Dear Panhandle Coaches,

 

 

FFL Qualifier - Region 1

 

General information

This is a high school tournament in Florida.

 

 

This tournament will be held on the Niceville High School campus, 800 John Sims Parkway, East, Niceville, FL 32578 

 

This tournament is the gateway into participation in FFL activities for the remainder of the year.  The top 3 entries in each event will qualify to compete at the State Championship tournament, which will be held on February 29 and March 1, 2020 at Olympia High School, (4301 S Apopka Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL 32835). Whether or not your students qualify to the State Championship, participation at the Regional Tournament will allow your school to enter the Novice State Tournament in April.

 

Here are the 4 most important things you need to know when planning your entry:

 

1. If your school fails to enter the Regional Tournament, it forfeits the opportunity to attend Novice State and participate in Coach of the Year 

   voting.

2. The number of qualifiers in each event is based on the number of schools that participate in the previous year’s Regional Tournament. Thus, it  

   region fail to participate, we could lose qualifying spots in 2021.

3. Every student you enter into the Regional Qualifying Tournament must be available to compete at the State Championship Tournament if 

   he/she qualifies. There are substantial financial penalties for dropping from the State Tournament. Thus, you should make sure that every   

   student from your school who wants to enter this tournament is available to compete on February 29 and March 1, 2020.

4. First-year students are welcome to attend the Regional Tournament and are eligible to qualify for the State Championship.They WILL NOT lose 

   their eligibility to compete at Novice State. In theory, a novice could win the State Championship and still compete at Novice State the 

   following month.

 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.  We look forward to seeing you on the 1st  of February at the Niceville High School campus.

 

QUESTIONS

 

--Meals and Directions:  Tournament Host – Pauline Buis

--Entries, Fees, Drops, Rules:  Tournament Director – Pauline Buis buisp@okaloosaschools.com

--Day of Tournament Emergencies:  Pauline Buis, 850-529-0010

 

ENTRY PROCESS

 

Entry will take place on www.speechwire.com   You must have a SpeechWire account to register for any of the FFL Tournaments. 

 

***If you are entering Student Congress, you must submit at least one bill/resolution for the agenda.  You may send as many items of legislation as students who are entering.  Please send bills as a Word attachment and make sure they are in FFL format (see Student Congress manual) to Pauline Buis at buisp@okaloosaschools.com  Legislation due – Tuesday, 21 Jan 2020

 

MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENT & SCHOOL-SANCTIONED ADULT

 

Only schools that are members of the league for 2019-2020 may participate at this tournament.  Also, please remember that a school-approved adult must accompany students to the tournament and remain on site for the entire competition.  If the school-approved adult is NOT the Head Coach or Assistant Coach on record with the league, then a letter signed by the school principal and printed on school stationery MUST be submitted with the school’s entry.  The letter needs to specifically name the adult in charge.  The penalty for failing to submit this document is disqualification of all contestants from the school involved.

 

EVENTS OFFERED

 

DEBATE:                               U.S. Extemp                      Dramatic Interp.                    Duo Interp.

Lincoln Douglas Debate        International Extemp         Humorous Interp.                  Program Oral Interp.

Public Forum Debate            Original Oratory                 Informative                            Student Congress

World Schools Debate

                       

ENTRY LIMITS

 

Each member school may submit up to six (6) entries per event. 

 

Schools that purchased a membership supplement may enter up to four (4) additional entries per event.  All entries on the supplement must be students in grades 6 – 8 (for middle school supplement) or 9 (for ninth grade supplement).  Entering students in grades 10-12 on the supplemental form will result in automatic disqualification of those students.  Enter mixed teams/units (eg: a 9th grader and 11th grader on a debate team) on the high school form.

 

DOUBLE ENTRY

 

Double entry and double qualification is permitted, except in Policy Debate, Lincoln Douglas Debate, Public Forum Debate, World Schools Debate, and Student Congress.  Also, cross-entry between U.S. Extemp and International Extemp is prohibited.

 

In Extemporaneous Speaking, students can access information on jump drives, which will be screened by a tournament official/extemp prep room proctor. Competitors will be permitted to use the internet at all FFL Sanctioned Tournaments when internet access is publicly available.  Publicly available being defined as – WiFi internet access is available to all students competing or all competitors will have access to desktop computers with internet availability.   In the event that internet access cannot be made available to all competitors, contestants shall be prohibited from the use of any electronic retrieval system (recording or information retrieval system) now known or to be invented during any round in any event at any FFL-sanctioned tournament including the Extemporaneous Speaking preparation room(s), except that electric or electronic devices that are incapable of sending or receiving information between persons may be used for the sole purpose of keeping time. The League will make accommodations for students with disabilities in regards to the use of technology. Documentation of the disability must be provided ten days prior to the Regional Tournament and State Tournaments. The documentation must be available for review by the Executive Board.

 

 

--Lincoln-Douglas Debate will use the January/February topic. RESOLVED: The United States ought to eliminate their nuclear arsenals. 

 

--Public Forum Debate will use the February topic. RESOLVED: The United States should replace means-tested welfare programs with a universal basic income. ***COIN FLIP IN FINAL ROUND HAS BEEN RESCINDED***

 

--Student Congress will follow the FFL Congress Manual.  Entries will determine the number of chambers; if there are two or more chambers, there will be a Super Congress.  All schools must submit legislation (see ENTRY PROCESS above).  Legislation will be distributed to all coaches with Congressional entries & will be available on the speechwire.com Regional website tournament week.

 

--World Schools Debate: See rules and procedures outlined in document sent by Carol Cecil. You will find event rules and prepared motions under 'Files for Download' on the tournament homepage. Each school may enter 1 team of 3-5 students. These students may not double-enter. The top 2 teams from the Regional tournament qualifies to the State tournament. 

 

--Extemporaneous Speaking Events – 

Topic Areas 

IX: Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America, International Economies, World Leaders

DX: Trump Administration, Congress, US Economy, 2020 Elections, Infrastructure, Environment, Social Issues

 

--All Speech/Interpretation Events:

 

1.  There is a 30-second grace period in these events.  A contestant who goes beyond the grace period may not be ranked first in that round.

2.  In the event of a protest, all contestants must have a copy of their piece/speech available for review by tournament officials.   Failure to present a copy of the applicable document and evidence of publication will result in disqualification.

3.  FFL has enacted many changes during the Fall Vote.  The membership needs to be aware of all of the rule changes.  These rule changes are listed on the FFL Home Page under “Results”.  FFL is actively working to update the Governing Documents, however, coaches should review/familiarize themselves with these changes.

4.  The name of each contestant’s piece/oration must be recorded on speechwire.com.  The piece on the website must be used at BOTH regionals and state.  The penalty for changing pieces at either Regional or State competition is an immediate disqualification.

 

ANTI-VANDALISM REQUIREMENTS

 

To protect the property of our host school, the following rules are in effect:

 

1. No contestant or student observer shall enter or remain in a contest room without a judge present. The penalty for violation of this regulation 

   shall be immediate disqualification from the tournament.

2. One room will be designated for EXTEMP [& Policy] debaters to prep between rounds. An adult proctor will supervise that room.

3. Vandalism of property by any person at an FFL tournament shall result in immediate notification of school and/or local police authorities.  The 

   Board of Directors shall notify the principal of the school associated with the vandal(s) in writing and insist upon appropriate remuneration.  

   In the case of vandalism by a contestant, the additional penalty of immediate disqualification from the tournament shall also apply. 

 

RULES COMPLIANCE

 

Reviewing the following documents in advance of the tournament will help to ensure that your students comply with all FFL rules and regulations.  Questions regarding these rules should be addressed to the Tournament Director.

 

All of the following documents are available online at https://floridaforensicsleague.com/ 

 

1.  FFL Governing Documents  

 

You should review the general tournament rules with your students; it is strongly recommended that you ALSO print a copy of the event-specific rules and give them to your students so that they can make sure they are in compliance.

 

2.  FFL Civility Code

 

This document prescribes rules of behavior that are generally observed by all contestants and adults at forensic contests.  If you have inexperienced contestants and/or judges, you should give them a copy of this document.

 

3.  Student Congress Manual

 

You should give a copy of this document to each of your contestants in Student Congress.  

 

 

4. State of Florida Uniform Judging Manual

 

You should give a copy of this document to each of your judges.  There will be no copies available at the tournament.

 

5. Ballots for debate events, speech master ballots, speech contestant critique sheets, and protest forms are also available for download from the 

   above web page.

 

 

JUDGES & REQUIREMENTS

 

1. All judges should be properly trained using the statewide judging manual.  Please make sure that each of your judges has their own copy; the 

   tournament will not provide them.

 

2. All judges should bring and use a reliable digital timer.

 

3. All judges should bring a reliable device to access, complete, and submit their electronic ballots on Speechwire.com, should the region use paperless ballots. Region 1 will have paper ballots as backups if in the event wifi is not available. 

 

4. The following judge requirements are in place for this tournament:

 

--Policy Debate:  One judge for every two teams or fraction thereof

--Lincoln Douglas Debate:  One judge for every two debaters or fraction thereof

--Public Forum Debate:  One judge for every two teams or fraction thereof

--Speech/IE, Including Congress:  One judge for every five entries or fraction thereof.  Each  Duo/Group Interpretation team counts as one entry only.

--World Schools Debate: One judge for every two teams or fraction thereof

 

The Tournament Director reserves the right to disqualify students from any school that is unable to meet its judging quota.

 

ENTRY FEES

 

Each Contestant: $35.00 ($7 for FFL; $3 for regional expenses; $25 for lunch,security,janitorial, and hosting costs). 

This is a “per student” entry fee; thus events with 2 people per entry pay 2 fees. THERE IS NO ADDITIONAL FEE FOR DOUBLE-ENTRY

Niceville CANNOT accept personal checks and will not be able to provide food for anyone who has not paid. 

 

Extra Lunches: $7.00 each (purchase for all extra coaches, judges, observers, etc.)

 

Fees are due at registration; no exceptions.  School checks should be made payable to “Niceville High School Forensics." Remember, no personal checks will be accepted. 

 

DROP FEES

 

Drops Fees are $10 per  instance in addition to the forfeiture of entry fees. 

 

TOURNAMENT FORMAT & SCHEDULE

 

Final Registration: 7:30 AM.  Any school not registered at 7:30 will be eliminated from the competition.  

 

The format for each event will depend on the number of entries received. The Tournament Director will publish the number of preliminary and elimination rounds (if any) along with any power-matching schemes at final registration. This year, we will have our Regional Tournament in one day. Thus, it is imperative that ALL schools provide ALL required judges for the competition. 

 

Plan for an awards ceremony following the completion of the last rounds where all state qualifiers will be announced. 

 

MEALS

 

Contestant meals are included in the cost of entry.  Additional meals for extra coaches, judges, parents, observers, etc. are $7.00 each and must be ordered on speechwire.com as well.

 

Student Food:

Breakfast & snack items for purchase 

Lunch: Jersey Mikes boxed lunch and 1 bottle of water

 

Adult/Judge Food:

Breakfast: Bagels, Fruit, Coffee

Lunch: Jersey Mikes boxed lunch

 

 

The tournament will be “closed campus.”  Any contestant found leaving campus is subject to disqualification.

 

Manager contact information

 

Pauline Buis

Email: buisp@okaloosaschools.com

Phone NHS: 850-833-4114 x 16628

Cell: 850-529-0010

 

 

EVENT REMINDERS

 

All Events:         

 

Laptop Computers

The use of laptop computers shall be permitted in all debate events at all FFL sanctioned events. During debate rounds computers or other electronic devices may not be used to receive communication from any source (coaches or assistants included) inside or outside the room in which the competition occurs. During Congress, PF, LD, or CX debate rounds Internet access is permitted (not in World Schools Debate). (This does not prohibit non-electronic communication between debate partners during prep time). Contestants found to have violated the provisions above may face the following actions: forfeit the round of competition and receive zero points or disqualification from the tournament and forfeiture of all rounds. Region 1 may not have internet access this year, so plan accordingly. 

 

 

Availability of Evidence: The FFL will be following the NSDA Rules in regards to evidence in debate events. 

 

Rules In A Nutshell – Regarding Evidence

 

• Debaters are responsible for the validity of all evidence that they introduce in the debate.

• Evidence must be provided orally or written and must include primary author(s) and year of publication.  Any other information such as 

  qualifications etc… may be given, but not required.

• Judges are responsible for resolving disputes between debaters – both oral and written sources.

• Judge decisions may not be appealed unless – judge misapplied, misinterpreted, or ignored the rule.

• EVIDENCE CHALLENGES DO NOT GUARANTEE A DECISION REVERSAL

• If you need further clarification please see the NSDA Evidence Rule as posted on FFL.

NHS IS A CLOSED CAMPUS; ANY COMPETITOR LEAVING CAMPUS WILL BE DISQUALIFIED

 

Extemporaneous Speaking

 

In Extemporaneous Speaking, students can access information on jump drives, which will be screened by a tournament official/extemp prep room proctor. Competitors will be permitted to use the internet at all FFL Sanctioned Tournaments when internet access is publicly available. Publicly available being defined as – WiFi internet access is available to all students competing or all competitors will have access to desktop computers with internet availability. In the event that internet access cannot be made available to all competitors, contestants shall be prohibited from the use of any electronic retrieval system (recording or information retrieval system) now known or to be invented during any round in any event at any FFL-sanctioned tournament including the Extemporaneous Speaking preparation room(s), except that electric or electronic devices that are incapable of sending or receiving information between persons may be used for the sole purpose of keeping time. The League will make accommodations for students with disabilities in regards to the use of technology. Documentation of the disability must be provided ten days prior to the Regional Tournament and State Tournaments. The documentation must be available for review by the Executive Board.

 

 

FFL World Schools Debate Rules

1. Teams must be homogeneous (no hybrid teams – all competitors must be from the same school)

2. Teams will consist of 3-5 students

3. Each School may enter 1 World Schools Team at the Regional Qualifier.

3. If more than one-third of the members of a World Schools Team cannot compete at the State Championship Tournament after qualifying at the 

   Regional Tournament, that team shall drop and the alternate group shall be invited to compete.

4. Judging Requirements - One (1) judge per two (2) entries or fraction thereof in World Schools.

5. Double Entry is not permitted. 

6. Each district will qualify the top 2 entries in this division for the varsity state tournament

6a. If a district does not fulfill its two entries, the vacant entry slot will go to the third place team in the District tournament that has the 

    most world schools entries at their district qualifier.

6b. Remaining vacant entry spots will continue as outlined above and fall to the District tournament with the next largest number of entries.

7. In Prelims - There will be 3 prepared motions and 2 impromptu motions – Round 1 and Round 5 will be the impromptu rounds. Semis and Finals will 

   be impromptu motions.

8. In impromptu rounds the proposition will use the competition room as prep and the opposition will prep just outside the competition room.

9. During preparation, as prescribed by NSDA rules, teams will only be allowed to use a dictionary, a single volume encyclopedia, or a World Almanac 

   as a resource. No electronic devices will be allowed and possible suspicion of using one will result in a loss of the round and zero speaker 

   points for the round.

9. Speech times, appropriate times for points of information, and all other rules and procedural guidelines will fall in line with the NSDA national tournament guidelines.

10. Prepared rounds – the motions will cover the following 3 areas:  Florida, Domestic, and International.  Something special – for the Varsity 

    State Tournament only students and coaches alike will have the opportunity to vote/choose the prepared Florida motion.  Details on this will be 

    provided later. 

 

 

 

(vr)