61^st ANNUAL GEORGE R. R. PFLAUM DEBATE TOURNAMENT

October 21-23, 2016 (Fri-Sun)

Dear colleagues:

On behalf of Emporia State University, the Department of Communication and Theatre, and Hornet Debate, it is my privilege to invite you to the 61st Annual George R. R. Pflaum Debate Tournament in Emporia, KS. The tournament will be held October 21^st through the 23^rd, 2016.

As a completely new coaching staff, we seek to bring a return to the Pflaum of yore. We hope to continue the tradition of great hospitality that the Pflaum has traditionally been known for. Please let us know if there’s anything we can do to make your tournament more enjoyable.

We hope to see you in October!

 
Sincerely,

Chris Loghry
Director of Debate
cloghry@emporia.edu
(620) 341-5705 office
(925) 456-4479 cell

Courtney Schauer
Assistant Director of Debate

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

CHANGES THIS YEAR: 1) POPCORN 2) Normally we utilize the excellent facilities offered by our Memorial Union, however this year a wedding has superseded our needs. So for this year we are holding competition in King Hall, Plumb Hall, and Roosevelt Hall. Both King and Plumb have elevators, but Roosevelt does not, so please let us know if you’d prefer not to be in Roosevelt. We are still utilizing challenge matching for elimination debates. 3) HOT APPLE CIDER ON SATURDAY

EXTRA NOTE ABOUT ABOVE CHANGES:  The facilities people were very clear about problems regarding unplugging tech in Plumb hall in the past. PLEASE DO NOT UNPLUG ANYTHING FROM ANYWHERE. If you need a power strip please let us know so we can insure good relations with our facilities folks in the future.

DIVISIONS:  There will be Open, Junior and Novice (with sufficient entries).  Time limits for the tournament are 9-3-6 with 10 min prep.  We will adhere to the CEDA guidelines for eligibility in each division. The tabroom is being run by the nicest man in Missouri: Matthew Vega.

TOPIC:  The 2016-2017 resolution will be used.

ENTRIES:  No limit on number of entries per school so long as an appropriate number of judges are provided.  Each school should arrange their own hired judging.  Failure to provide enough judges could preclude additional teams being entered.

FEES:  $30 per person. Each uncovered debate team will be charged $100. All fees are used to pay for tournament expenses, meals, and awards. Judging fees for uncovered teams go directly to the hired judge.

DEBATES:  We are pleased to be offering 6 rounds of debate in Novice, Open, and Junior Varsity. There will be an appropriate number of elimination debates in each division.  Brackets will NOT be broken in the elimination rounds.

JUDGING:  Each school is expected to provide three rounds of judging for each team entered. The tournament has no hired judging.  You are required to arrange your own hired judges.  ALL JUDGES MUST BE AVAILABLE TO JUDGE ONE ROUND AFTER THEIR TEAMS HAVE BEEN ELIMINATED.

AWARDS:  Awards will be presented to all teams qualifying for the elimination rounds in all divisions of debate.  Awards will be given to the top speakers in all divisions of debate.

REGISTRATION:  Debate registration begins at 1:00pm Friday, October 21 in the King Hall lobby. The pairings for rounds 1 and 2 will be released shortly after registration.

TOURNAMENT HOTEL:  Hotels will fill up fast in Emporia for the weekend of our tournament, so we encourage you to book rooms sooner rather than later.

We have reserved a group block at the Quality Inn and Suites (2921 W 18th Ave, Emporia, KS 66801). The group reservation is under the name ESU Debate Tournament. We have locked in a rate of $63.99 per night, and the rate is available for the following dates: 10/20; 10/21; 10/22; 10/23. The group rate includes options for the following room types: double, king, king + pullout couch. Free Wi-Fi and complimentary hot breakfast is included with each reservation.

To reserve rooms, you will need to call the hotel directly at (620) 341-9393. No online reservation option is available. The front desk will be available to assist you after you give them the name of our group reservation. If you encounter problems, please ask to speak with Jay, our formal hotel contact.

The cutoff for the block is Thursday, October 6^th.

ENTRY DEADLINE:     Entries must be received by Monday, October 17.  Please enter your teams on Tabroom.com.  You will be charged for entries dropped after the deadline.  Judge preference will be turned on after the entry deadline.  All prefs must be completed prior to registration.

ANTICIPATED SCHEDULE

Note about challenge matching: Challenge format will be used in all full OPEN elims, not partials. JV/Novice will use standard pairing format for all elims. All challenges will be in the King Hall Lobby

Friday, October 21^st

1:00-2:30p     REGISTRATION (King Hall Lobby)

3:00p              Round 1 (pre-set)

5:30p              Round 2 (pre-set)

(snacks & popcorn provided in King Hall Lobby all day Friday)

Saturday, October 22^nd

7:00a              BREAKFAST (King Hall Lobby)

7:30a              PAIRINGS

8:00a              Round 3

10:30a            Round 4

12:30-1:30p   LUNCH (Hornet’s Nest, Union)

2:00p              Round 5          

5:00-6:00p     DINNER (Hornet’s Nest, Union)            

6:30P              Round 6

(popcorn & hot apple cider provided in King Hall Lobby 2-7p)

Sunday, October 23^rd

7:00a              BREAKFAST (King Hall Lobby)

7:30a              PAIRINGS (Novice/JV)

7:30a              Challenge Pairing & Coin Flips for Open (King Hall Lobby)

8:30a              Elim Round I

11:00a            AWARDS ASSEMBLY (King Hall Lobby)

ASAP               Remaining Challenges & Elim rounds

(snacks & popcorn provided in King Hall Lobby 10a-7p)