Dear Colleagues,

The Durham Academy Speech & Debate team cordially invites you to attend the 6^th Annual Cavalier Invitational on January 18^th and 19^th of 2020.  We will try to offer you and your students not only an outstanding academic competition, but also a pleasant tournament experience.  Rest assured the 6^th edition of the Cavalier Invitational will be the best installment yet.

Please note the tournament schedule:

-       The tournament runs on Saturday and Sunday of MLK weekend to allow for travel without missing any time at school.

-       The tournament offers six preliminary rounds in all debate events and four preliminary rounds in all speech events.  In debate, we will break all winning records.  In speech, we will advance the greatest number of students reasonable.

-       Designated as a University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions qualifying tournaments at the following levels:

o   Public Forum Debate – Quarterfinals

o   Lincoln Douglas Debate – Semifinals

o   Congressional Debate – All Students in Finals

o   Speech Events – varies based on the number of entries; in 2019 we were a qualifier for the students in Finals of HI, DI, DUO, INFO, OI, OO, POI and EXT. 

There are some important changes for the 6th Cavalier Invitational:

- Our Public Forum division is moving to our Middle School campus on Academy Road to accommodate our growing field.  Lincoln-Douglas will remain at the Hill Center & Upper School (Ridge Road); Congress will be located at the Upper School; All speech events will be at the Lower School (Ridge Road) campus.

- All registrations will be held on a waitlist.  It is especially important to highlight that your registration on Tabroom.com is only to put you on the waitlist.  Entries are official only once we receive your entry fee check and send you a confirmation email.  Being the first to submit your registration online does not guarantee your slot - mailing us your check promptly does.

- The 2nd Cavalier Challenge will be held on Monday, January 20th.  It will feature 10 of the best teams in the Nation.  This year, we are expanding the Cavalier Challenge to include a Lincoln-Douglas division.  

- We have adjusted the speech schedule to put three preliminary rounds on Saturday.  Sunday will include the fourth preliminary round as well as all speech elimination rounds.

- Our fees have increased slightly due to rising costs.  However, we will be providing more hospitality for students throughout the tournament included in the entry fees. 

A common theme of this invitation, based on the language and implicit assumptions therein, is that you are a guest of Durham Academy and its coaching staff and, by attending the tournament, you are agreeing to adhere to our guidelines as a condition of participation in the Cavalier Invitational. 

We look forward to welcoming you to our campus!

Crawford Leavoy                               

Director of Speech & Debate             

Durham Academy