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Update - This year, we don't have the numbers to hold this event. So - NO scrimmage on Saturday, May 16.

Newton South looks forward to hosting the Raymond W Karras Novice Scrimmage on Saturday, May 16.

Event: Public Forum Debate. We will debate the APRIL NSDA topic - Resolved: The United States should eliminate the President's authority to deploy military forces without Congressional approval.

Competitor eligibility: High school students enrolled in MSDL member schools who have competed in no more than one interscholastic high school speech or debate tournament prior to the current academic year.

Judge requirement: Please provide at least one judge for every two entries. Judges may include high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors with at least two years of interscholastic debate experience (including the current year) and a minimum of 200 NSDA points (or equivalent), as well as adult judges. We ask that all schools make every effort to meet their judging obligation. If you are unable to do so, please let us know, and we will do what we can to assist. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to provide full coverage.

Supervision: Each school’s students must be accompanied by an adult who is responsible for them throughout their time at Newton South. This individual must be at least 21 years of age and physically present at the tournament site whenever students from that school are present. Please designate this individual as the onsite coach when registering in Tabroom.

Food: Please bring your own food.

Schedule: Please arrive onsite between 9:00 AM and 9:30 AM. We anticipate four preliminary rounds and a final. The event will conclude by 4:00 PM.

Cost: There is no registration fee.

About Ray Karras (1928-2013)

The Ray Karras Novice Scrimmage honors a teacher whose influence continues to shape high school debate.

More than five decades ago, Ray Karras founded the Lexington High School debate program - an extraordinary legacy that endures to this day. His motivation was simple but profound: to promote evidence-based argumentation and disciplined thinking. For Karras, debate was first and foremost an intellectual activity. Competition mattered, but only insofar as it sharpened reasoning, deepened research, and clarified expression.

Karras taught in the Social Studies Department at Lexington High School and worked to embed debate within the school’s academic curriculum, where it remains today. He believed that students should learn not just what to think, but how to think - carefully, rigorously, and with respect for evidence. Known for his insistence on preparation and clarity, he challenged students to defend their ideas, question assumptions, and engage seriously with opposing viewpoints.

His impact is reflected not only in the program he built, but in the generations of students who carried forward his commitment to thoughtful, well-supported argument.

The Ray Karras Novice Scrimmage is dedicated to that vision.