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!

Happy 2024 everyone!

Email: miranda.cannon@gmail.com

Background:

- From Lincoln, NE ; competed in the NE circuit

- Have coached and judged various circuits

- Debated in college

- I graduated from law school in 2023 and am a licensed attorney

Public Forum

Some judges are tech and some are truth - I would say I'm about 60% truth, 40% tech, but ultimately will judge you based on what happened in the round.

Regarding speed: it's fine? I guess? I don't PREFER it obviously, but as long as there is clear signposting we should be good. I'll let you know if it's a problem.

It's PF so if you do some wild K or framework argument I am probably going to be heavily side eyeing you the entire time lol. That's not to say you are barred from doing this in front of me, but I just don't know if it's ever going to really work out that well in a PF round? Idk! Prove me wrong!

I judge novices a majority of the time, and my goal is to HELP you - I don't want anyone to feel bad about a loss, but I will try to educate you on the reasons that it happened! My ultimate goal is for you to walk away with more knowledge than you were coming into the round.

Please email me any cards you specifically want me to see, or physically bring them over to me.

Some general things to keep in mind when debating PF in front of me:

- Make sure you know what the resolution is asking you to do. I often will enter a judgment in default if one side is not adequately fulfilling their burden.

- Make sure your speeches are structured correctly - if they are, it's less likely you will drop arguments! Often the tide turns for me in summary just because a lot of debaters don't do this speech correctly.

I have a passion for debate and will help you with anything, please don't hesitate to reach out to me between or after rounds, even if I haven't judged you.

Debated PF for 4 years at Millard North

Speech docs are wonderful (ikamilp@gmail.com).

Flay judge. Appreciate clear weighing. It's really that simple weigh if you want a ballot.

I am really nice with speaks unless you do something problematic.

She/her

Assistant Coach at Lincoln Southwest

Debated for 3 years on NE circuit

I don’t like speed so please slow down

I don't like theory and progressive arguments but I will evaluate it as best as I can

I especially don't like theory in PF :)

As a Black judge please do not have any kumbaya (easy solvency) racism arguments. If you run racism, you need have clear links & warrants

Assume that I am not well versed in the topic so explain everything.

USE MUST TAKE PREP TIME TO READ EVIDENCE!

If you don't have a clear link, you don't get access to your impacts

I prefer if second speaker rebuilds in their rebuttal, but if you have good coverage/ cross analysis/ rebuild in summary you won't be penalized

I am not huge on card dumps and numbers being thrown around; if you want me to buy into your card/argument, I expect you to explain what the number or card means. Tell me why I should be voting for you based on your evidence (you need to do more than cite the name). Please do not misconstrue your evidence

(!!!) IMPACT- some of the best rounds are lost because teams do not impact (weighing is equally as important, make the decision for me). I absolutely hate lazy impacts such as extinction, climate change, & recession (having big numbers doesn't mean you'll win the round). Be creative!

I am here to make sure everyone has a fun, safe and exciting experience with debate. Any hateful or blatantly racist, transphobic/homophobic, sexist, etc arguments will not be weighed in the round.

If you have any questions at all, just ask! I am open to helping anyone with their debate skills and ideas, no matter your success or failure. You can reach out any time, regardless if I have judged you or not :)

Good luck!

Hello Debaters! My name is Omaima Lado (Oh-My-Muh Luh-Doo). I competed in debate for 3 years in the Nebraska Circuit. I’ve done Congressional debate, Policy, and Public Forum. Currently, I’m a student at University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a Congress coach at Lincoln Southwest High School.

Congress: To get a 6 (in no particular order) 1. Be loud and project! 2. Eye contact 3. Good evidence and Citations 4. Hand gestures 5. Close to 3mins or 3:10 6. Refutation/Furthering the debate

Policy: I like traditional policy debates, not a big fan of abstract theory args and Ks unless absolutely necessary. I won’t be upset if you do, but if you choose to run a K/Theory please explain it well. (I ran a lot of trad arguments in hs but I am familiar with most popular Ks) (Just treat me like a lay judge that is okay with some speed and debate jargon)

Public Forum: This is an event I really like to judge. The biggest thing I’m looking for besides good args evidence and overall debating is a clear extension of your impacts/contentions. Don’t get caught up on constantly telling me why I shouldn’t vote for the other team and tell my why I should vote for you as well.

This paradigm is rather short so feel free to email or ask me questions before round

email: omaimalado21@gmail.com

*Please be respectful of others debaters. I value decorum and kindness in ALL events.

General notes:

- 3 years of debate experience in PF, Congress, and LD, congress national semifinalist. 3 years of judging and a bit of coaching as well.

- She/her pronouns, you can also just call me judge or Adi

- Don't be sexist, racist, etc. It will kill your speaker points and arguments.

- Generally, be nice and polite! Please normalize content warnings for touchy subjects.

- NO SPREADING. I will stop flowing and cross my arms. I will also yell clear and be really annoying about it. I hate it. Keep speed no more than about 7/10.

- I don't flow cross for arguments, but it can help/hurt your speaker points.

- I will not weigh arguments or impacts without sufficient, credible, real (!), sources. Analytics aren't my thing.

- Have fun!

PF:

- I know I'm the minority in this, but I actually don't feel strongly about disclosure. I'll probably vote on the small school response if it comes down to it, but every round is different.

- I will listen to any type of argument (theory, whatever) and impacts (yes, even extinction). Not a huge fan of these nontrad or extreme arguments, but it's not an auto drop.

- If you like to call for cards, SET UP A SPEECH DROP/EMAIL CHAIN AHEAD OF TIME. I'm not gonna sit there while both sides waste time calling for 40 cards just to look at them for 5 seconds and never mention it again. I will start dropping speaks.

- I’m like 70% truth and 30% tech. If you want to convince of something weird, its possible, but I'll default to truth if you don't meet a high standard.

- 2nd summary and final focus are not places for new arguments. There should be lots of weighing and analysis.

LD:

- Mostly the same stuff as PF so see above!

- I don't know must of the LD specific lingo, but I'll listen to whatever! Just be sure to explain it. Pretty open minded here, just don't be abusive. I want the debate to be fun, accessible, and interesting. You can always ask me questions before round.

- I don't have a tolerance for speed. 7/10 max. 5-6/10 comfortably. I don't care if you send me the doc or not - don't do it. I will vote on speed theory. I'll probably auto-drop if I can't flow it. Just don't do it please!

Avani Nooka (She/Her/Hers)

Lincoln East '20, Princeton '24

Experience: 4 years of PF (2016-2020), PF TOC '19 Gold Bid, Beyond Resolved Nebraska Chapter Head '19 and Chapter Alumni '20-21

Conflicts: Lincoln East

Feel free to email me with any specific questions. For the sake of running an online tournament efficiently, I am going to keep my RFD and ballot comments short so if you or your coach have any questions or concerns about my decision, please don't hesitate to reach out to me at nookaavani@gmail.com.

PF:

The easiest (and best) way to win my ballot: weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh, weigh. Which way? Dat weigh.

I prefer the final focus to be less focused on line-by-line and more focused on framing, impact weighing, and round story. Since this is PF, narrative is important and if you win the round it's because you did a better job explaining why I should prefer your world as opposed to your opponents'. The best debaters start creating their narrative in the rebuttal and weighing in the summary, not just the final focus !!

Randoms:

Feel free to collapse if you want...if you do it in a strategic way.

I'm not a big fan of theory or spreading in PF. If you do run theory, make sure you can actually argue it well and it's developed properly with less speech time in PF compared to a typical policy round.

If the round is super messy and there's a lot of reiterated clash, go the simple route and give me three reasons why you won the round in the final focus. Being able to step back and clean the narrative of the debate when it's getting muddled speaks a lot on how skillful of a debater you are.

Other specifics (from John Holen's Paradigm):

All evidence used in the round should be accessible for both sides. Failure to provide evidence in a timely manner when requested will result in either reduced speaker points or an auto loss (depending on the severity of the offense)." ***Even if you want me to read your opponents' evidence, it is still a safer bet to win the argument by weighing***

Please be civil during cross fire. It makes judging and competing in the debate community more enjoyable and comfortable for everyone. I tend to give high speaker point averages but if you are extremely rude, I will take off speaker points.

Most importantly, have fun :)

LD:

Not experienced in this event at all so please explain your arguments well. Go to Azza Elhaj's. The only differences are that I can't flow well if you spread (some speed is fine) and that I actually prefer three reasons why you won the round. By that I mean to not compensate on the flow, but to hammer in on arguments that have good clash and allocate more time to weighing them.

Framework makes the game work. Easiest way to win my ballot: have clash and make clear why I should prefer your framework/concede to your opponents framework and link into it better.

Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh. Impact weigh.

Please be civil during cross fire. It makes judging and competing in the debate community more enjoyable and comfortable for everyone. I tend to give high speaker point averages but if you are extremely rude, I will take off speaker points.

Prioritize education.

I am a mostly traditional-leaning judge. I am willing to hear non-traditional cases but I am not particularly familiar with some of the jargon/strategies and I will default to traditional voting framework when if I am forced to choose between a traditional and a non-traditional burden.

I am a pretty flow judge. Nothing super specific besides that I don't vote on disclosure as I don't know enough about it at this time and I don't feel there has been an explicit shift in the Nebraska LD community to disclosure. I can mostly understand spreading as long as its not like over 500 wpm as long as you are clear. Anything over will be a gamble, it pretty much just comes down whether or not I can understand you so tread carefully.

I understand debate jargon when related to PF or LD. I am not super knowledgeable about some policy stuff but I am getting better the more I see it and I accept kritiques and what not as long as the framework makes sense in the context of LD.

He/him/his or judge works

Public Forum Coach at Lincoln Southwest for the past 3 years, debated for 4 years on NE circuit, competed at NSDA Nationals

Feel free to send evidence/case chains to spethmansam@gmail.com

I prefer if second speaker rebuilds in their rebuttal, but if you have good coverage/ cross analysis/ rebuild in summary you won't be penalized.

Summary and final focus should mirror each other: be consistent in your story and impacts

I am not huge on card dumps and numbers being thrown around; if you want me to buy into your card/argument, I expect you to explain what the number or card means. Tell me why I should be voting for you based on your evidence (you need to do more than cite the name)

(!!!) IMPACT- some of the best rounds are lost because teams do not impact (weighing is equally as important, make the decision for me). At the end of the round I want to see clear voting points that have been pulled through consistently.

If you choose to run progressive arguments/theory-- please do so in a way that is accessible to all. I have limited experience with these ideas in debate but am totally willing to listen if everything is clearly explained and brought into the debate at an appropriate time. However, I am not keen on teams running theory as a tactic to confuse their opponents; I don't see it as making debate inclusive and accessible to all.

I am here to make sure everyone has a fun, safe and exciting experience with debate. Any hateful or blatantly racist, transphobic/homophobic, sexist, etc arguments will not be weighed in the round.

If you have any questions at all, just ask! I am open to helping anyone with their debate skills and ideas, no matter your success or failure. You can reach out any time, regardless if I have judged you or not :)

Good luck!

My name is Jarred Williams. I graduated from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln in May of 2021, majoring in Political Science and minoring in English, and will be heading to law school in the Fall of 2023. I currently working as a commercial developer. I graduated from Lincoln Southwest High School in 2017 and competed in PF all 4 years of high school.

Do:

- use all of your allotted time in each speech

- quote your sources directly, and then provide a brief explanation of what it means and how it works under your argument(s).

- Use all of your prep time.

Do not:

- cut off your opponents during crossfire.

- turn your summaries and final focuses into extended rebuttals. Rebuttals are used to address all points of clash in the round (effectively whittling down the round to the main points), summaries are used to "summarize" these main points of clash in the round and your argument and evidence you have to go along with those points, and the final focus is a brief persuasive type of speech used to explain to the judge why they'll be voting for you.