The Science High School Debate Teams was established in 1979 by Brent Farrand and quickly became the model for urban debate programs nationally. By the early eighties, the Science HS Debate programs had nationally competitive teams. By the mid-eighties, the Science HS program boasted nationally ranked teams. The main difference between the Newark Science HS debate program and other nationally competitive programs was the make-up of the debate team. This was a team of students from all walks of life, economic backgrounds and ethnicity. The Newark Science HS Debate program seeded the idea that debate teams from the inner city cannot only participate in debate, but they could dominate. Science High School debaters have been nationally ranked and routinely compete at the highest levels of high school debate.

Mr. Farrand served as the debate coach and Algebra teacher for over 20 years at Science High. Jonathan Alston and Randy Mitchell currently coach the debate program at Science maintaining its national prominence.