Rules and Registration

Registration

Registration opens November 10! New entries will be accepted through Friday, January 24, at 8pm, or until events are filled. Judge entries are due Monday, January 27, at 8pm, when fees and obligations lock.

All entries will be waitlisted until December 15, when slots will be admitted as evenly and completely as possible. Initial entry caps, which will vary based on interest:
Speech: 35 for smaller events (such as DUO and POI), 70 for larger events (such as OO and Prose)
Congress: 80
V Policy: 65
N Policy: 25
V PF: 88
N PF: 48
V LD: 80
N LD: 40

Speech competitors may enter up to four events, two in each bracket. Students may not use the same piece in two events.

• A: DUO, IMP, OO, Pro, POI
• B: DEC, DP, EX, INF, Poe

Congress and Debate entries may not double-enter.

Eligibility

Students must attend the school with which they are registered and must travel with a responsible adult. A “school” is a diploma-granting institution. Independent and club entries are not allowed. Hybrid teams are not allowed.

A responsible adult must be "on site" for the duration of the tournament. "Responsible adult" means someone beyond high school age who is acting with the permission of the school to represent the school's students if an issue arises. An adult being "on site" means they are available and able to get in touch rapidly with any student or judge representing the school.

Please note: Pennsbury students will be eligible to compete and break in all events.

Novice status

You are eligible for novice if:
1. You are in middle school, or
2. You are in 9th or 10th grade and this is your first ever year of Speech and Debate competition, or
3. You are in 9th grade with no more than 30 rounds of middle school experience, or
4. You are in 10th grade, but have participated in no more than 14 debate rounds in previous seasons (including experience in both middle and high school) and no more than 16 rounds in the current season.

Our goal as a tournament is to create a positive learning experience for all students in this activity. All students, even if eligible for novice, who have the overall academic and speaking experience to meaningfully participate in varsity are encouraged to enter in varsity. Coaches should contact the tournament about any individual students who might not fit the letter of these definitions but you feel belong in the novice division. Any entries found to be in violation of these rules will be disqualified immediately at the discretion of the Tournament Director.

Tournament Rules

In the absence of PFI-specific rules, the following rule sets will govern events:

• NCFL rules: Dec, DP, Duo, EX, Oratory, Prose (OI), Poetry (OI)
• NSDA rules: Informative, POI, Congress, CX, LD, PF
• PFI rules: Impromptu

However, the Tournament Director reserves the right to modify consequences for rules violations in consideration of severity and intent.

INTERNET RULE: Open access to the Internet for research for all competitors in all events. Communication is limited to sharing speech docs with participants in the round.

Live docs, when published, become the official tournament rules and supersede any other information on this site.