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AHS debate coach works on organizing student trip to Cuba By DANI DODGE ASHLAND -- When Ashland High School debate coach John Tredway heads to Cuba in January with students in tow, he hopes to have a few big names along in the entourage. Jimmy Carter. Jesse Jackson. Phil Knight. "I think that there are a lot of Americans who are interested in Cuba and interested in improving foreign relations in general," Tredway said. "As I worked on this proposal, I kept thinking this has Jimmy Carter written all over it. "And if we can get a number of prominent Americans to be part of the project, it brings home to our students the importance of the project." Tredway has proposed taking 25 or 30 Ashland debate students to Cuba in January for a journey believed to be the first such trip by a delegation of high school students in more than 40 years. The United States severed diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1961. Tredway returned home from a preliminary trip Sunday night. During his weeklong journey, he looked into the safety of the trip for students and got signed agreements from the Cuban government that the debates will allow free and open dialogue. He also set dates for the trip: Jan. 18 to 25. He already has received permission for the student trip from the U.S. government. Tredway said that the most important element of the trip will be the students involved, not the luminaries who may accompany them. He has not received confirmation that former President Carter, Nike founder Knight or former presidential candidate and political activist Jackson will accompany the students. Tredway said his preliminary trip assured him that the students will be safe in Cuba. "Havana is a very safe city," he said. "I'm convinced it's probably safer than most cities we go to for debates in the U.S." Tredway paid for his trip to Cuba. He said he expects to take up to 30 students back with him in January -- 18 from Ashland High School -- who also will get no funding from the school district. A dozen more will be chosen from other areas in the state. The students will foot their own bills through fund-raisers and out of their pockets. Tredway estimated that the cost for each person would be around $1,000. The debates will be held with students from one of Cuba's most elite high schools in the student congress style of debate. The teens will debate 10 resolutions, five written by American students and five written by Cuban students. "There will certainly be a resolution about establishing diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba," Tredway said. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA