Debate

Entry Caps/Waitlist: We will place entry caps on all events based on the rooms that we’re given and our previous years’ entry sizes. We will work to ensure that all schools are allotted one entry before any school is allotted a second slot, that all schools are allotted two entries before any team receives three, etc.

Policy Debate: Debaters will Debate the current policy debate topic. Time limits will be 8-3-5 with 8 minutes of prep. Each team will be guaranteed three affirmative and three negative rounds. Teams are not guaranteed that they will alternate between affirmative and negative. Due to scheduling conflicts, students in Policy Debate may not enter in any other event. Much like last year, the Policy division will operate on its own schedule; as such, NO DOUBLE ENTRY IN POLICY.

Lincoln-Douglas Debate: ALL Debaters will Debate the September-October NSDA resolution. Please note that we will not use the Novice LD topic at the Jack Howe. Time limits will be 6-3-7-3-4-6-3 with 4 minutes of prep time per Debater. A change from previous years: We will not be offering the Junior division of LD. Instead, we are dividing the Senior division into a TOC qualifying division which will NOT allow double entry, and a separate Open division that will allow students to double enter in IE. TOC division LD students may not double enter. Students in any other LD Debate may not enter Policy or Student Congress, but may still enter up to 2 IEs unless one of those IEs is Extemp.

Parliamentary Debate: We will offer six rounds of Parliamentary Debate. Topics will be announced in the Psychology Building center court area (or in a prep room designated ahead of the tournament). Because it is not an NSDA event,” we will follow the CHSSA guidelines and times will be 7-7-7-7-5-5. Given our space limitations, there will only be open division in Parliamentary Debate and the number of Parli entries is capped. We will guarantee an equal number of teams per school up to the limit of 64 teams. WE WILL NO LONGER BE HOLDING PARLI ON THE GRASSY KNOLL. WE MAY HAVE TO FLIGHT THE EVENT TO ACCOMMODATE THIS CHANGE.

Public Forum Debate: Debaters will Debate the September/October NSDA resolution. Time limits will be 4-4-3-4-4-3-2-2-3-2-2 with 2 minutes of Preparation time per team. NSDA rules regarding evidence and availability of evidence will indicate the guidelines for this event.

Divisions: We will offer three divisions (Novice, Junior, and Senior) of Policy Debate. We will over a Open TOC division, an Open Traditional division, and a Novice division. We will only offer Novice and Open in Public Forum. As mentioned above, we will only offer an Open division in Parli.