the teams participating in the debate competition will inspire younger students to explore intellectual games. He pointed to the creation of a debate league inspired by the Southern Scholars Debate Classic.
“Students got a chance to see and hear debaters, some for the first time,” he said. “One of our partners was the Urban Debate League. They were able to take the work that we had done with college debate and build a league that is now up and running and flourishing in Birmingham.”
With all the categories of competition, Watson hopes The Penny Games can help increase the pressure in Birmingham’s young talent pipeline.
“We’re creating space and opportunity for these young people to compete,” he said. “I’d love to be able to also connect them to opportunities for employment. That makes Birmingham a more attractive city as people get ready to graduate. It can build our reputation as a place where young people can come and get their foothold, learn about life and take off from there.”
