A 2023 TOC PF SPECIFIC NOTE:Treat me as super lay- remember that I am a Congress coach first. Give me clear voters. Do not spread, and in general I would recommend against running theory of any kind in front of me in PF. Oftentimes, I feel that theory in PF is "half-baked" and it is hard for me to buy. I have voted off of it in rounds before, but I really am not a fan. I believe second rebuttal has to address both sides of the flow, and that summary must crystallize- not just be rebuttal 2.0. I will vote neg on presumption if the affirmative fails to meet the burden of proof or if the flow is insoluble. Please avoid paraphrasing if possible. My honest advice to teams who want a super technical judge is to strike me, I don't judge a ton of PF and I am sure my flow speed is not up to what yours is right now.

Biography:

Hello! My name, as seen above, is Amrit Ammanamanchi. I am the Head of the Congressional Debate Program and an Assistant Coach for Debate at Millard North High School, my alma mater. As a debater I was coached by both Aarron Schurevich and Charles Fisher, and so I would say it is safe to assume that anything I do not explicitly address here will follow the line of reasoning that they present in their paradigms.

I completed my undergraduate studies within Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona by double majoring in Biological Sciences with a concentration in Biomedical Sciences (BS) and Political Sciences (BS) with a certificate in International Studies. I currently conduct scientific/medical research doing clinical outcomes research analytics for a major hospital, and have previously conducted research in both the relationship between mitochondrial dysfunction and autism and pulmonary edema. You can see my publications here. My honors thesis explored the intersection of science and religion within the context of the law and education, which you can read here. I am currently a JD Candidate, and I aspire to work at the intersection of law and medicine in the future.

Congressional Debate:

Congressional Debate was my primary event in high school, and is a competition that is near and dear to me. As such, I have many thoughts on the event itself- if you want to talk about that I would be more than happy to talk to you after round. Also, if you stay after round it is VERY likely that I will be more than willing to give you individualized feedback that may not have been written out on a ballot. I am willing to share this with you because debate is fundamentally a teaching game. It serves no purpose if no one is learning and/or improving.

As far as the information you are probably worried about:

In general know that I believe in Congress that every speech one gives should be forwarding debate. Please do not rehash. I pay attention to questioning- both how you respond to questions and how you ask questions in round. That will undoubtedly impact your rankings on my ballot. Arguments should have a claim, warrant, and impact. I expect there to be clash every speech except the authorship. Also please note that I did Congress and was a national qualifier. I know when you try to make political moves- it is a part of this event. Make sure you are making ones that are actually beneficial to the round and not ones that benefit only you and hurt others.

A note on being the Presiding Officer:

Being selected from amongst your peers to preside over the chamber is an honor and a privilege. It is a crucial role and is one that needs to be done in both an efficient and accurate (to Parliamentary Procedure) manner. Because of this, I am more than happy to rank PO's. However, if your goal is to win the tournament I would not take this route. If your goal is to just place then it is a much safer bet, as I rarely have ballots where the PO is not ranked at all.

Public Forum:

In PF, see the paradigm for Aarron Schurevich (Paradigm). I agree with most of everything on there except for the "General Note" in regards to unconventional things in round. Remember that I judge congress most of the time, and while I did compete in PF, that was minimally and a long time ago, so I may not be at the level that you are. Also assume I know nothing about the topic, as I do not regularly work in the PF realm.

It may also benefit you greatly to read through the paradigm for Charles Fisher (Paradigm). On a final note, please remember that I am not bound to these paradigms, so feel free to talk to me before round on specific questions you may have.

Lincoln-Douglas and Policy

You are looking at the wrong paradigm... There is no way I am judging either of these events. If by some strange reality I am in fact judging you in these events try to cater to as lay of a judge as possible, as I never debated either of these events and have only a minimal understanding of either event.

Apologies for this being so brief. If you have any questions please email me at aammanamanchi@arizona.edu

Best of Luck!

Sincerely,

Amrit Ammanamanchi

Nebraska College of Law '24

University of Nebraska-Lincoln '20 (BA in History and Political Science)

4 year debater on NE circuit, this is my 6th year judging

she/her

Some preferences:

I am not a fan of speed.

Don't be rude. Being assertive is one thing, but being a jerk will hurt your speaker points

I don't write down author names, so don't just refer to your "Johnson" card

Signpost after constructive

Pleeeease have your cards/evidence readily available

***Debate needs be a safe and accessible environment, give trigger warnings. Do not commodify/weaponize sensitive subjects for the sake of winning, I will not weigh those arguments in your favor.

Argumentation/weighing:

I am fine with any type of argumentation you want to use

- but just an FYI, I am not super familiar with progressive PF

2nd speaking teams don't have to rebuild in rebuttal, but it probably would be advantageous to do so

I care the most about your warrants, so explain your links as clearly as possible. I hate seeing huge impacts with poor explanations as to why they happen

- so, please! don't ask me to extend your argument from a tagline

I rarely call for cards at the end of the round, flesh them out for me!

If the round is a total wash, I will presume neg

Most importantly: have fun and be respectful!

I debated in high school and college (graduated 1968) and have been coaching since. I have lived through the transition from Debate to Policy Debate and the birth and development of both Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum

Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Lincoln-Douglas (value debate) was created because many people did not like the direction that Policy Debate had gone. As such, LD debate centers around a conflict between two values. Debaters argue that one of the values in the round is of higher importance than the other. This value priority determines the affirmation or negation of the resolution. Thus, the debater argues Justice(ex) is the higher value, and since Justice is the higher value the resolution is affirmed. A plan can be used to demonstrate how the resolution could be applied in a practical sense. Since LD is designed not to have a plan, if the opponent raises that argument, I will vote on that. Otherwise, the plan can be debated in terms of workability, practicality, etc. Regardless of the strategies used – in order to win the round, the debater must win the value conflict.

Public Forum was introduced to correct the flaws that had emerged in LD (excessive speed, strategies and tactics rather than sound argument, etc) and is designed to be judged by a non-debate person. Thus – a good Public Forum Round is clear and persuasive. Arguments and evidence relates directly back to the topic. There are no plans in PF – I will vote on that. A test that I use in judging PF is whether or not a “regular person” would understand the arguments and be able to decide the outcome of the round.

Since debate – in all of its forms – is an educational, communication event the following hold true:

Delivery is the means by which the debater presents the arguments and evidence for decision.

The presentation should be as clear and understandable as possible – rate and articulation are important elements because the judge must hear and understand the case in order to vote on it.

IT IS THE DEBATER’S OBLIGATION TO ADAPT TO THE JUDGE – NOT VICE VERSA.

Debaters should present their material and conduct themselves in a professional manner. They should avoid attitudes (reflected in both tone and facial expression) that are unprofessional. Word choice should be appropriate to an educational event (cussing, swearing, vocabulary choice etc) have NO PLACE in an educational activity.

Current Position -- I have been the head debate coach at Lincoln Southwest High School for the past 20 years. In that time I have coached and judged PF, LD and congressional debate.

Background -- I have been coaching speech and debate for the last 28 years. I have been coaching pubic forum since its inception 20 years ago. I was a high school and college competitor in speech and competed in LD in high school.

PF Paradigm --

1. I believe that PF is a communication event with special emphasis on the narrative quality of the arguments. The story is important to me. Blippy argumentation or incessant reading of cards with no analysis or link back to the resolution does not hold much weight in my decision. Do the work in round -- do not make me intervene.

2. Weighing mechanisms should be fully explained -- if you want me to vote using your weighing mechanism, it is your duty to actually tell me why it is a good mechanism for the round and how your side/case/argument does a better job achieving the mechanism.

3. Presentation of arguments should be clear. I am not a fan of unbridled speed in this event. You need to speak clearly with a persuasive tone.

4. Reading cards > paraphrasing cards

5. If you must ask for cards or if you are asked for cards, you need to be prepared to ask for and present these cards in an efficient manner.

6. Don’t be rude.

Public Forum: I make my decisions based on the presentation and content of the round.

1. Be a funnel! Be an *effective* funnel. Take stock after each round of what the most important arguments were. Slowly narrow the debate to one or two issues that I should vote on. And then convince me that you won the debate. Don't speed through six arguments in your final focus and expect me to give them all weight and attention.

2. Don't drop arguments. If you want to pull it through the round - mention it in every speech.

3. PF is a layperson event! Sell your arguments to the average person. PF is a practice in persuasion.

4. Understand your case. Make sure I understand your case. This includes speaking at a pace that allows me to flow your arguments. If it doesn't make it on to my flow - I am not voting on it.

5. Be thorough with your evidence. It will not hold weight in the round if you do not tell me who said it and when they said it.

6. Act professionally. This is great practice for the "real world". Be courteous.

Congress:

1. Make sure your speeches are applicable to the language of the bill/resolution! I want you to touch on the actual impact of the legislation in each speech! The underlying social issues matter but the actual text of the legislation matters more.

2. I want to see actual debate! Speeches that feel like an island will get lower scores. Interact with the speeches of your peers. Don't just reference their arguments, debate them. The more clash the better!

3. I look for generally active participation! If you give a speech or two but don't engage in questioning that will impact your overall rank.

4. Be very cautious of your language when speaking about disenfranchised populations. Be respectful, use person first language, don't tokenize diverse identities for emotional appeal, etc. (Some examples from this season: No person is illegal. People with disabilities are capable humans. People who are incarcerated still deserve human rights.)

5. Lastly, have fun with it and be conversational! The most persuasive speakers are those that don't read from their screen.

I debated for Millard South for 3 years. I mainly debated in Congress, and went to several national circuit debates and went to NSDA Nationals for Congress. I also have experience on every form of debate. (PF, LD, Policy, and Congress.) Although I am most familiar with Congress, and PF.

This is my fourth year of judging and coaching debate.

Here is my email if you need to contact me: Liamsingleton007@gmail.com

General:

Please just be respectful to your peers. This is an activity that is meant to be fun. Don't be rude to people.

I understand people have different views, but it doesn't take that much effort to just be kind of people.

Also, please don't speak while your opponents are talking. (Mainly just asking/answering questions, or giving speeches.)

I understand for PF, and Policy. But Congress, it's especially rude.

On the topic of Anecdotal evidence. I personally like anecdotal evidence, but don't leave it by itself. If you want to link it to yourself, go for it. But give empirical evidence to support your claim so it doesn't sound like your a stand alone case. It will also make you sound more credible as a speaker.

On that, CLAIM < WARRANT < IMPACT. Every time you make a claim, give evidence to support your claim, and give the impact of your claim with your warrant. If you don't give a warrant, it makes it sound like a personal opinion.

Public Forum:

I will typically flow almost everything that I can. But you still need to explain all of your impacts to me in the Summary and Final Focus.

I do not time you, that is your job to keep track of.

I pay attention to a lot of things during the debate, and especially the little things. I don't normally like to use the word abusive, but if I notice that in questioning you're not allowing your opponents to ask questions. I will most likely address it, and take some speaker points off.

I will rarely deem things as inappropriate. Look at General Section.

On the topic of speed. I don't mind going at a moderately fast pace. But if you start spreading. I will just stop flowing.

If you want to spread, you must give your case to both me, and your opponents so ensure fairness. Vice versa for your opponents.

I will also typically expect you to take all of your time, both for your speeches and for your prep time. You have the time to make arguments, so make them. It will only help you.

Congress:

I am very knowledgeable about Congress. I know the rules, how a round should look, and how everyone should be acting.

Rehash is my least favorite part about Congress. Please do not rehash. (Rehash is saying the same argument as someone who had previously already said the same thing, and not adding anything new to the debate.) Now, on that. If you do have a point someone has said before, but new information they didn't say. Then that's not rehash.

Just make sure you are always adding more to the debate, but on that note. Do not bring up new information in questioning. This is both rude and abusive towards your opponents because you are asking them questions about evidence they do not have. If the information has been given in a speech before, then it is fine. But beyond that, in NSDA rules, it is not allowed.

Also, I prefer quality over quantity. If you give one or two amazing speeches during the whole day, while someone else gave 4 or 5 sub par speeches. I will most likely favor you. I also like people who use up their whole time, and don't abuse the grace period. (That is the 10 or 15 seconds most PO's giver after the three minute allotted time.)

I also like extemp speaking. Now I don't mean you can't have any prep. I'm just saying, have good eye contact with everyone in the room. (Mainly just looking around the room. You're trying to convince everyone else in the room to join your side, not the judges.)

On the topic of decorum. Decorum is one of the largest parts of Congress. (Decorum is like general professionalism in the round.) Always make sure you are being professional in the round.

Congress Presiding Officer:

I typically rank the PO, but only for specific qualifications.

1. Make sure you are keeping up with Precedence and Recency, as well as call on the correct people so the round is fair for everyone.

2. Make sure your not being biased. I understand giving your friend or teammate a speech fast, but after precedence and recency has been set for both speeches and questioning. It should be based off of that.

3. Finally, making you sure you keep the round together and running smooth. If it's a rowdy house then I understand if you can't. But if you do manage to keep it all together, especially in a rowdy house. Kudos to you.

As a Congress judge, I put argumentation above everything else. Whereas good presentation and speaking style are still important in the event, I favor good argumentation – backed by solid sources that clearly and properly cited in the speech.

Refutation is also important during the round, especially in later speeches on a piece of legislation. I like rounds with a lot of clash, not hearing independent speeches on the same topic one after another.

In general, staying engaged in the debate is important too. Whether it's through relevant argumentation, questions that further the debate, or being on top of things during motions/legislative procedure, I like to see people being present in the debate beyond just giving a speech.