2021 Bruins Classic

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of UCLA’s student-run program, Bruins@NPDA, we invite you to join us for the 1^st annual Bruins Classic tournament on January 30-31^st. Although we would have hoped to invite you to our campus in Westwood and welcome you to the city of Los Angeles, we will be hosting a virtual tournament due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

·      We will be utilizing multiple Discord servers for online debates.

·      There will be 5 preliminary rounds, with all teams with a winning record breaking into out-rounds.

·      Entries are due January 27^th on Tabroom at 8 pm PST.

·      We will utilize random topics similar to the NPDA Championship tournament

·      There will be 20 minutes of prep time plus 3 minute grace period to connect to your online server on Discord

As a new student-run program at the NPDA/NPTE circuit, we would appreciate the community’s support by attending our wonderful tournament this year so we can continue to exist.

We are excited to see you all in January.

Thank you,          

Nika Nikoubin                             Calvin Chen                                     Josh Wimberley

Bruins@NPDA DOF                   Technology Director                       Tournament director/Tab

nikanik@ucla.edu                                                                      joshua.wimberley@midlandisd.net

Tournament Logistics

·      NPDA tournament guidelines will govern the tournament’s operating procedures, unless otherwise specified.

·      Tournament directors are able to make changes to make sure the tournament is run smoothly.

·      Entry deadline: All entries must be entered on Tabroom.com, including judges, on January 27^th at 8 pm PST.

·      Eligibility: The tournament is open to any students in 2- or 4-year college/university that are in good standing with their team. Students must represent the college/university in which they take majority of their courses. Hybrid and maverick entries are allowed and are limited to one per team.

·      Prep: Work written during prep by debaters, typed or written, is permitted. All prep must be done in the 23 minutes of prep. This does not include cutting and pasting from a file, unless an ADA accommodation has been made.

·      In-round messaging: For partners who are debating from different locations, they may communicate electronically. Debaters should not communicate with anyone else who is not involved in the round.

·      Recordings: If a round is being recorded, all team participates must consent to the round recording.

·      Strikes: Strikes will be available if we have an appropriate number of judges.

·      Fees: $60 per entry tournament, plus $175 for any uncovered teams. Fees are utilized to run the tournament, provide awards, and for us to have necessary resources to run tab. We are a student-run program so we understand if fees are a barrier for you to compete. Please reach out to us regarding fee breaks by January 20^th. Payment may be made via PayPal or check. Please include “Bruins Classic fees— [School name]” as the memo.

·      Awards: Certificates and awards will be shipped to the address the school provides. Awards are given to all breaking teams as well as the top 10 speakers. 

·      Arrival to rounds: If a team arrives to their server after the 23 minutes of prep, there will time will be deducted from their first speech unless there is no time remaining (7 minutes for the PMC and 8 minutes for the LOC). When there is no time left, the round will be concluded as forfeit. If a team experiences a connectivity issue, they must notify tab as soon as possible. There will be a 10-minute connectivity time allocated per round per team if this occurs.

·      Judges: Each judge will cover commitments for up to two teams. All judges are required to post a paradigm on tabroom by 28^th of January. There will be an extra $30 charge if a judge doesn’t have a paradigm uploaded on Tabroom by the 28^th. All judges are required to make a decision each round. If a judge does not make a decision for any reason, tab will flip a coin to determine the winner and loser. If a judge doesn’t make a decision for more than once at the tournament, the judge will be dropped from the tournament, and they will be considered an uncovered judge. Judges are also encouraged to disclose upon conclusion of the round after they submit their ballot on Tabroom. All judges are obligated for the first Elim round on Sunday as well as one round past the elimination of their teams.

·      UC Nondiscrimination Statement: Bruins@NPDA does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, pregnancy, disability, age, medical condition (cancer-related), ancestry, marital status, citizenship, sexual orientation, or status as a Vietnam-era veteran or special disabled veteran. This also prohibits sexual harassment.

Tournament Schedule (PST):

Saturday, January 30, 2021

7:30     Registration/ Zoom Check in

7:45     Pairings released

8:00     Round 1

10:15   Round 2

12:30   Lunch Break

1:30     Round 3

3:30     Round 4

5:30     Round 5

Sunday, January 31, 2021

7:30     Zoom Check in

7:45     Pairings released

8:00     Elim 1

10:15   Elim 2

12:30   Lunch

1:00     Awards

1:30     Elim 3

4:00     Elim 4

6:00     Additional Elims as needed