Hello All,

 

First, I want to thank all of you for your efforts in creating spaces where you students can thrive during this challenging season!  And thank you to coaches for all you do in general.  I recently read an article about how we could all be thanked a bit more, so again, THANK YOU!

 

It is my pleasure to invite you to the Spring AFA NST District 5 Qualifier which will be held on Saturday, March 13, 2020, virtually, CST. I encourage you to attend this tournament as either an AFA qualifier, an NFA qualifier, or as an excellent opportunity to see good competition and support the teams of District 5! 

 

Please note that there are many changes regarding this year's AFA NST. For your convenience, I am posting many important reminders in this announcement from the AFA NST Invitation as well as from the At-a-Glance cheat sheet.  Still, please find both of these documents under files for download and review them thoroughly.

 

ENTRY DEADLINE for Districts:

 

Entries are due at 5:00 p.m., CST, Tuesday, March 9. Please enter using the Speechwire website.  All fees will be assessed at noon on Wednesday, March 10. Please remember that each school may enter up to five competitors in each of the eleven events.

 

Some schools may have already paid their District 5 subscription fees for the AFA NST. Subscription fees are $30 (if paid before the December 1st deadline) and $50 (if paid after the December 1st deadline) and can be paid directly on the AFA website or can be added to your school's entry fee at the district qualifying tournament registration.

 

ENTRY FEES:

 

In an effort to keep tournament costs to a minimum, each slot will cost $5.00. Each uncovered slot will cost $10.00 (to cover hired judge fees). Each judge covers 6 slots. Student drops after noon, Wednesday, March 10 will be $10.00. Judge drops will be $25.00. Student drops at registration will be $20.00 and judge drops will be $75.00.

 

PATTERNS:

 

Each student may enter up to two events per pattern.

 

A: Duo, Informative, Extemp

 

B: Impromptu, Persuasion, POI, Prose

 

C: Comm. Analysis, DI, After-Dinner, Poetry

 

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Because the tournament has been condensed to one day, it will actually run with TWO patterns. We will condense the patterns listed above into two flights, attempting to minimize the number of quadruple-entered competitors.

 

E-BALLOTS:  We will be utilizing Speechwire's E-ballot function.  Please update your judges' info.  We will be using Speechwire for entries, scheduling, and tabulation. Also, because of the virtual nature of the tournament, please be sure that all of your students have activated Speechwire accounts and are listed in your Team Roster.

 

These items are due by the District tournament (submit via email to jrstanley@noctrl.edu): Student Verification Form, At-Large Qualification Form(s), All-American Nomination Form(s)

 

Student Enrollment Verification Form:

Each school participating at the AFA-NST must submit the Student Enrollment Verification Form for all students competing at the AFA-NST. The form can be found on the AFA-NST website. Verification forms should be provided to me via email by the District tournament at registration:  jrstanley@noctrl.edu 

 

 

At-Large Qualification:

Please keep a complete record of all necessary data required on the At-Large Qualification Form. The At-Large Qualification Form is available on the AFA-NST website. A separate form should be kept for each of your students. Remember that the At-Large Qualification Form must be submitted before or at the District tournament to:  jrstanley@noctrl.edu. Submission of the At-Large qualification form does not constitute an official entry. Official entries must be submitted at http://www.speechwire.com/afaNST. At-large qualifications must be earned by March 14. Tournaments hosted after March 14 will not count for qualifications. Recognized national or international tournaments hosted after March 15th will count – check with Dave Gaer if you have questions. 

 

District Qualification: 

The top three placements automatically qualify for the AFA-NST. If an event receives its second leg to qualify at-large, the District automatic qualification will move down to the next highest placing entry. 

 

All-American Nominations:

In addition to the usual tournament awards, District 5 will accept nominations for the 2020-2021 All-American Individual Events Team presented at the AFA NST. This is a wonderful recognition of students who excel at academics, service, and forensics. The nomination form and requirements are included under the files for download section. Please email a copy of your students’ nominations in a PDF format no later than the end of registration on the morning of March 13. The nomination packet must include the student’s official transcript. This can be a copy in the PDF, but if the student’s packet is forwarded to the national committee, you will need to mail an official transcript at that time. 

 

 

Reminders of changes for the 2020-2021 season: 

1. You only need two legs (combined no worse than a five) to qualify for the AFA-NST. 

2. Legs can be earned at synchronous or asynchronous tournaments. 

3. The number of entries for what counts as a leg have changed-  1st: 2-3 entries, 2nd: 4-5 entries, 3rd: 6-7 entries, 4th 8-9 entries; 5th: 9-11 entries, and 6th: 12 or more entries. 

4. The 2021 AFA-NST will be online. 

5. The new Title IX training from the AFA NST is required--the AFA NST will no longer accept individual school’s training to count.  

 

Title IX Training:

All participants at the NST (including students, judges, coaches, tournament officials, etc.) must complete Title IX training provided by the NST. To prove training occurred, all participants will be asked to complete the form provided at the end of the training. The training must be completed before you register for the NST (March 15, 2021). Individuals will be unable to participate in the AFA-NST in any capacity without completing the NST’s Title IX training and you/your team will be responsible for any fees arising from drops, uncovered entries, etc.  For clarity, the link takes you to a Google slides doc.  After viewing the slides, you will be prompted to copy/paste a Google form link to "sign."

 

Here is the link for Title IX training:  https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Tc2VOxm80-WoQ5vIqXeFVwXsg71Lnvj1hyAlO8DXC5w/edit?usp=sharing

 

 

Virtual Tournament Standards of NST:

 

In order to count for qualification legs, tournaments that are held virtually under the NST health and safety provision must:

a. Restrict competitors to the use of a single camera and single microphone during a performance.

b. Prohibit physical audiences from being present during a performance (virtual audiences through the videoconferencing platform are welcome.) 

c. Prohibit competitors in Duo from competing together in the same physical space.

d. Promote editing practices that allow for simulation of a face-to-face environment (such as the use of visual aids and content warnings) while discouraging editing practices that would not

be possible in a face-to-face environment (such as motion, video transitions, or audio manipulation)

 

 

I hope that you will be able to attend the District 5 Qualifier. Even if your team is not planning on attending the AFA NST, I encourage you to attend and support your colleagues. For those of you who are NFA-only, remember you can earn NFA qualifications at the District tournament. It can be a challenge to get enough schools for our District tournament, so I would encourage you to please make every effort to send students.

 

Lastly, PLEASE EMAIL ME with answers to the following questions:

 

1. Do you plan to attend the March 13 District tournament?

2. Do you plan to attend the AFA NST?

 

Please let me know if you have any other questions!

 

Thank you!

 

 

John Stanley, Chair

 

AFA District 5

(vr)