Interstate Oratory Contest

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General information

This is a College tournament in South Dakota.

View manager contact information

INTERSTATE ORATORICAL ASSOCIATION

February 5, 2026

Dear Speech Coach:

The Interstate Oratorical Association is excited to host the 152nd annual contest at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Thank you to our 2025 host, Tennessee State University, for helping us celebrate our 151^st year.  

Each state may send up to 2 contestants to the IOA annual contest. States determine how contestants are selected, and students must attend a higher education institution in the state they are representing. States without state tournaments are still encouraged to participate and may contact the IOA executive secretary with any questions about participation.

We will accept bids for the 2028 contest at our annual business meeting. If you are interested in hosting, please contact the committee with questions. Hosts are asked to provide competition rooms, hired judges, a panel of honorary judges for the final round, and luncheon and final round locations. Our 2027 hosts will be the California State University, Chico.

On behalf of the Executive Committee, I look forward to seeing you in April at our annual contest.  Should you not be able to attend, please pass this information on to those from your state who may be interested in participating in this historic annual event.

On behalf of the IOA Executive Committee

Andrea Carlile, Executive Secretary

South Dakota State University

Andrea.Carlile@sdstate.edu

Cell: 217-414-1959

2026 Location

Our 2025 host is the University of Florida.  Preliminary rounds will take place in the Reitz Union, luncheons will be located in the Rion Ballroom in the Reitz Union, and the final round will take place at the Baughman Center, all on UF’s campus.

Hotel Block

The Hyatt Place, Downtown Gainesville.

Rooms will be priced at $119 per night, there will be complimentary breakfast. They will also receive a discount on parking in the parking garage downtown. This hotel is downtown, which is close to UF's campus, but also puts you in the heart of Gainesville for all the fun nightlife and restaurants. Additionally, it is one of the nicest and newest hotels in Gainesville and the room rate is significantly lower than any other room block. 

The cutoff date for making reservations at that rate will be April 1, 2026.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE: 

Friday, April 24

5:00 pm              Registration and Welcome Reception featuring a panel of local community builders at the Lynx Bookstore, 601 S. Main Street, Gainesville, Florida 32601

Saturday, April 25

8:30-10:30 am Continental Breakfast for Participants in the Reitz Union

9:00 am            Rd. 1

10:30 am          Rd 2

12:00 pm          Rd 3

1:30 pm            Luncheon and Announcement of Semi-Finalists/ Business Meeting in the Rion Ballroom

Sunday, April 26

8:30-10:30 am Continental Breakfast for Participants in the Reitz Union

9:00 am            Semi-Final A

11:00 am          Semi-Final B

12:30 pm          Luncheon and Announcement of Finalists in the Rion Ballroom

2:00 pm            Finals – Awards will follow immediately

BASIC TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

ENTRIES:

Please submit entries via SpeechWire by March 31, 2026

TOURNAMENT FEES:  Each State Association should pay the annual dues no later than tournament registration. 

State Association Annual Dues

$50 for 2 contestants from one state (will be divided by school)

$40 for 1 contestant from a state

Entry Fees

$10 per contestant

Participation Fee (covers cost of luncheons)

$50 per coach

$50 per contestant

$50 per additional guest

To select your meal preference please complete the meal ticket section on the SpeechWire Registration. There are three options 1) Chicken 2) Beef 3) Vegan. If you have specific dietary restrictions, please email acmart@ufl.edu with allergen information. Catering needs must be confirmed by April 10, 2026 at 2pm EST.

Winning Orations

Each participant will receive a print edition of Winning Orations. Schools will be provided a digital copy.  If schools would like additional copies for their libraries, an additional fee of $25 per printed copy will be charged.

Additional Copies of Winning Orations

$25 per printed copy

JUDGES: Coaches attending the tournament will judge the preliminary contest rounds. 

Each state association or member school shall send the oratory coach of each student participating in the annual contest to act as a judge in the preliminary rounds. Entries without a judge will be charged a fee.

IF THERE ARE TWO CONTESTANTS FROM A STATE, TWO JUDGES MUST BE PROVIDED, EVEN IF THE TWO CONTESTANTS ARE FROM THE SAME SCHOOL.  The cost of a hired judge will be $75.00.  If a school has a problem supplying the necessary judge or judges for their entry, please notify the Executive Secretary as soon as possible for other arrangements.  It is expected that coaches attending will be available to judge through the semifinal rounds.

RULES: 

1. The oration must be delivered without the aid of notes or manuscript.

2. No oration shall contain more than 1800 words. (Although no minimum word limit is established, a 1500 word minimum is suggested

3. For purposes of definition, quoted words are those written or spoken by a person other than the orator.  Such quoted matter shall be limited to 20% of the total number of words in the oration.  Direct discourse, dialogue or other stylistic devices within quotation marks created by the orator SHALL NOT be included in the 20% total.

4. All quoted materials shall be documented.

Manuscript Submission Guidelines

1. ****In order to make it easier to complete the publication of Winning Orations, digital copies of the manuscript should be shared with interstateoratorycontest@gmail.com as a Google Doc or Word document.
2. Include a title for the speech and who coached the piece
3. Include an APA reference page at the end of the manuscript
4. Please make sure each source is denoted in the text with a hyperlink to original source when possible.

Ex: The New York Times reported on February 5, 2026 Canada is staking its auto future on EVs.

Manager contact information

Andrea Carlile
Email address: andrea.carlile@sdstate.edu
Phone number: 2174141959

Mailing address

Box 2218
United States
Brookings, SD 57007