Farmington Debate is a program that competes under the umbrella of organizations such as the Minnesota State High School League and the National Speech and Debate Association.  Our program is fully committed to the diversity, inclusion, and justice policies of those larger organizations.  

The Farmington Invitational is committed to providing its participants, judges, coaches, and staff the opportunity to pursue excellence in their endeavors. This opportunity can exist only when each member of our community is assured an atmosphere of mutual respect. The NSDA prohibits all forms of harassment and discrimination. Accordingly, all forms of harassment and discrimination, whether written or oral, based on race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by any applicable federal, state, or local law are prohibited, whether committed by participants, judges, coaches, or observers. Individuals who are found to have violated this policy will be subject to the full range of sanctions, up to and including removal from the tournament premises. 

More specifically, some considerations for this tournament: 

 1) Judges and coaches should respect appropriate boundaries and hold the students' education and positive debate experience as their highest goal. 

A. Regardless of how close you are in age to students, it is absolutely impermissible for a judge to behave toward any student in other than a professional, educational role. Prohibited behaviors include but are not limited to: sharing personal information; asking for personal information; commenting on any student's appearance; discussing "adult" subjects such as chemical use or social interactions outside of debate; or attempting to establish one-on-one contact with the student outside the context of the round. If any student feels uncomfortable with a judge's behavior, they should contact a trusted adult, including their coach or the Tournament Ombuds Panel (612-367-6656). Students, parents, or coaches are all free to contact the Ombuds (as outlined below and in the student and judge ombuds information sheets linked on the main Tabroom page for the tournament). We will take your concerns seriously.  

B. Any harassment or inappropriate behavior will be reported to the coach of the team represented by the judge, or other appropriate action taken, consistent with the guidelines of the Ombuds program.  Please note that the Ombuds process is not exclusive of other avenues for response, such as administrative remedies through school administrations and the Minnesota State High School League complaints process.  

C. Judges will refrain from commenting on aspects of students' performances not related to argumentation in the round. 

• Do not comment on a student's appearance or mode of dress. Do not consider a student's mode of dress in your decisions.  

• Be very thoughtful if you feel moved to judge or make comments on a student's demeanor or tone. Be aware of common double-standards regarding argumentative aggression for womxn debaters, debaters of color, and gender non-conforming debaters. Be conscious of these common biases and strive to avoid imposing them on students. If you feel moved to comment on a debater's level of aggression or tone of voice, stop and reflect on the degree to which those impulses are shaped by bias. Your comments matter. Don't detract from students' experiences. 

D. Where students or judges have indicated preferred pronouns, debaters and judges should respect those preferences. We are not looking to police every utterance of every person at the tournament, but students should report deliberate mis-gendering as a form of harassment to a trusted adult, and, if appropriate, to the Tournament Support staff. The Farmington Invitational is committed to improving our support for trans and gender non-conforming members of our community.  

TOURNAMENT SUPPORT 

To bring any concern to the attention of the tournament administrators, you should contact Rachel Baumann at rbaumnann@isd192.org or 952-240-9551.

To bring an issue to the Ombuds Panel, text or call the panel chair, Becky Chabot, at 612-367-6656.