Judge adaptation is important! It is a major variable of debate.

I am a parent judge who has become a coach and have been judging debates for many years now. I have been mostly judged Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum with experience in Congress. I see my role as a judge is to determine who has won the debate. I weigh the framework in LD most. If the debate evolves into a contention level debate, I largely determine who wins by who has presented the best case with factual evidence. In short, convince me your side is right. It is important to provide evidence and absolutely critical to think on your feet and exploit holes in the opposing debaters evidence. Most LD/PF debates are won or loss in CX/Crossfire (and what you do with this information later in the debate). Providing evidence isn’t enough though, it must be used effectively to support arguments. This is where the heart of debate is for me. I am not influenced by my personal opinion on the topic nor do I weigh debaters personal stories, although heartfelt, into the decision. I listen to what is said and do not make conclusions beyond what is communicated. I am fine with speed provided it is clear. If I am unable to understand the debater due to speed of speech or failure to enunciate, I am unable to use that portion of the debate in my decision. It is your responsibility to speak clearly. In most cases, less words with more thought will be more effective with me than cramming all you can into your time limit. I want to see you truly debate your opponent and not just read a case.

I will keep time but will not manage it for debaters. When time is complete, I will allow thoughts to be finished but do not factor in communication past time limits into my decision.

Speaker Points-I treat speaker points uniformly within a tournament based on the talent but am not consistent from tournament to tournament. What I mean by that is that in tournament A, I’ll likely provide the best speaker a 29 or 30 but in tournament B, that same speaker may have only earned a 28 due to stiffer competition. I rarely score below a 27.

Kritiks – I’m okay with Ks. I find they take skill to run and when run effectively are powerful but when run poorly are difficult and tend to be easily defeated.

Philosophy-I'm good with philosophy and can follow it.

Flow-I do not flow rounds. I do take notes. Just because your point is extended, it doesn’t mean it carries significant weight or you’ll win the round.

Attitude-There is a fine, but clear, line between confidence and contemptuousness. I am fine with aggressive debate but bullying an opponent isn’t acceptable.

Have fun. This activity will provide you tons of benefits but not if you are hating it. Enjoy your time.

My ultimate goal is to serve you well. Every debate has a winner and a loser; sometimes the difference is extremely minor. Celebrate your wins and learn from your losses. Compete against yourself and look to be better every round. There are three variables in every debate, you/your case, your opponent/their case and the judge. I won’t be perfect but there will be other judges a lot like me.

Treat me as a flay judge. I pay attention to what is going on in the flow but at the same time, I prefer the lay appeal and narrative style of argument.

Weigh, Weigh, Weigh. Make the ballot easy for me to write and weigh your cases and impacts and show me that they are better than your opponents.

As for speed, I can handle speed but at the same time, I'm not gonna be happy to hear full-out policy spreading in a PF round.

I would not suggest running theory on me but if warranted properly and the theory itself is not abusive then I will consider it in a round. If you run disclosure theory, say goodbye to your speaks.

I fully believe in truth over tech.

This is my first year judging, but I debated all four years of high school.

Please time yourselves, and keep track of your prep time.

I will vote mostly on how YOU argue and the connections YOU make. I know it can be easy to assume that your judge knows what you're talking about and will make connections for you, but that's not always the case.

Keep it respectful. Snark and sass have their places in debates, but when overdone it can be distracting and make you look bad (I do take this into consideration when voting). If it's witty and clever I might allow it. Just be mature. :)

As I said, I'm experienced with debate, so I can keep up with slightly higher-than-normal speeds. However, if you're talking too fast for me I will ask you once to slow down. After that, anything I miss as a result of your speed is on you.

I require sign-posting. This isn't just for me but your opponents as well. It's just courtesy.

Make sure you're weighing in ff. If you don't, I'll have a hard time deciding what to vote on. This might just be a me thing, but I wouldn't want my judge to pick and choose the important parts of my case.

I'm also not a fan of appeals to emotions. Please don't rely on them. Give me numbers. If you don't, I will not vote for you.

Add me to the email chain! lalannika07@gmail.com

Please send cases before round begins.

Things to take note of:

• Try to show direct clash with your opponents case, and be very clear about it. The more interaction you have, the stronger your argument appears to be.
• If you are disrespectful/derogatory in round, that behavior will be reflected in your speaker points.
• Weigh in your speeches! Make sure that you provide clear reasons why you outweigh on certain impacts- for example, do not just say that you "outweigh on magnitude" without giving me an actual warrant of why that is such.
• I would like to hear off time road maps throughout the round- but if you don't stick to them, it makes the structure of your speech seem unorganized.
• If a team calls your card, it is in your best interest to show it fully cited and cut. Be very wary of evidence ethics!
• I will not flow anything after 5 seconds past time. That being said, I won't cut you off unless I feel it is extremely necessary. Just know that I won't account for any points made after that grace period into my decision.
• Speed is fine, but please do not attempt to go to the extent of spreading in any of your speeches.
• Keep track of your own time. I will be keeping track of time, but it is your responsibility to be efficient with your timing, and not going over the limit.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask before round! Have fun, and good luck :)

Hello, I am a parent judge, my son Devin competes at Lakeville.

I wear hearing aids; you do not need to raise your voice, but I as that you please speak clearly. Clear, well articulated arguments are far better than hastily mumbled arguments. If I can't understand you, I won't dock points if I can't understand you, but it won't help you with speaker points either.

Be sure to make coherent arguments and extend everything cleanly if you hope to win the ballot.

When judging a debate, I want to see that you are following the rules established by the National Speech and Debate Association for whichever debate form you are competing in. Honestly, if I catch that you have broken a rule it will not flow kindly in your favor.

Other very important things to note:

• I want you to stay on topic: You have a given topic for a reason.

• Be respectful: This is an educational forum established for students to benefit educationally and no one benefits from disrespect. How you present yourself and how you treat your opponent(s) will be considered when choosing a winner.

• Presenting a solid case that is backed by credible resources is also imperative. Furthermore, there should be plenty of evidence to back up your claims especially in the rebuttals. You the debater are not a credible source. Logical arguments are great if you can back them up

• Plans/Counterplans: In Public Forum Debate, the Association defines a plan or counterplan as a formalized, comprehensive proposal for implementation. Neither the pro or con side is permitted to offer a plan or counterplan; rather, they should offer reasoning to support a position of advocacy. Debaters may offer generalized, practical solutions (Direct quote from the National Speech and Debate Association.)

• “Non-existent evidence” means one or more of the following:

1. The debater citing the evidence is unable to provide the original source or copy of the relevant pages when requested by their opponent, judge, or tournament official.
2. The original source provided does not contain the evidence cited.
3. The evidence is paraphrased but lacks an original source to verify the accuracy of the paraphrasing.
4. The debater is in possession of the original source, but declines to provide it to their opponent upon request in a timely fashion.
(Direct quote from the National Speech and Debate Association.)

Another note to consider, I do not support the blending of the debate styles. LD is not Policy debate, nor is PF. They are all unique styles of debate with their own educational value. Trying to make LD or PF like Policy Debate will not be voted on favorably.

Spreading offers no educational value to debate. Talking fast I am cool with if you have the diction for it!

I am affiliated to East Ridge high school in Woodbury, MN. I have been judging Public forum debates for past 3 years. I prefer teams to speak slow, loud and clear so I can follow through.

I am a parent judge. (do not run theory k's tricks etc I will not vote for you)

Please articulate your arguments concisely and convincingly with relevant evidence from credible sources.

Please attempt to persuade your points slowly and avoid using jargon. You will win only if you can convince me so I am your key audience.

Be respectful (otherwise I will dock speaker points) to your opponents, and avoid talking over each other during crossfire. I will only flow impactful arguments made during crossfire.

Please keep track of your prep and I will stop flowing when speech time is up.

Good luck and have fun.

I was told to write something here

Dont be rude and debate well!

Start with the basics -

Stand up!

Look at your judge, not your opponent!

Treat your opponent with respect!

PF: Impacts and weighing!!! Obviously this is pretty standard, if you want to win you need good impacts and you need to weigh them against your opponents. I really appreciate explanation and context, one card which claims to save (insert whatever number) lives is generally not as effective as explaining how the resolution leads to those live being lost (supported with evidence of course). I do my best to only judge based upon what debaters say in round, please identify voter issues and weigh them in speech, don't make me disentangle those at the end.

LD: I first assess the value debate, then I assess which criterion best upholds the winning value. From there I look at which impacts/voter issues apply to the winning criterion and weigh their merit under that criterion. I do my best to base considerations only on what is said by the debaters in round, so make sure that you weigh impacts in your speeches.

Framework - I love the framework debate. In LD framework debate is incredibly important. Direct clash on the criterion or value is best, but even if the framework has been collapsed or agreed to, I need to hear how you are linking into it and outweighing in every speech.

Values: my pet peeve -Why would you include a value in your case if you never say anything about it past constructive? There is plenty of debate to be done on the value level, but it just never seems to happen. If you include a value and it is different from your opponents, argue about it, or concede to theirs and link in, whatever you do don't just forget about it entirely for the rest of the round.

Other Stuff:

Speed - I have never heard a debater on the Minnesota circuit who spoke too fast for me to process. I have heard many debaters who spoke so fast they could no longer enunciate clearly, don't be like them. I will not yell clear or anything like that, if I really can't keep up I will drop my pen.

Progressive stuff - K's, Theory, etc. - I don't know any of this jargon and I generally steer clear of progressive debate. I am happy to vote on anything so long as it makes sense and relates to the debate. If you truly believe in the validity of your K, give it a shot, but make sure to explain it fully and clearly.

Off-time roadmaps: Why? Please don't, just signpost as you speak.

Hello! I’m an assistant coach in PF at Eagan High School. I debated PF for 4 years in high school.

I use they/them pronouns. Please check your emails from Tabroom for your opponents' pronouns and don't purposefully misgender people.

I prefer fewer, well-explained arguments to ten poorly warranted contentions. Please explain your warrants logically as well as just stating evidence. I won't easily vote for an argument that I don't understand; although I ultimately vote off the flow, the clarity and reasonability of an argument will help you a lot, especially if it's close.

Don’t be rude. I’m not impressed by how loudly you can talk over your opponent in crossfire. Try to have fun (it’s just debate, guys) but failing that, don’t stop your opponent from having fun.

Do not speak or whisper during anyone else's speech. If you want to talk to your partner, write it down or message them, but it's rude to speak or whisper while someone else is talking and I don't know how it became such a norm. Additionally, do not speak to your partner during your own speech. I will dock speaks every single time I see this happen and it will be cumulative.

Please weigh. Weighing means comparing your impact to your opponent's, and specifically telling me why yours is more important. For example, don't just say "We outweigh on magnitude because our impact is 900 million people in poverty." I know that 900 million people in poverty is bad, but so is nuclear war. Tell me that you outweigh on probability because a recession is significantly more likely than a nuclear war. Bonus points if you weigh weighing mechanisms (for example, tell me why I should vote based on probability instead of timeframe).

I’m honestly not that fast at flowing, and I often don’t get authors/sources. I’ll do my best, but if you just say “Remember Feinstein” and move on, I probably don’t remember Feinstein, and I can’t vote off something I don’t remember. Explain stuff to me in every single speech.

I will not vote on disclosure theory. I will most likely not vote on any other kind of theory. I don't understand it and even if I did try to evaluate it, my decision would probably not make sense. If the round has an accessibility issue (ex. your opponent is using harmful/discriminatory language), you can point it out to me in a speech and/or respectfully ask your opponent to change their behavior in crossfire, you don't need all the fancy formatting.

When your time is up, finish your sentence (in a reasonably concise way) and be done. If you go 5sec over, I’ll stop flowing. Once you hit 20sec over, I will verbally cut you off. Please don’t make me do that. If your opponents are consistently going 10+ seconds over, I’m probably gonna be more lenient with you on speech times, but don’t take it too far either.

Anyways, don’t stress, don’t be rude, you’ll do great :)

Hello,

I am a lay (parent) judge.

Here is a list of my preferences in a debate round:

• Speak at a slow and understandable pace. (No spreading!!)
• Off time Roadmaps are appreciated.
• Do not run Ks or Theories
• In regards to speaks, usually I range from 26-30. A 30 speaker is one who has a clear and charismatic speaking style along with strong analytical thinking skills used appropriately in the round.
• I flow, but remind me of the most important aspects of the debate CLEARLY in EVERY speech.
• Respect towards opponents and judges is a must.
• Please send your case docs with cut cards to umohta@gmail.com.

Email chain: harshita.nandyala@gmail.com

Hi! I'm Harshita, and I go by she/her pronouns. I debated at Eagan High School for three years, and I'm currently a freshman in college.


The way to my ballot:

• Please be respectful. Aggression isn’t necessary to win a round. Your speaks will tank if you are disrespectful, sexist, homophobic, ableist, and etc.

• Weighing and extending your case. WEIGH. WEIGH. WEIGH. Comparative analysis should happen in all of your speeches throughout the round. It is understandable you will drop arguments and condense your arguments as the round progresses (please do appropriately). However, while doing so, please extend your narrative/case for the round and why YOU should win the round- this should be extremely clear to me in summary. Don’t make me choose what arguments to vote on. You should decide that for me with consistent and comparative weighing. Your arguments should be clearly explained and warranted.

• Signpost. Whenever extending any cards or evidence, make sure to signpost. In addition, briefly explain what that card was about and how it applies to your argument/why you’re extending it. I will not just extend a card, if you say “Extend Rund 19.

• Speed. I can flow pretty well, but please don’t spread. I would consider myself a flay judge, and oftentimes, you will do a better job laying out your narrative and voters for the round if you just slow down. (Keep in mind- PF is a category where someone random who has knowledge of the topic being debated should be able to sit in the round and understand what is going on).

• Good evidence/ethics. Please try to stay away from paraphrasing/making up evidence (PF has gotten really bad with this.) Just use well cut cards like a normal debater, and if for some random reason you have to paraphrase, follow the NSDA rules. If there is any kind of a rules/ethic violation, bring it up in round, and I will try my best to evaluate it.

Other:

1. Speaker Points

• I will start at 27 for all debaters. If you received less than a 27, that means you said something offensive and were not a good person in round.

• I will give out relatively high speaks as long as you are a decent human being, and you speak clearly and respectfully.

• Ok time for the fun stuff:

• +0.5 points -> Every time you read a turn, sing it to the tune of a Taylor Swift song.

• +0.5 points -> Say something nice to your opponents at the end of the round.

2. Time. I will time your speeches and keep track of your prep time. However, I expect you’re also timing yourself. If you’re a few seconds over time, I don’t mind; if you’re more than 10 seconds over, I will stop you.

3. Also, try not to run theory if you can.

Be good, and have fun :)

As a lay debate judge, I approach each round with an open mind, ready to listen to the arguments presented by both teams without preconceived biases.

I strive to understand the arguments presented by debaters, even if I am not familiar with the topic or terminology. Debaters should prioritize clarity and simplicity in their presentations to ensure that their arguments are accessible to all judges.

Fairness is paramount in debate. I will evaluate each round based on the arguments presented and the evidence provided, without favoring one side over the other based on personal beliefs or preferences.

I expect debaters to treat each other with respect and civility throughout the round. Personal attacks or disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated and may result in penalties.

While style and delivery are important, I prioritize substance in my evaluation of debates. I encourage debaters to focus on presenting clear, logical arguments supported by evidence rather than relying solely on rhetoric or theatrics.

I value debaters who actively engage with their opponents' arguments, addressing key points and providing rebuttals based on logic and evidence. Passive or dismissive responses will not be rewarded in my evaluations.

I understand that not all debaters are experienced or familiar with formal debate formats. I encourage debaters to adapt their arguments and presentations to suit the lay judge's level of understanding, avoiding jargon and complex terminology when possible.

I expect debaters to adhere to the time limits set for each speech and rebuttal. Exceeding these time limits may result in penalties and could affect my evaluation of the round.

Last update: December 2022; a few clarifications, a few additions based on things that have come up recently, removed bullets that were specific to virtual debates (long may they remain unnecessary)

Debate Background and General Info:

I did PF for four years in high school (I graduated in 2014). I consider myself a flow judge, but I will still drop for offensive or inappropriate behavior or rules/ethics violations even if you "win" on the flow. Details on my preferences below, I'm also happy to answer questions before the round.

Details

1. Frontlining: In most rounds you should probably be spending at least a minute on your side of the flow if you are giving the second rebuttal, but I'm willing to be a little more generous in how I flow a "response" given the time constraint (e.g. I would view saying "cross-apply Card XYZ from my response to their C2" without the full level of analysis/impact as a full response, assuming you did actually give a full response to their C2). A good rebuttal that covers the entire flow will be rewarded with higher speaker points.

2. I like to see the round start to condense in Summary, but I understand that in some rounds you need to cover at least part of the flow line-by-line. I leave it up to your strategic discretion how to balance those two approaches; similar to above I will reward you with higher speaker points if you can effectively respond to key points made in the rebuttals but also start to crystallize the round.

3. I like creative arguments, I don't like non-resolutional arguments (and I won't vote for non-topical arguments). If you aren't sure how I would categorize the argument you are planning to run I'm happy to answer questions before the round.

4. If you are giving me "voters" still tell me where you are on the flow.

5. You should be responding to the specific warrants within your opponent's contentions, not just to the taglines.

6. Signpost. Extend arguments fully. Weigh. Impact. Don't be rude.

7. I'll assume CBA if neither side has an alternative framework. Don't introduce a new framework out of nowhere late in the round.

8. I don't flow CX, so you should mention important points in your next speech. I am still paying attention though, so don't lie and say something was said in crossfire that wasn't.

9. I'm really not a fan of offensive overviews in the first rebuttal that don't relate to anything said in the constructives. I'll still flow it, I might even vote on it, but you will probably get lower speaker points if you're doing this.

10. My default speaker point score is 27; I will move up or down from that based on if you impress or disappoint me relative to my expectations for the tournament/pool (i.e. a Novice 29 is not equivalent to a Varsity 29).

11. I don't usually have an issue with speed in PF, so unless you are an outlier you are probably fine. That being said, if your entire speech consists of blippy, one-sentence cards I am probably going to miss some of them if you are going fast.

12. I hate evidence exchanges that take forever. At a minimum you should be able to show them the card immediately because you just read it. I get it might take a minute to pull up the article, but part of your prep should be organizing your evidence in a way that makes it easy to find in round. We shouldn't be sitting around for 5 minutes waiting for you to find something.

13. If you are doing an email chain, I'd like to be on it, BUT I will probably only look at it if there is a question raised in the round as to what a card actually says. I don't view the email chain as a substitute for a clear flow, and I don't want to spend a ton of time reading through your cards if I don't have to.

Personal Pet Peeves: (I won't drop you for doing something on this list. But if you want a 30 these are some things to avoid):

1. I seem to judge a lot of teams that are rolling their eyes or openly scoffing at things their opponents say. Don't do this. Maybe their argument really is bad, but that's my job to decide, not yours. I will dock your speaks if you do this.

2. Spending significant time in all speeches and crossfires on a framework debate and then using an unrelated framework (or no framework at all) to weigh the round in FF.

3. Yelling. I've really never understood why people think this is necessary.

4. Having one mega-contention with a bunch of unrelated subpoints. If your subpoints don't relate to each other they should be separate contentions.

5. Saying "Partner ready?" before you start your speech. If you are stopping prep it's assumed your partner is ready.

6. Talking to or passing notes to your partner during speeches and/or solo crossfires. You have prep time for a reason, you should make sure you are on the same page before you start speaking.

7. Speeches that go over time, especially in Varsity. I will stop flowing once time is up, so trying to squeeze in one more card when you are 10 seconds over isn't going to help you and I will dock speaks for this.

For Last Chance Qualifiers:

• Start the chain as soon as possible. My email is further down
• I'm tired. It's the end of the year. Please don't just blip through your prewritten extensions in summary without contextualizing anything, that would make me sad. This is also my first tournament judging this topic so don't expect me to understand everything if you speed read through complex arguments. You do yourself a favor by slowing down on the arguments that take our your opponents
• Rebuttal is the time to go silly with your 500 turns case args, but I will not be happy if you extend all into the Summary. Just go for the one that was undercovered and impact it out
• Pet peeve: While I've been helping my team prep, I don't know all the acronyms and won't be looking up any that I don't understand. If it's never clarified what an acryonym stands for, sorry but I can't vote for it
• Go crazy with the impacts but don't expect me to vote for you just because you mentioned nuke war. If I can't follow the link chain then I won't vote for it
• Please don't prep steal. Keep your camera on when your opponent is sending over evidence and keep your hands in view. This was one of the most frustrating things for me when I was debating, and Iwill penalize teams who don't adhere to this. Send speech docs before every speech so that this doesn't happen
• I'm cool with Ks but I'm not super familiar with the literature - so go slow and explain it. If I don't understand it I won't vote for it
• Theory is good and creates good norms. If people didn't lose on disclosure theory then they wouldn't disclose. If people didn't lose on paraphrasing theory they would paraphrase. While I'll do my best to be tab on these topics, just know that I strongly believe in disclosure and am very against paraphrasing. That being said, I won't be happy if you read an OS vs first three-last three disclosure shell, good is good enough

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tech > Truth. Win on the flow, that's all. Debate is a game, make crazy choices and you'll be rewarded if done well. I don't care much about cross, it won't play a role in my decision unless brought up in a speech. Anything you say after your timer runs out, even if it's a second over, will not be on my flow

Making the round unique/interesting will be rewarded with speaks

You can assume I'm ready, you don't need to ask

Please don't give me an off-time roadmap - just signpost

I'll disclose if both teams want to hear it

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hey! I debated in PF for five years, and now I coach for Eagan High School and go to Macalester College

Add me to any evidence exchanges: lsalonga@macalester.edu

I'm currently debating in collegiate policy and I am pretty bad at it lol- but at least I have a sense of the more technical args

If you ask me if I want to be on the email chain I'm docking a speak because it told me you didn't look at my paradigm

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is how I used to judge a couple years ago, most of it still stands

This is how my partner judges, he's more in-depth than me

I'll disclose if I'm allowed to. Post-Round me if you feel like it, because I'm definitely not a perfect judge

For Novices/JVers:

- Please don't be mean to each other! It's just a local tournament, you don't need to act like this round defines you. Y'all should have fun :)

(Trust me when I say that I understand if the team is being frustrating. If they're being frustrating, it'll factor in their speaks)

- I don't need you to extend card names in Summary/FF, but the entirety of your argument (uniqueness, links, impact, etc.) needs to be in Summary and Final Focus for me to consider it. If you can walk me through how affirming or negating leads to something good/bad, I will be very very happy

(P.S. : Please ask me questions about any part of my paradigm if you're confused)

For Varsity:

I just want to make it clear that "our coach didn't teach us" isn't really a valid excuse when you're hit with progressive arguments. There's an abundance amount of online resources on learning progressive debate. Like this!!

- Tech > Truth (I don't care about how good you persuade me or how much I believe your argument is true)

- Cut Cards > Paraphrasing (If you paraphrase and your opponents call you out on it and tell me why that's unfair, I'm going to vote on that unless you can defend paraphrasing)

- Anything dropped in second rebuttal is conceded

- Idc about speed, go fast if you want, but send out speech docs if you're gonna go fast

- If you take more than 30 seconds to pull up a card, I'm running your prep. I'll also be timing every speech, and even if you're a second over I'm not flowing anything you say

- Substance > theory (I'll hack for disclosure and paraphrasing theory)

- CI > Reasonability (but willing to be convinced otherwise)

Be logical. Be clear. Solidify your statement with proof and evidence.

High speaker points will be awarded for exceptional speech skills, creativity, and margin of victory.

**Any mention of nuke war on the student loan topic is an automatic L for me. If both teams bring it up I'll flip a coin and we can end the round early.**

As a student I competed in Lincoln-Douglas Debate at Mountain View High School (Bend, OR). I stayed on to help coach/judge for a year, and now am assisting with Public Forum at Saint Paul Academy and Summit School.

Paradigms of mine:

1. Clarity over speed - economy of language that allows you to be concise while still making your points will go further in my book than reading something as fast as you can.

2. Logic and reasoning - from the very beginning with your case itself, you should be defining and defending the connections (with evidence) between affirming or negating the resolution and the argument you are making. If the links themselves are weak, it matters less to me how significant your impacts are (ie don't drone on about how detrimental (blank) is if you haven't established that your position leads to/worsens/mitigates/prevents that thing).

3. Engage with your opponents' arguments - Name the pieces you both agree on and use shared stances to then dig deeper on areas of clash, trying to persuade the judge why a similar argument works more in your favor than in your opponents. This should mean that the longer the round goes on, speeches feel more and more representative of engagement happening in the round (and less canned or pre-prepared).

4. Use CX strategically! It is of course important to ask for clarification when necessary, but I love to see a strategic set of questions that feels purposeful and can then be referenced later in the round.

5. As in frisbee, the #1 rule of debate should be "spirit of the game" - be respectful of yourselves, each other, your judge, and have fun!

I am a parent judge. I participated in debates during my school years.

Judging Paradigm:

1. Please be concise, speak clearly and call out contentions
2. I prefer progressive arguments that are presented well
3. I weigh evidence favourably over complicated analytics
4. Prefer impacts that are substantiated and are likely

Speed is fine (but must be crystal clear for high speaks), jargon is fine. Whatever you put on the flow I will evaluate but prefer evidence to analytics.

I have judged for 10+years on the local Minnesota circuit and competed in LD before that. My knowledge of specific higher level national circuit strategies is limited as I haven't judged many national circuit rounds but I am confident that I can follow as long as you keep the round clear.

Please add me to any email chains: alsmit6512@gmail.com

If you have specific questions, feel free to ask before the round.

PF: I am a parent judge, and this is my 2nd year judging PF. I have judged local tournaments and at 2023 NSDA Nationals in Phoenix.

1. Please talk at an understandable speed
2. Avoid debate jargon
3. Most importantly, remember to be polite and respectful to everyone.

Update for Sunvite 2024: This is my 2nd time judging Congress, but I will do my best to be fair. I am not familiar with parliamentary procedure, so I will focus my judging on your speeches. As mentioned above, please talk at an understandable speed. I appreciate a clear structure and signposting.

I am a recent grad from the University of MInnesota Twin Cities. I did novice debate when I was in highschool. I admire respectful debaters, debaters who speak at a steady pace, and passionate people.

I am a parent judge. Please go slower and use comprehensible language. Please email your case documents to venkat.uma@gmail.com so that I can follow along better.

Competition Background

High School Speech: Eden Valley - Watkins HS, MN (6 years): Drama, Original Oratory, and Great Speeches

College Speech: Gustavus Adolphus College (4 Years): Informative, After Dinner Speaking, and Extemporaneous Speaking

College Debate: Gustavus Adolphus College (2 years): Parliamentary Debate

Coaching Experience

Wayzata High School - Speech (3 years): Great Speeches & Original Oratory

Watzata High School - Debate: (2 years): Congressional Debate

I am currently an assistant PF coach at St. Paul Academy and Summit School.

I'm relatively new to the debate world, so I prefer clear, logical arguments. I like to see arguments extended throughout the debate, with impact weighing in final focus.

I can flow spread but I prefer if you speak at a pace you're capable of; if you are stumbling over your words every sentence or so, you're reading too fast. Also, there's no need to yell; we're all in the same room together. Passion and yelling are two distinct volumes, so please be mindful of this.

Cross needs to be respectful; talking over your opponent as they are asking or responding to a question is very disrespectful and I expect better than that. Cross is where lots of debaters lose speaker points from me.

Debate is designed to be a space to engage in thoughtful discussion about real-world topics. This means you should be engaging in your opponents' case, not just reading a canned speech and responses written by your coach or captain.

This is an extracurricular, so it should be fun! Let it be fun, and don't let a bad round ruin your day :)

I have two rules for when I judge:

1) If you are going to use analytics, either use evidence to back it up, or make it seem like you know what you're talking about. Don't just use analytics to attack your opponent's case.

2) Don't piss me off. If you do, I will not be inclined to favor you in the round.

Now that those are out of way, here's the rest.

Introduction

I did debate for four years: one in policy as a freshman, and the next three in Public Forum. After that, I've been judging from 2017 onward, taking a break in 2020. I'm primarily a public forum judge, but I have judged LD and policy in the past. If you have me as an LD judge, know that I won't follow anything special that you may try to run, such as a role of the ballot argument. Keep it to Value/Criterion, and the round will be a lot better as a whole.

Definitions/Framework

For definitions, only define stuff that you think is necessary. This doesn't mean define the word "harm" in an "on balance" resolution, but if there's a word that you think a lay judge might not understand, such as "urbanization," that might be one to define. On framework, keep it short and simple. Framework should be something by which I judge the round, not one of the voters. Don't spend so much time on it that you have to cut the rest of your case short. 10-20 seconds max.

Speakers

Case - use as much of your time as possible without going over. Make sure that you have enough time to get through all of your points and recount your main points. Also, if you have a one point case with multiple subpoints, just why? At that point, just have the point as framework and the subpoints as the main points.

Rebuttal - first, don't use a prewritten rebuttal speech. That just tells me that you're unprepared for other people's arguments and that you're not confident in your own attacks. Second, make sure you actually attack your opponent's arguments. If you just attack the general (insert opponent's side here) case, and you don't link your attacks to anything, that's not going to help you. Make sure you are linking your attacks to something your opponent said, otherwise it's going on the flow, but it'll have very little weight.

Crossfire - don't speak over your opponent, refer to Rule #2. Rounds usually aren't won here, and they're more for you than me, so just don't be a dick and you'll be fine.

Summary - start to condense the round here. This doesn't mean continue attacking your opponent's case if you couldn't get to it in Rebuttal, this means get your arguments together and start explaining to me why you think you've won the round. If that means just restating your point titles, go for it, but explain in your own words why you think you've won these arguments. Don't just repeat verbatim what's on the cards. I've heard that, but why does that matter in the grand scheme of the round? Tell me that, and I'll listen.

Final Focus - give me why you won the round. I don't want to hear a continuation of the round. I want to hear 2-3 convincing arguments as to why you have the arguments necessary for me to vote you up. If you don't tell me what is most important, and the other team does, I will be more inclined to vote for them because they told me why they won.

Speed

Given that I'm still relatively young, I can pick up most things, but when you start reading at Policy speeds in a Public Forum round, that's when I put my pen down/stop typing and just stare at you. If I don't flow something, that usually means you stumbled over it or sped through it, which means I don't judge it at the end of the round. If you want to speed through the card, that's fine, but if you speed right through the tag, I won't be using it in my decision, which will inevitably hurt you in the long run.

Other

Reactions - try to keep a poker face when in rounds. This is especially visible in online rounds where I can just look slightly to the side of my screen and see you making a face at whatever your opponent just said.

Timer - when the timer goes off, you can finish your sentence, and that's where my attention span ends. I will leave my timer going off until you stop speaking, however long that takes. Hopefully, it shouldn't take too long. If the timer goes off after a question has been fully asked in Crossfire, you are allowed to give a short answer to the question, but don't go off on a long winded tangent on whatever you're talking about. If you're in the middle of a question, Crossfire is unfortunately over.

Be Professional - while I have given some debaters lower speaker points due to breaking Rule #2 as seen above, I have yet to decide a round based on that alone. If that does occur, I still find an objective reason in the round to explain why they lost, not just that they pissed me off. So while it hasn't happened yet, don't let your emotions make you the first round that it happens.

Prep/Called Cards - if you call for a card during crossfire, I will not start prep time so long as no prep work is being done on either side while the card/article is being looked at.

Questions

If you have any questions on decisions, any comments that I made, feel free to contact me at wilsonbc@midco.net. Try to let me know what round I had you in and what the topic was, as I have a reputation for not having the best memory.