• I focus on solid storytelling. The most important piece of the puzzle is the script, please don't forget to hold true the story as a whole even though we are only seeing ten minutes of it. Connecting to the audience, it's about telling the story to us, so a solid connection to the audience is important. We want to laugh and cry with you.

• Clean pantomime and connection with off stage characters
• Take us on the journey with you.
• Take a deep breath and have fun!!! Leave it all out there and take your seat feeling like there was nothing else you could have done.
• Don't forget you are not speaking FOR them, you are speaking AS them. It is an ownership that you should take seriously. If you don't tell the story, how will they continue to live?
• Be honest. These are real people sharing real stories of their lives. Breath through their struggle and be honest.

• Be you, you're enough.

• Believe in the story you are telling, be confident, be bold, own your time in front of us.
• Make sure everything you do has a purpose. If it doesn't have a reason, it begs the question of why do it?

Build the value that is not overly complicated and should be relatable, and criterion should not be over technical. Critical argument should provide substantial evidence for their support. Make sure all claims are supported with specific, defined examples, no paraphrasing. Rebuttals should provide voters to address the important issues advanced in constructive speeches and extend arguments individually. As for speed, I do not mind (pretty open minded) as long as each word is understandable and clear for hearing. Please remember that mumbling words can be hard for your judge to evaluate you. However, it is safe to ask the judge at the beginning of the round just to be on the safe side. The focus should be winning the debate (more like convincing your judge), not just attacking a person's style or flaws of method. Remember that in order to win a round, respect towards your opponent is paramount. It is hard to find in favor of debaters who belittle or berate their opponent in or out of round. Graceful winners are as important as the one that did not win. Good luck Contestants.

Email Chain: alejojaz000@gmail.com

I am an old school traditional judge who does a lot of congress and extemp.

In Congress - If you ask for an in house recess to pad a speech or to address the chamber because no one is speaking - DO SO AT YOUR OWN RISK! Nothing annoys congress judges more than 15 minutes of caucusing and getting splits, only for no one to be ready. The PO should be running the round and is perfectly capable of admonishing those who are not ready to speak. Otherwise, I like a good intro with a 2 pt preview and good, creative arguments that show critical thinking. Be active in the round and ask good questions. As for trigger warnings: unless you are giving some graphic description of something, there is no need. The simple mention of a word does not require a trigger warning.

PF - Keep it simple. If you run a plan, a K, or theory, you are unlikely to get my ballot. Treat me like I have no idea what this topic is and explain EVERYTHING. Weigh impacts to get my ballot. Don't complicate a pro/con debate.

LD - For UIL, stick to a traditional format with Value/Criteria and Contentions. Weigh and give voters. For TFA, just know that I loathe rapid delivery and love explanations. If you are going to run a counterplan in absence of an affirmative plan, I will not vote on it. LD is not 1 person policy. Uphold your value throughout the round.

Extemp - I like a good AGD and want effective communication and sources are essential.

Remember, debate is impossible without effective communication.

FLASHING IS PREP TIME! If you are not speaking, you are prepping. My prep time clock is the official prep time clock.

he/him

This will mostly apply to WSD as it was my main event throughout hs

Things that make my job hard:

• Debating on margins (restrictive definitions, abusive framing)
• Not being comparative and charitable to your opponents
• Not proving your arguments (not enough to give a basic claim to something - reasons must be explicit and proven to a point where they met some burden(s) of proof)

In framing debates please give me real reasons for why I should prefer one interpretation over another . If the debate comes down to two ships sailing in the night I can't resolve it without intervening.

In debates where things are not explicitly proven, I'll assume the most relevant arguments for both sides are true and make the comparison of what argument wins (pre-req, scale of impact, duration of impact, etc.)

Things that make my job easy:

• Clearly identifying the clashing material of the debate and weighing between and within those areas.
• Weighing the framing of arguments and clash on a meta-level (things independent of rebuttal e.g. the role of the argument, why I should prefer a specific type of argument as opposed to another)
• Weigh the mechs/warrants behind the argument - tell me why your reasons matter more and are more likely than your opposition especially in debates where there are shared impacts which happens more often than not simply due to the nature of WSD.
• Weigh impacts if they are differentiated.
• Be strategic. Don't carry down an unwarranted framing debate to the third speeches especially when there are far better ways to allocate time in terms of forwarding arguments, making good weighing, even-if statements, or just biting the bullet and engaging. More times than not if the framing is that ridiculous, I'll buy the ref coming from O1, it doesn't matter if your opponent sticks to a bad framework if I not leaning towards it anyway. Don't overcompensate! Good judge direction and being explicit from the onset will be more than enough to sway me in favor of your side.

A combination of the aforementioned stuff is the best way to get a decision you agree with from me. A lack of these things will result in a level of intervention that you probably won't like.

I'm not super authoritarian when it comes to style. If I can flow it and you signpost you'll do fine. arg quality > rhetoric. ideally the best speeches have all 3 but my pivot is more towards content and strategy.

Principled args are fun to see but they need to be both extended and weighed against the practical otherwise I’ll have a spot on my flow of a principle that was well established but poorly leveraged against other arguments.all and all, trust yourself, debate well, and have fun

if you have questions you can reach me atebenezer.g.appiah@gmail.com or eappiah@regis.edu

Interp Events:

My rankings are usually based on who is able to create the most believable characters and moments. There should be multiple levels within your piece and in the portrayal of your characters ~ not everything should be intense, or fast/slow, or super loud or quiet.

Everything you do in your performance should have a purpose. If you give a character an accent, be consistent with that accent. Make sure that each movement, mannerism, or gesture makes sense within the scope of the story you are telling. Additionally, I should be able to easily differentiate between multiple characters. Facial expressions, moments, and character development are very important for the overall performance.

Speaking Events

A clear structure is important: your delivery should be cohesive, and flow logically from point to point. A natural delivery style that allows for your personality to shine is preferable to the “Platform Speaker”. Put simply: avoid speech patterns.

Extemp: The most important thing is that you answer the question! A polished speaking style is important, but I will often default to a speaker that has stronger analysis and evidence over a pretty speech with fluffy content. Do not rely on canned introductions - creativity is important when trying to engage me.

Oratory/Informative: Your attention getter, vehicle, and conclusion should be creative, but they also need to fit well with the topic. Again, I will default to stronger analysis/evidence over fluffy content.

"Debate well. Don't go fast. Don't make frivolous or untrue arguments. You have a prescribed debate topic for a reason, so debate the topic."

That is my "grumpy old man" paradigm.

In reality, I am open to considering lots of arguments from a wide variety of philosophical and practical perspectives. My biggest issue is that I am not great with speed. I don't love it, and even if I did, I don't handle it well in a debate round. I am willing to listen to pretty much any argument a debater wants to make, but I won't evaluate the argument particularly well if its fast. Also, the more critical the argument and the more dense the literature, the slower you will need to go for me to follow you.

I do have a few pet peeves.

1) No Tricks. Tricks are for kids - I'll absolutely intervene and toss out an "I win, you lose" extension of a random sentence from the framework or an underview. Don't make it a voter or it will likely be you that loses the ballot. Debate the round, don't just try to escape with the W.

2) No EXTENSIONS THROUGH INK - if you are going to extend something, you better have answered the arguments that sit right next to them on the flow BEFORE you extend them. You have to be responsive the attacks before you can claim victory on an argument.

3) Don't shoehorn EXTINCTION impacts into topics that are clearly NOT going to link to extinction. For example, there was a topic on standardized testing a few years back. Policy style impacts of cases and disads should have been about the effectiveness on standardized testing in terms of educational outcomes, college outcomes, and overall productive individuals and societies. Instead, debaters went for the cheap impact and tried to claim that keeping standardized tests will cause nuclear war and extinction. The syllogism had about 7-8 moving parts and at least three skipped steps. It was a bad argument that sometimes won because the opponent wasn't good enough to challenge the link chain or sometimes lost because smarter debaters beat it back pretty soundly. Either way, the debate was poor, the argument selection was poor, and I was not inclined to give those debaters good speaks even if they won.

4) Only read THEORY because there is an honest-to-God violation of a pretty established norm in debate, not because it's your "A-strat" and you just like theory. I like Fruit Loops, but I don't eat them at every meal. Use theory when appropriate and be prepared to go all-in on it if you do. If the norm you are claiming is so important and the violation is so egregious, then you should be willing to be the farm on your theory argument to keep your opponent from winning the debate.

I want to see good debate. I think the four things listed above tend to make debate bad and boilerplate. If you disagree, you are welcome to strike me.

Congress- Speeches should be delivered at a rate of speed that a casual listener would be able to understand and follow the argumentation. Evidence is necessary and should support every argument in a speech. In order to stand out and rank higher, written speeches should be adapted to include clash from previous speeches and offer something new to the debate. Debaters should offer speeches that forward the debate and do not simply rehash previously stated arguments. A PO should run a transparent and efficient round with a clearly offered way to track precedence and recency.

Extemp- State the topic word for word verbatim, I am looking for strong argumentation to support your answer as well as current and credible evidence. Competitors who have an in depth analysis of the topic will rank higher, fluff and generic answers will rank lower. This is a speaking event and you need to have conversational speed as well as humor to do well. Funny and pop culture AGDs are my favorite.

LD- I am an old school trad judge. I can keep up with moderate speed but if you start spreading and I put my pen down you are not in a good spot. If I can't flow I can't judge you. K and theory aren't my favorite but simple and common K like ROB I am familiar with, extinction arguments are my least favorite, they seem lazy unless you have a really compelling and interesting argument to go with it. Judge adaptation is crucial in LD success. I am not the most tech oriented judge so if you are pulling tricks make them clear and easy to follow for me, I am open to weird stuff but it had better be accessible to me.

For (DI, DUO) - Subtlety is the key, I don't need you to scream and shout to get emotion across. I'm not against screaming, but it should be during appropriate moments during the piece and build over time. At no point should you jump from deadly quiet and calm to intense and screaming. Gradually build the emotion. Show me the tension and intensity over time. Screaming when you erupt during the climax is perfectly acceptable. Further, intensity can be shown without screaming, crying, or yelling. The quiet moments of the piece are usually the ones I find most powerful. THINK and REACT to what you are saying. Emotion should come nearly effortlessly when you "are" your piece. Don't "act" like the mom who lost her daughter in a school shooting, BE that mom! Transitions and timing are SUPER IMPORTANT, DON'T RUSH!!!

For (HI, DUO) - Facial expressions, characterization, and blocking take the most importance for me. I want to see each character develop once you introduce it throughout the piece. Even if the character doesn't appear all the time, or only once or twice throughout the script, I want to see that each character is engaged throughout the piece itself. Most importantly, please remember that humor without thought is gibberish. Jokes are said for a reason - use facial expressions to really hone in on character's thought and purpose. For example, if a character A says a joke and character B doesn't get it, I should see character B's confused reaction. I will also tend to reward creative blocking and characterization. However, note that blocking should not be overly distracting.

For (POI, PRO, POE) - Regarding emotion, facial expressions, and character development, see the above text in the two paragraphs above regarding DI and HI. Personally, I place a little more emphasis on binder tech - the more creative the better! I think binder events are the synthesis of good binder tech, good script selection, and good facial expressions/emotion. Obviously, it's harder to do, since you have multiple characters in multiple parts of your speech and each have a distinct mood and personality. I prefer POI to read like an OO with someone else's words, give me a really concrete problem solution.

My name is Mark Bishop. Formerly Clear Lake MB / CleLak MB

MarkABishopjr@gmail.com

^ email for questions and the doc. I will reply to emails pre-round.

Clear Lake HS '23. I did LD for two years and I do not do debate in college.

TAMU '27. Gig 'em!

Side note: I am overly expressive and sometimes look like I'm having mood swings in round... sorry. Please try not to read into my body language.

DEBATE

Debate on the circuit is a game.

I'm not the best or the worst at flowing. Solid 8/10 when it's not late at night or super early in the morning...

Sending a doc (when you have one) for analytics/rebuttalsis strongly preferred. Hell, I'll bump your speaks a bit if you do!

Short:

1 - K (All, from non-t k aff to idpol to cap or psycho)

1 - Trad (Every judge can judge trad, it's just a little boring.)

1 - T/Th (Comfortable, did it a bit, fan of judging it)

2 - LARP (I LARP'd mostly for the first half of my debate career... then debated Ks...)

2 - Kant/Korsgaard/etc. and Butler (been judging it a lot, kind of a fan)

2 - POMO (I just... get it.)

2/3 - Tricks (I have a good amount of experience with 'em. They're objectively dumb, but I don't really care.)

4/5 - Other Phil (Deleuze, Derrida, Locke, whomever. I have little experience with these).

Background:

For all intents and purposes, as a competitor I ran almost explicitly the Kritik my Senior year, with a sprinkle of tricks, Th, and LARP. I'm well versed in all queer literature, and familiar with most authors for all pessimism K's (ask me).

I learned how to but barely used phil, and when I did, it was Kant. I always thought phil was... weird.

For my non-senior year, I just LARPed and ran some tricks and theory.

I also used to think the coolest thing ever was walking into a round with background music. Walking in all dressed up playing some song w/ a hard bassline or Star Wars would be cringe asf but also dope.

For the trad debaters in the house...

For LD, any arguments made after the 1AR, if new, will not be evaluated.

For PF, any completely new arguments made after both sides give their rebuttal will not be evaluated.

For CX, any new arguments made after the 1AR will not be evaluated.

Speaks:

I would say I start at 28.5 but I don't. I probably start at 29.0 and add or doc. I will not doc points for speaking impediments, lisps, etc. The only reason I will doc speaks is making bad decisions in round. I believe no judge has any authority to say what the "right path to the ballot" is, however, I do believe it's pretty obvious when you make the total wrong decision. 30s basically go out to anyone who humors me and/or debates skillfully. I am more generous with speaks at locals.

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SPEECH

I'm pretty familiar with all events, but I mostly did DX when I competed in speech events.

The best way to win in front of me is to either move me or make me laugh.

To elaborate, I once judged a prose about a dog having to be put down and I cried a little (I love doggos). Anyways, that student got the 1 w/full speaks.

I am a very traditional judge with many years of coaching experience. I am not a fan of speed, and I prefer traditional arguments. That is my preference; it does not mean that I won't listen to the arguments made and weigh the evidence.

I am a policy maker and want to follow the argumentation and see the flow of the debate clearly. I can't outweigh one side over another if I don't know why I should because the argument itself was either made too quickly to catch or does not have a clear link. What I do want to hear is the Plan and any counter-plans the Neg offers; I need to see how and why the policy works/outweighs, etc.

I do not want to be included on an email chain, but for the sake of time, you may go ahead and do so. The email address is bonnie.bonnette@fortbendisd.com. First of all, I think that makes tournaments run very long; second, I want to SEE the flow of the debate. If I don't hear you say it and don't flow it, it doesn't count. However, just because I don't want that doesn't mean I will refuse the evidence. I will accept the email and read the shared evidence. No flash drives, however, please.

I rarely vote on Topicality arguments, and I don't like the Neg strategy of throwing out half a dozen arguments to see which one or two will actually "stick". I would rather hear a full development of two or three off-case arguments that clearly apply to the topic and to the Affirmative case. Kritiks are okay as long as they are not "off the wall" arguments. I said that I rarely vote on Topicality, but I have done so in the past.

i have been judging CX for over twenty years. Please don't treat me like I am stupid, but also don't assume I can (or will) judge like the college kids do.

HELLO :D

My name is Sherrice and I am a graduate of Jersey Village High School.

I did competitive theater for 3 years and Speech and Debate for 4 years. I mostly stuck to speech events such as Oratory, DX, and Improv. until my senior year when I did World School for "fun".

Do not be discouraged if I don't show any emotion throughout your speech/performance. I'm not bored or unimpressed, that's just my face :). I do like to add smiley faces to my feedback cause that's just my style. I try my best to add valuable advice and suggestions to the feedback so that you guys can keep progressing as great debaters.

Have fun !!!!

I am conflicted with Cypress Park Hs.

Individual events: I look for strong characterization, rhetorical appeals, vocal variety and inflection, expressive facial/ body movements, clear enunciation, confidence, and creative delivery.

Debate events: I look for conversational tone of voice, clear and average paced speaking (No spreading), Rhetorical appeals, strong reasoning and logic, current and credible evidence, and impactful connections.

I am the Director of Interp and Oratory/Assistant Director of Forensics at Seven Lakes High School in Katy, Texas. I did speech in high school in Texas, and I am also a thespian -- I have a BFA in acting and I was a theatre director prior to specializing in Speech and Debate.

Conflicts: Seven Lakes (TX), Wimberley (TX)

First and foremost, I am a theatre person and a speech coach by training and by trade.

Congress

Don't speed through your speeches, speed matters to me. Style matters to me as well, I am looking for structured arguments with clean rhetoric that comes in a polished package. Introduce new arguments. In questioning, I look for fully answering questions while also furthering your argument. I notice posture and gestures -- and they do matter to me. Evidence should be relevant and (for the most part) recent. Evidence is pretty important to me, and outweighs clean delivery if used properly. A clean analysis will rank you up on my ballot as well. Don't yell at each other. Overall, be respectful of one another. If I don't see respect for your fellow competitors, it can be reflected on my ballot. Don't rehash arguments. An extra speech with something I have already heard that round is likely to bump you down when I go to rank. As far as PO's go, I typically start them at 4 or 5, and they will go up or down depending on how clean the round runs. A clean PO in a room full of really good speakers will likely be ranked lower on my ballot. As far as delivery goes...as it says above, I am a speech coach. Your volume, rate, diction, etc are important. Make sure you are staying engaged and talking to the chamber, not at the chamber -- I want to be able to tell that you care about what you are speaking on.

Interp:

I am looking for honest connection to character and to text. Blocking should be motivated by the text and make sense for the character. I look for using vocal variety to add to the text and really paint a picture. I want you to really connect and tell the story. I also look for an overall arc of the story, clear beat changes, and clear emotion. I also look for clean diction and an appropriate rate of speech. Additionally, environment should be clear and blocking should be clean. In single events, I want to see the connection to your “other” (who are you sharing this with in the context of the story). In partner events, I want to see you really connect to each other. If you play more than one character, I am looking for clear and clean differences between the characters. Overall, tell your story. Connect to character, and share that with the audience.

Public Speaking:

Delivery is very important to me. Be careful of overusing gestures, make sure they have a purpose and enhance what you say. I want to see you connected to sharing your speech, not simply reciting something you memorized. While I do tend to notice style before content, it is important that your content is accurate and adequately supported. The content of the speech and the way it flows is important. I also look at diction and rate of delivery. In info, I do like fun interactive visuals—but they need to enhance your speech, not be there just to fill space. Overall, I want you to be excited about your speech and to have fun delivering it.

PF:

• I try to flow, but please make sure you reiterate important points as they become useful to your argument.

• Speed is okay, as long as I can understand you.

• Articulation matters to me. I would rather you speak a little slower and not get caught up in what you are saying.

• I really look for you to answer each other’s attacks on cases, not just repeat what you have already told me if it doesn't address the opposing case.

• Giving me a clear road map and sticking to it always helps.

• If a team is misrepresenting evidence, make it clear to me and tell me how they are doing so.

• Overall, I want you to tell me why you are right AND why they are wrong. Make sure you are backing up your claims with evidence and statistics.

Worlds School's Debate

This is the event I am most comfortable with, as I competed in this event for 4 years and spend a considerable amount of time judging/coaching WSD.

I will vote for the team that best proved their argument was true. For practical arguments, this means establishing characterizations, giving me multiple (preferably independent) mechanisms/links, and giving me clear impacts. For principle arguments, that means establishing that the principle is true and explaining to me why/how you fulfill the principle and why your opponents violate it. All arguments should be comparative (!), don't just critique your opponents world, actively/offensively tell me why your world is better. And of course, weigh your arguments (!) whether that be impact weighing, mechanism weighing, or metaweighing. Metaweighing is an easy way to get multiple paths to the ballot and score some strategy points.

It is not enough to prove to me that your world is "good" or that your opponents world is "bad", you must prove to me that your world is comparatively preferable to your opponents.

I very much prioritize content over style, as far as style goes all that matters is that you're speaking at a reasonable rate, your speech is easy to follow, and that you are not just reading off the paper but rather genuinely giving a speech. Can def score some extra points for good rhetoric/structure tho

PF/LD

I have judged PF/LD a decent amount 2 years, and will vote for the team with the least mitigated link chain and most strongly weighed impact, just debate good

If you ever have any questions or would like further feedback, you can reach out to me at diegocastilloo@icloud.com

If you get me as your judge in any event outside of these three, I am so sorry

Would prefer not spreading, but if you do then please send me a document.

The first and foremost purpose of Speech & Debate is education, with the driving factor being the growth of the performer, debater, or speaker. All of my criticism and feedback will be constructed through that lens.

Before coaching and sponsoring Speech & Debate, I was a four-year competitor for my high school participating in a variety of both interp and debate events. Throughout the competitions, I regularly judge various rounds.

Interp & Speech

Prose, Poetry, HI, DI, Duo, and Duet- these are all events rooted in the interpretation of the piece being presented via the performance in the round. The student should have consistent and well-developed character(s) throughout the piece who are properly responding to and interpreting the piece. An exceptional competitor will consistently show advanced control of their voice, movement, volume, and characterization throughout the piece. An exceptional competitor will also ensure they have selected an appropriate piece that best showcases their skills and abilities.

Extemp- This unique is a careful balance of both speaking ability and the analysis of the question/topic that the speaker has been given. An exceptional speaker will fully answer the question with both high-level sources and their analysis while also presenting the information in a laid-out, easy-to-follow format.

Informative Speaking- The purpose of this event is to inform the audience and that is my highest value when voting. An exceptional speaker will create and deliver a speech that allows the audience to quickly grasp and follow their information and walk away with a new understanding of the topic. If the speaker opts to utilize props and visual aids during their speech, they should enhance and not hinder the speech.

Oratory- The purpose of oratory is to give a speech about an issue in our world today and provide a solution to that problem. An exceptional student in Oratory will select a topic that is relevant to the status quo, deliver and format their speech in a way that is easy to follow and allows the audience to fully understand and connect to the chosen issue, and finally offer a solution that is actuatable to the audience within the room.

Debate

Language and delivery- speaking and discussing ideas are a cornerstone of all academic forms of debate. That being said, no speaker should have a rate of delivery so fast that their information can not be reasonably understood and flowed.Furthermore, I expect all students to have a basic understanding of essential vocabulary specific to debate, however, someone who lacks this knowledge does not automatically award their competitor(s) the round. Any ambiguous terms within your case should be properly defined and upheld throughout the round.

Judge's Flow- throughout the round, I keep a "basic" flow tracking the major arguments and contentions within the debate; this allows me to spend more time listening to the actual debate and ensuring that I am leaving a high-quality, educational ballot for the round. As a courtesy, please do not ask to see my flow at the end of the round.

Value vs. Style- In my view, the purpose of academic debate is to uphold values. That being said, I do place the highest importance on a debate with value. Your use of style should support your communication of your value and should in no way hinder your value.

Remember that the point of all forms of academic debate is to continue to grow and learn; all competitor's behavior and actions throughout a round should reflect those values.

Heather Collins

Hello everyone!

As a Speech Coach - I love Speech! I think it's such a great way to grow and learn as an actor and speaker. As a Theatre Director for my school, I think speech is one of the best ways to hone your skills, develop your focus, and gain the ability to make creative choices on your own. I really enjoy judging Speech Acting Events: HI, DI, Duet and Duo. However I also like to judge Extemp., O.O., and other such similar events. I love to learn and hear different peoples perspectives on their own life or various topics. As a very moderate figure, I find persuasive speaking very important and feel a lot can be gained by a well phrased argument with solid research and concise delivery (although, further attention to detail and the other perspective is also important!)

Do your best and have fun!

When judging Acting events, I like when the students speak clearly, show me solid characters with clear variety. For Duet Acting I feel a scene is really solid when the two actors are clearly listening and responding to each other. "Interp" style can certainly have it's impact and it's highly fun and effective, but when it comes time for the scene to close, nothing in more needed than the honesty of the performance, and reacting in a way the audience can believe it. Focus is so important and commitment to what you are doing is key. Actors should also exhibit good audience etiquette when watching other performances. While we are here to complete, that doesn't mean we can't appreciate others.

When judging Debate events, I prefer the students don't rush when speaking, but rather speak in a natural and conversational rate. Your words are all you have. So you should to be sure not overwhelm the listener. If you do, they won't retain anything and will be impacted by nothing. If the students make a clean, concise argument and stick to the point, working to earn our attention, then they've done their job. Distracting the audience with off topic details is something I frown upon. Don't bring up a random point, just because it's a hot button issue or because you need to fill time. A good argument takes priority for me, but that doesn't mean you can't argue with a bit of style and with a savvy element. Being a good sport is important and even though we may need to discredit their points, there is a way to do that respectfully without being arrogant or snotty.

IE:

Extemp- The biggest thing I’m looking for is whether or not you’re answering the question and how you break down your response. Formatting in a way where it’s clear for me to understand the roadmap of your points is important. Points should flow together but be distinct enough to stand on their own. Content is more important for me because this is an event where presentation is usually the least difficult part and is something most people in the room have down. Lastly, being about to connect with your “audience” is something I rank higher for, for example, if it’s a question on economics and you’re able to break down terms, I value that more. If you can explain something, you’re clearly well-versed on it and a more reputable speaker, as opposed to just quoting an article.

Interp/Public-Speaking- presentation is so important, having energy in your voice and sounding like you want to be here/have passion for what you're performing goes a long way. The more likely I am to be entranced by your performance, the higher I am ranking you.

Debate:

WSD- I follow my flow so unless you directly say in argument, I’m not going to make the connection that PROP’s point A is a rebuttal to OPP point B. So if you decide to talk fast, do that at your own peril. Content and structure is important for flow for not just me but your team. How your team argues, whether as individuals or as a team, is something else I consider. Speaking is important but also that’s a default skill so with expectation that both sides are good speakers, content is most important. Bonus points for summary speeches that tie everything together and that are able to condense the round into three clashes but even more points if you weigh, (which should be given but just in case).

Judging Philosophy:I prefer a comparative worlds debate. When making my decisions, I rely heavily ongoodextensions and weighing. If you aren't telling me how arguments interact with each other, I have to decide how they do. If an argument is really important to you, make sure you're making solid extensions that link back to some standard in the round. I love counterplans, disads, plans, etc. I believe there needs to be some sort of standard in the round. Kritiks are fine, but I am not well-versed in dense K literature; please make sure you are explaining the links so it is easy for me to follow. I will not vote on a position that I don't understand, and I will not spend 30 minutes after the round re-reading your cards if you aren't explaining the information in round. I also feel there is very little argument interaction in a lot of circuit debates--please engage!

Theory/T:I think running theory is fine (and encouraged) if there is clear abuse. I will not be persuaded by silly theory arguments. If you are wanting a line by line theory debate, I'm probably not the best judge for you :)

Speaker Points:I give out speaker points based on a couple of things: clarity (both in speed and pronunciation), word economy, strategy and attitude. In saying attitude, I simply mean don't be rude. I think there's a fine line between being perceptually dominating in the round and being rude for the sake of being rude; so please, be polite to each other because that will make me happy. Being perceptually dominant is okay, but be respectful. If you give an overview in a round that is really fast with a lot of layers, I will want to give you better speaks. I will gauge my points based on what kind of tournament I'm at...getting a 30 at a Houston local is pretty easy, getting a 30 at a circuit tournament is much more difficult. If I think you should break, you'll get good speaks. Cussing in round will result in dropping your speaks.

Speed:I'd prefer a more moderate/slower debate that talks about substance than a round that is crazy fast/not about the topic. I can keep up with a moderate speed;slow down on tag lines/author names.I'll put my pen down if you're going too fast. If I can't flow it, I won't vote on it. Also, if you are going fast, an overview/big picture discussion before you go line by line in rebuttals is appreciated. Based on current speed on the circuit, you can consider me a 6 out of 10 on the speed scale. I will say "clear" "slow" "louder", etc a few times throughout the round. If you don't change anything I will stop saying it.

Miscellaneous:I don't prefer to see permissibility and skep. arguments in a round. I default to comparative worlds.

Other things...
1. I'm not likely to vote on tricks...If you decide to go for tricks, I will just be generally sad when making a decision and your speaks will be impacted. Also, don't mislabel arguments, give your opponent things out of order, or try to steal speech/prep time, etc. I am not going to vote on an extension of a one sentence argument that wasn't clear in the first speech that is extended to mean something very different.
2. Please don't run morally repugnant positions in front of me.
3. Have fun!

I am a retired coach and teacher, I coached for 31 years, I coached all events successfully, my philosophy for speech events rewards students who are knowledgeable, informed, and prepared, I focus on speaking style, organization, and creativity, For Interp events, I look for creativity and style, I do not like extreme profanity or sexual material, in all debate, no speed, any arguments are acceptable, I lean towards organized, factual arguments, I do not like debates that “kick” arguments

Speech - Organized arguments, credible sources, practical solutions, relatability is probably the biggest thing for me. I love speeches where personalities show through and I can see how you are as a person.

Interp - Relatable pieces with big, distinguishable characters.

WSD - I want a conversational round with a crystallization of points at the end. Clear voters are always the way to go. POIs should be addressed consistently however not everyone needs to be taken.

For Lincoln Douglas and similar events:

Be respectful to each other and DO NOT FALL TO LOGICAL FALLACIES. I can keep up with spreading however I am not a fan do it at your own risk. Clashing during cross-examination is not optional however remain respectful and cordial to one another.

For single-acting events:

I am looking for fluidity between changing of characters, great acting, and a main message in your story.

For Duo and similar events:

I am looking for great chemistry between one another, movements that make sense and complement each other, great acting, and a main message within your story.

For extempt:

I am looking for a great attention-getter, a simple anddigestible exposition of the topic, cite your sources, and fluid transitions.

For oratory and similar events:

Looking for a great attention-getter, an interesting topic, creative ways to demonstrate your topic, cite sources if needed, and fluid transitions.

Thank You For Reading My Judge Paridigm!

In exemp rounds I'm looking for a clear answer to the question, and for you to uphold your answer with information that is cohesive and factual.

I was a long-time high school coach of CX, LD, PF and Congress and was a college policy debater MANY years ago.

If you want to put a title on my debate philosophy, I’d call myself a policymaker.

When I judge a round, I pay attention to my flow. I care about dropped arguments, and I don’t like the neg to run time suck arguments and then kick out. That said, be sure I can take a good flow by speaking at a reasonable rate of speed. If you feel you must speak quickly, at least give me a chance to catch your tag lines and source citations, or, better yet, provide a link to your case.

I have no issues with theoretical debate or critical arguments, so long as you make me understand them. That said, I still prefer to judge a round about the resolution instead of a round about whether or not someone was abusive.

LD should remain value based. Although some recent LD resolutions cry out for the debaters to present a plan, please don't neglect the value framework tradition.

In CX debate, I consider T to be an important argument in the round but will not vote on it unless I judge there has been actual in-round abuse.

LD debate should have a strong value component and avoid overt policy-making.

I judge Congress on content and delivery. This type of debate demands a strong and passionate public speaking style. Questioning is crucial to final score. I strongly dislike rehashed arguments. Clash is important, but it needs to have actual refutation and not just mentioning the names of previous speakers. I object to the recent trend toward doing all prep work in-round and the abuse of in-house recesses to allow this.

In all types of debate, don’t be rude to your opponent. Respect the activity with professional demeanor.

Elkins '20 | UT '24 | UHL '27

Email: rhasib01@gmail.com

I don't have experience with this topic

I did PF for 4 years

2 gold bids 3 silver bids

Overall

- I cannot keep up with speed. I cannot keep up with speed. I cannot keep up with speed. The quality of the debate is better when its at a reasonable pace

- I dont want your speech doc

- Reading any progressive arguments (theory, tricks, Ks, etc) = L20. Please strike me if you plan on reading these types of arguments, I will not vote for you.

- Sit or stand I don't mind

- Assume I'm ready at all times unless I say otherwise

General

- Tech > Truth. I'm going to vote for the team with the least mitigated link chain into the best-weighed impact

- If you do not sign post properly, I will miss a lot of your speech. This is VERY important.

- PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE frontline first AND THEN extend the argument, otherwise it looks like ur extending through ink until you decide to frontline.

- Defense you want to concede should be conceded in the speech immediately after it was originally read. a concession requires an implication of how the defense interacts with your argument not just "we concede to the delinks"

Rebuttal

- Frontlining turns in second rebuttal are crucial, any turns not frontlined in second rebuttal have a 100% probability

- I recommend collapsing starting 2nd rebuttal but it's up to you

- You don't have to extend at all in second rebuttal, just frontlining is cool with me

- Please do not read an offensive overview in second rebuttal

Summary Overall

- Do all extensions with author names and the warrant behind them

- If you want me to vote off case offense, you have to extend uniqueness - link - impact and then you should be good

- For turns - if you want to collapse on a turn in FF the extension has to have an impact ie: if you extend a link turn you also have to extend the other teams impact

First summary

- New evidence for frontlining is ok

- Defense is not sticky even in 1st summary, mb

Second summary

- You gotta extend defense

- Weighing has to start here if you want me to evaluate it in the round

Final focus

- Still extend uniqueness link and impact

- Extend weighing

- Mirroring your partners summary is key, don't extend anything that was not in summary

Cross

- Don't forget to time cross, happens way too much

- Cross is for yall more than it is for me

- I like cross makes the debate kind of interesting

- You can skip grand cross, up to you

Evidence

- I'll only call for evidence if it's SUPER important for the decision or the other team tells me to call for it

- If you take forever pulling up evidence I will be very mad

Post Round

- I'll disclose unless tourney directors say otherwise

- I presume neg if there is no offense in the round

Donts

- Spread on novices, if its clear that you are winning just show them respect and give them a chance to learn ie: explain the implications in cross in an understanding way

- If you still for some reason want to run something progressive and are doing it for an easy ballot because you know your opponents can't respond properly, L20

Have fun and let me know if you have any questions :)

Mostly an IE judge so be sure to speak confidently because I will be taking note of that, even though it won't be a huge factor in my decision it will be a factor. I am somewhat familiar with debate but not an expert. I have competed a few times in college Parliamentary tournaments, and this is my only debate experience. I am not familiar enough with Ks to feel comfortable judging them, so try to avoid those as much as possible. No spreading and no running disclosure theory, we’re trying to make this as fair and accessible as possible. Stand up while speaking, unless obviously you have a disability that prevents that. Overall, be nice because if you're especially rude to your opponents I will down you just on that.

Background

I am a debate coach and familiar with all formats of debate. Primary focus is now World Schools Debate. I have coached teams and competed on the international level with those teams so I am well versed in WSD. Embrace the format of this special debate. I don't enjoy seeing a PF attempt in this format-make the adjustment and be true to the form as intended for it to be.

Judging Paradigm

I'm a policy-maker at heart. Decisions will be flow-based focusing on impact calculus stemming from the question of the resolution.

If I'm not flowing, I'm either not buying your current argument or not appreciating your speaking style.

Play offense and defense; I should have a reason to vote FOR you, not just a reason to vote AGAINST your opponents.

WSD-Show me what the world looks like on your side of the motion-stay true to the heart of the motion

Style:

Manners

Yes, manners. Good debate is not rude or snarky. Do not let your primal need to savagely destroy your opponent cost you the round. Win with style and grace or find yourself on the wrong side of the ballot. You've been warned.

WSD- I love the passion and big picture

Speed

Speed is not a problem with me, it's probably more of a problem with you. Public Forum is not "Policy-lite" and should not be treated as such as far as speaking style goes. The beauty of PF should not get lost in trying to cram in arguments. Many times spreading in PF just tells me you need work in word economy and style. Feel free to speak at an elevated conversational rate displaying a rapid clarity that enhances the argument.

WSD-Don't even think about speed!

Organization

Speeches should follow the predetermined road map and should be signposted along the way. If you want an argument on the flow, you should tell me exactly where to flow it. If I have to make that decision for you, I may not flow it at all. I prefer your arguments and your refutation clearly enumerated; "We have 3 answers to this..."

Framework and Definitions

The framework (and definitions debate) should be an umbrella of fairness to both sides. The framework debate is important but should not be over-limiting to your opponents. I will not say "impossible" here, but winning the round without winning your framework is highly improbable. I am open to interpretation of the resolution, but if that interpretation is overtly abusive by design, I will not vote for your framework. That said, I caution your use of abuse stories. Most abuse arguments come off like whining, and nobody likes that. If a framework and accompanying definition is harmful to the debate, clearly spell out the impacts in those terms. Otherwise, provide the necessary (and much welcomed) clash. Most definition debates are extremely boring and a waste of time.

Final Focus

Your FF should effectively write the RFD for me. Anything less is leaving it up to my interpretation.

Good luck, and thank you for being a debater.

I am a speech judge who has been doing this for several years and is experienced in judging various interp events, platform events, as well as extemp. I look for clean and creative blocking for interp events and hope to see authenticity in the piece. Topics should be original with a fresh perspective and should have a cohesive argument. I appreciate preparedness including a fully memorized piece. Overall I look for performances that are fluid, easy to follow along while being captivating, and if you’ve invested time and passion into the performance!

Hey, my name is Emma Maughan and my first goal for you as a judge is for you to provide your best effort and have fun while you’re doing it. Something is wrong if you’re not having fun.recall, to communicate effectively, and with respect towards your peers,

In speech and interpretation:

1. In general, I search for appropriate gestures, deliberate movement, eye contact, tone, diction, and effective use of voice.

2.I love when you are able to capture the personalities and make them believable.

3.I enjoy attention-grabbing or compelling teasers that get me to sit up and take notice!

4.You should speak clearly and concisely.

I am an old school debate judge. Though I have only judged a few rounds of WSD this year, I have coached and judged WSD within the Houston Urban Debate League. I have also judged WSD at NSDA Nationals.
In debate, as in public speaking, I believe in effective communication; that translates to No Speed in delivery. In WSD, the status quo must be viewed within any plan offered. I have heard, and voted on, the Prop’s use of stock issues. Though I am not a fan of progressive cases. I do not like Kritiks. Like in policy debate, I prefer simple language without the use of jargon. Contentions/substantives must be clear along with source citation. If the debater has a contention with multiple cards, it is recommended that sub-pts be applied to link back to the main argument / claim. I prefer the impact of the argument to be stated at the end of each contention. In the warrant(s), I like examples that can be related to. Links need to be clear and present. Depending upon the resolution, I do enjoy hearing about a moral obligation, or the desirability or undesirability of the topic. I like professional interaction between the debaters during POI. Participation in POI have an effect on ranks. I like to see everyone at least ask two and take two questions, if possible. I am more a line by line judge on the flow. Direct clash is essential. Team members working together is very important. Speech/case organization is important, and should be relatively easy to follow.

Any other questions may be asked in the room.

In L-D:

I am a traditional judge. Value & Criteria are paramount…philosophically based. If the word “ought” is present, the moral obligation must be established. The Aff & Neg must show how their value and criteria outweighs their opponent. It must be shown how the value is achieved by the criteria. Contentions must be clear and signposted. Sub-pts within contentions for multiple cards are necessary to distinguish the sub-pt claim’s significance.

L-D is not policy debate. I prefer no plans, CP’s, stock issues, kritiks, or progressive cases. Direct clash and refutation is important.

I am an opponent of speed.

In Congressional Debate:

As a traditional judge, I am a huge proponent of effective persuasive speaking; no speed. I look for the fundamentals of speech structure. A speech must include, but not be limited too: An attention getter, signposting of main points, a logical and organized sequence, a summary and effective closing. Within the content of a speech, clash on previous speeches is necessary, while extending arguments. Participation in the chamber is essential. I frown on unprofessional behavior in the chamber during cross. Once a question is asked to a speaker, let the speaker answer. I do not like anyone speaking over each other.

Interp Events:

My rankings are usually based on who is able to create the most believable characters and moments. There should be multiple levels within your piece and in the portrayal of your characters ~ not everything should be intense, or fast/slow, or super loud or quiet.

Everything you do in your performance should have a purpose. If you give a character an accent, be consistent with that accent. Make sure that each movement, mannerism, or gesture makes sense within the scope of the story you are telling. Additionally, I should be able to easily differentiate between multiple characters. Facial expressions, moments, and character development are very important for the overall performance.

Speaking Events

A clear structure is important: your delivery should be cohesive, and flow logically from point to point. A natural delivery style that allows for your personality to shine is preferable to the “Platform Speaker”. Put simply: avoid speech patterns.

Extemp: The most important thing is that you answer the question. A polished speaking style is important, but I will often default to a speaker that has stronger analysis and evidence over a pretty speech with fluffy content. Do not rely on canned introductions - creativity is important when trying to engage me. Be sure you have several cited sources and have at least 5 quoted pieces of evidence to support your claims.

Oratory/Informative: Your attention getter, vehicle, and conclusion should be creative, but they also need to fit well with the topic. Again, I will default to stronger analysis/evidence over fluffy content. Again, use several cited sources and have quoted evidence for claims you are making in your speech.

Daniela Paul (She/Her/Hers)|University of Houston '27|danielasarapaul@gmail.com

include me in the email chain :), If i dont address something that youre specifically looking for in my paradigm ask me in round! i tried to include everything i could think of! also email me post round if i didn't cover something in rfd!

Okay, so at the top, regardless of the event you participate in, I expect respect. Idon't think I should have to stress this because it should be a matter of common respect, but please avoid being ableist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic, or sexist. I take a strong stance against any form of disrespect towards others' identities, both in and out of the round. Respect also means respect for yourself (be kind to yourself—debate and speech are designed to empower you as an individual and to showcase your talents and uniqueness), respect for the tournament and the people who are hosting/working on, and, most importantly, respect for your fellow competitors (don't be mean to the person you're competing against; it doesn't sit well with anyone).

Who is She?

Not that this matters much to the debate, but Hello! I’m Daniela! My pronouns are she/her/hers. I am a former debater for Clear Brook High School in Friendswood, Texas. I debated throughout all four years of high school and participated in various events. Some of my achievements include:

• 2023 Nationals outrounds (Worlds)
• 2023 UIL District 24 6-A CX champion and state qualifier
• 2022 UIL region qualifier (persuasive extemporaneous speaking)
• TFA state qualifier (Worlds)

I am currently studying at UH , majoring in political science, and I love for debate and speech. It's truly amazing to witness so many talented individuals dedicated to this! I respect your time and effort, and I will judge you fairly!

DEBATE

LD:

Signposting, Spreading, and All That Jazz: Signpost. Let me know where you are, what you're doing, and what you're extending. I aim to judge this debate as fairly and cleanly as possible, and signposting greatly facilitates that.As for spreading, I don't have a strong preference on level of speed. include me in speech drop or the email chain, whichever works best for you. email on the top of paradigm.

now the rest of the stuff:

1. Clear Value and Value Criterion: I expect both sides to establish a clear Value and Value Criterion and bring them down the bench.

2. Warrants: Dont do something stupid, if opponent stakes ev ethics, i will stop round, look through it, if the claim is proven true w30 for challenger

3. I love judge instruction
4. cx will be flowed, what u say in cx is true for the rest of round, Cx is just another speech to me
5. i try to stay out of round as much as possible, I will keep to my flow as much as possible, basically saying im gonna avoid judge intervention(as much as one possible can in a round) and dogmatism.

pref sheet: 1 being most comfortable and 5 being least comfortable

1- K ( not a cp, so explain and illustrate the alt. line by line >overview)

1- Plans/counterplans/disads (lmk if u need me to judge kick) (but also like lowk I also kinda ev this in a worlds way so i dont mind no cards for this stuff)

1- trad (Fairly simple, dont think i need to explain, but just cz ur trad does not mean you should not engage with opponent because of different db8 style)

2- Phil (but like in a political sci major that reads it for class sense not so much a debate sense? so extend this stuff throughly )

3- Theory (lowk this i can understand, I just dont like this, strike me if this ur main strategy)

5- trick (pls dont run this, idk how to even comprehend this stuff, strike me if ur planning on reading tricks)

tech>truth

PF:

Tech>Truth

defense is not sticky

ev analysis>

see pref sheet above!

Worlds:My bread and butter at a tournament :)

I largely agree with what is said in Eb's , Jon-carlo's, and Andy Stubbs's paradigms, so take a look at that as well if you want to!

General Guidelines and some other stuff: I am a very expressive person. PLEASE do not regard my expressions as an indicator of how I am eveluating your arguments. Its not indicative of my thought process, its literally just my expressions. That being said, Worlds is a relatively new form of debate compared to others, so organization and structure in your speeches are essential for me as a judge to follow and flow the debate clearly. I appreciate knowing where you are in your speech, which arguments you're extending, and which arguments you're refuting or disproving. Remember, Worlds is meant to be a conversational debate, so please avoid spreading. When it comes to Points of Information (POIs), they should be concise,not longer than 15 seconds, and presented respectfully without badgering or requesting follow-ups.

Structure and Fair Play: I believe in maintaining a fair playing ground for both sides. Abusive definitions or interpretations won't incentivize me to vote for a side, assuming we operate under reasonable terms. It's important to identify the stakeholders, the groups affected by the motion, and explain how your stance benefits or affects them. This clarity makes it easier for me to assess and vote on burdens. burdens should be presented, and if the opposing team presents a burden, you should be able to defend your burden as the better criteria for my vote or win on both burdens. I tend to to give more on my ballot to those who address the motions intended debate and do not become conditional with stance (i.e. Embracing the motion in full opp or in full prop). Furthermore I think this debate focus on the verb in the motion itself (i.e. prefers, regrets, believes, would, etc, etc) and so your debate and arguements intentions are heavily dependent on this factor. otherwise put(or like an example if you will), if its a would motion I expect to see policy and etc etc.

Model/Countermodels or Factuals/Counterfactuals: I appreciate well-done model/countermodel or factual/counterfactual arguments when they are presented correctly. If you introduce one, be prepared to extend, explain, and defend it. I need to understand how it benefits the real world, how it mechanizes into the real world, and how it relates to the motion. Characterization is essential - explain why an actor is the way they are, what they will do, and why it's crucial. Simply establishing it is not enough for me.

Arguments: I value principled arguments that are well-explained and topical to the motion. These are great arguments to extend and can win you the debate. BUT they need good analysis, simply establishing its a principle is not assured path to ballot if it ends up becoming principle v practical, They need to exist morally INDEPENDENT of the motions practical, or in other words this moral argument is existing even if the worst practical happens on the opponent case! if its not like that, then its likely you dont have a principle argument. Practical arguments need to be supported by evidence or emperics, or they should be logically sound and explained thoroughly that leaves no room for doubt regarding the implications of the practical argument. No matter what argument you present, it should be extended and explained well, leaving no room for otherwise interpretation. On the rebuttal, it's a solid strategy to acknowledge empirical truths and focus on showing why the benefits or harms on your side outweigh or is preferable to the world where the empirical truth still exists (basically just bite the bullet, but this does NOT mean all bullets should be bitten). Dont waste time to avoid the empirics basically. then I love to see mech weighing or warrant weighing, i feel like under both sides of the motion impacts can be grouped together, so I love it when teams are able to prove why their mech is comparatively better than the opponents. that being said, give me the comparative under literally every argument you make, worlds is a comparitive debate at heart.

Weighing: When it comes to weighing, consider the following

1. Clash: Did you properly address the opponent's arguments with line-by-line rebuttal and meta-analysis ? Explain, weigh, and clarify the role of the arguments. Make sure youre not avoiding the big picture arguements either, some clash is better than NONE at all.
2. World-by-world comparison: Ensure both worlds are clearly established. Describe what the opponent's world looks like and how it compares to your world. Explain why your world is superior. I should feel confident in voting for your world because I understand it and am comfortable with it. remember this is a comparative debate at its very core, simply taking a defesnsive stance and proving your opponents world is bad, without showing me the comparative and proving to me that your world is better than opponents is not going to win my ballot. This means engaging on this idea with EVERY arguement or point of clash you have.

Speech:

Info and OO: I appreciate creativity and prefer specific topics. Speeches should be well-memorized. I enjoy engaging speeches that cover intresting topics, and good visuals and movement during the speech.

POI, Prose, Poetry, DI, and DUO: I believe that each piece should have its unique personality, and I judge based on how well that personality is depicted. It's important to address the heart of each piece and the emotions it conveys.

Extemp: I expect organization, sources, and, most importantly, that the topic is thoroughly addressed.

I am a traditional LD and PF judge.

Persuasion is necessary. Moderate spreading is okay.

If you make a non-topical argument, I will not evaluate it.

Interp Events-

- I focus on solid storytelling. The most important piece of the puzzle is the script, please don't forget to hold true the story as a whole even though we are only seeing ten minutes of it.Connecting to the audience, it's about telling the story to us, so a solid connection to the audience is important. We want to laugh and cry with you. Cleanliness does impact my ranking, Dont forget you are not speaking FOR them, you are speaking AS them. It is an ownership that you should take seriously. If you don't tell the story, how will they continue to live?

SPEAKING EVENTS/Debate

• Be specific with the topic at hand
• Not a fan pf spreading
• please be respectfull
• I pay the most attention during cross, like a lot. So please keep that in mind

Make sure your speech flows and each point connects to the last and the next.

• - We may not know anything about the topic at hand, think of yourself as a professor sharing knowledge, teach us.
• If you stumble over your words, keep going forward, don't go back unless that information was so important you need to recover it.

- Strong supporting material is key, like any good research paper the more recent the source the better. And with that strong source material is also important to the strength and legitimacy of your speech.

- Solid confident delivery style

I am a more traditional LD judge. I listen for solid framework, outweighed value/criterion packages, strongly linked contentions, and sound line-by-line rebuttals. Speed that does not interfere with my understanding of your case and why it better upholds your side won't bother me, but if it does, and I'm lost, you've lost.

I also prize good sportsmanship in a round. Don't simply dominate your opponent; add value to the round with sound reasoning and crystallization in the final speech in a way that we all know who won the round at the end of it.

Background: I competed for The Woodlands College Park High School (Class of 2023) a little during my junior year and mostly during my senior year. I've dabbled in WSD and Policy, but I mainly did PF and Domestic Extemp, which I qualified for 2023 UIL Regionals in.

IE (mainly tailored for Extemp):
1) Make sure your speech is coherent, articulate, and flows well.

2) Try to have a unique/quirky attention grabber at the start to distinguish yourself!

3) I like hearing about statistics and information from trustworthy sources to support your talking points.

General Debate:

1) Please be respectful (don't yell or interrupt speeches unnecessarily) and don't get aggressive (don't use petty commentary or Ad Hominem arguments).

2) Please give me a roadmap before your speeches so I can have a more accurate flow for the round, make sure to extend your arguments throughout the round, spend some time on weighing mechanisms at the end, and try to use up all of your speech time.

3) I'm fine with speed as long as you aren't sacrificing clarity (I look down on slurring or mumbling words at any point during speeches).

4) Do not be deceitful. Examples include trying to get me to vote on some random argument that was not elaborated on, mislabeling arguments, and telling me your opponent dropped arguments during your final speech if they didn't.

PF specific:

1) Do not try to run theory arguments or counterplans.

Policy specific:

1) I will allow spreading for Policy if both parties agree to it beforehand (just make sure you maintain speech clarity).

2) I like solid counterplans and kritiks. Please do your best to avoid using theory unnecessarily.

WSD specific:

1) Make sure each speaker tries to take at least 1 POI per speech.

2) Try and give good examples whenever you're allowed to to better support your stance.

As a IE judge I look for a clean and polished performance. Good Analysis and Interpretation of characters and a powerful performance.

For Speaking events - Structure and Sources are important as well as a polished performance.

For Debate - LD I prefer a traditional format and value debate. PF I want to see clash, evidence and a clear job going down the flow to show rebuttals of arguments.

I am conflicted with Cypress Park High School

Background:

I debated in HS for 3 years. In that time I attended the TOC, TFA State, UIL Regionals, and circuit debated primarily in LD. I did dabble in student congress, CX, and PF as well. While I primarily focused on debate, I did also participate in several speaking events. After leaving HS in 2014, I went to college and began mentoring for HUDL, assisted in coaching, and became a private debate tutor. I have been judging and providing support since. I graduated from the University of Houston in 2019 with a BA in Philosophy/Minor in Political Science. As of Jan. 2024, I have accumulated 13 years of experience.

All debate: Quality over quantity is requested. I will be making a decision wholly based on what is presented to me within the round. Do not expect me to jump to do the heavy lifting for you. I will be considering quality of arguments, speaking style, decorum, unique perspective, and case strength with emphasis on arguments extending across the flow through the round. Speed of speaking is no issue for me to track so long as contestants are articulate. HOWEVER, spreading, to be clear, is not encouraged by any means unless it is a policy round. All contestants are expected to keep their own time and strickly adhere to it. Overages in time will not be tolerated.

CX: Preference given to line by line in closing speeches. Strongly opposed to cases focusing only on kritiks. I am not as familiar with CX as with other styles and require more hand holding through the round if you want me to track along.

LD: Strong value/criterion are a must in all cases. Contestants will be judged on their ability to support their value/criterion with relevant arguments within their case, as well as direct arguments towards their opponent. Kritiks and counterplans will be strongly opposed as valid framework for your case. I will often vote you down if you insist upon these strategies. I won't go as far as saying all hope is lost, but you have quite a bit more ground to cover if you insist on using policy strategy. All constestants are expected to bring arguments and voting points across the flow for consideration. I will not flow if you spread. Do not spread.

PF: No preference in style/presentation with exception given to spreading. Spreading is not preferred - contestants will be judged on the quality of arguments in relation to their opponents. Arguments made in crossfire will not be voted on unless they are extended to rebuttal. Arguments extended in summary speeches will not be voted on even if they are introduced in crossfire (if they were not previously in rebuttal speeches).

Congress: All contestants will be ranked based on the entirety of their participation in the session. This includes quality of questioning, participation in speeches, quality of speech presentation, ability to cooperate with others on passing or failing legislation, ability to stay within speaking time, and quantity of participating speeches. Presiding officer will be ranked based on their ability to adhere to Robert's Rules of Order, proper lingo, ability to keep session organized and timely, creation of the docket, and ability to be fair and impartial in selection of speakers.

For debate rounds, I vote for whoever has the better argument in the round.

I was a LD debater in high school and I currently debate in college. I primarily did progressive debate so Im well versed in different debate styles and arguments. This also means I wouldn't recommend running anything you don't understand well. I mainly look for big picture debate which means weighing and voters are appreciated. Speed is fine. I don't like frivolous theory but will buy it if argued correctly. If possible please have your case already flowed before you enter the room. I don't really like card readers, like obviously when needed but not every speech. There's value in analytical arguments. Don't be rude to one another, have fun!

Coach at THE Atascocita High School

PUT ME ON THE EMAIL CHAIN: John.Rogers@humbleisd.net

I debated for New Caney High School for three years and have completed my seventh year as a high school coach. My program competes primarily throughout the Houston TFA circuit and has a heavy focus on Congressional Debate, Original Oratory, and Dramatic Interpretation. I judge as needed at local invitational TFA tournaments and have experience judging all debate events, with the exception of World Schools.

CONGRESS:

Presiding Officer Philosophy- If the PO runs a flawless chamber, it is almost certain that they will advance to the next round, especially if they were the only one volunteering to do so.

I like to see all of the normal things we look for within a speech (arguments, evidence, responses to arguments from previous speakers, etc.). Offense is key.

Pet Peeves- (1) Do not tell the PO you have a speech when gathering splits and then not have a speech for the chamber. This makes for bad debate. (2) Faux outrage in order to gain a ballot is annoying. Refrain from shouting and pretending to be angry about something that you don't have a personal stake/connection in/to. (3) Questioning should not be a competition of who can scream over who. It's not a shouting match. (4) Gotcha questions and questions that you already know the answer to are annoying.

CX Shortcuts (1-YES; 5-STRIKE):

T/Theory: 3
DA: 1
CP:1
Conditionality: 4
K: 4

General CX:

· From the 1AR of one of my favorite former Kingwood HS debaters, “You’re a policymaker. You vote on one of three things: (1) a policy option, (2) a competing policy option, or (3) the Status Quo.” I think that this debater did a great job of describing pathways to win my ballot.

· I don’t like intervening in debate rounds. However, I have to write a ballot. My suggestion for all debaters is to use your rebuttal speeches to write my RFD for me. I’m very fond of “even if” strategies when it comes to ordering arguments of importance (Ex: “You vote NEG because of _____. Even if you don’t buy that, you vote NEG because of ___.”)

· Tech > Truth (Please note that I’m reevaluating this idea each time I hear a terrible argument. I don’t recommend counting on me dismissing an argument on a truth standard. I DO recommend going line-by-line.)

· PREP TIME ends when your flash drive leaves your computer. If we’re on an email chain, which I prefer, you will see me get frustrated if I feel you’re stealing prep.

· Line-by-line is important. This is where clash should happen. When you read a long overview, and even though most of y’all tell me to flow it on a separate sheet of paper, those arguments don’t ever cross over to my flow. This is where arguments are missed and, possibly, rediscovered post RFD.

· I will presume NEG in policy rounds due to unlimited prep for the AC. I will, from time to time, depending on the quality of the argument, go for the “any risk of [impact solvency] you vote AFF” in the absence of any negative offense. I will NOT presume NEG for a counter advocacy other than the status quo.

· NEG STRAT: Not a fan of negative teams that go more than 4-5 off.

Speaks:

· In really good rounds, I don’t have a problem giving more than one speaker a 29.5. I don’t tend to give tenths of points other than halves. My speaks in these rounds usually averages somewhere around 28.5.

· I will tank your speaks if you use arguments to attack debaters personally. You should be responding to the argument itself, not assuming that the argument represents the debater that is making it. Same goes to being rude and/or disrespectful to other debaters.

o With that said, I love aggressive debate. If your level of aggressive toes the line of aggressive and disrespectful, I’ll err on aggressive when it comes to my ballot and just make a comment to you at the end of the round.

o Anything overboard that deserves more than just a warning, I’ll stop the round and give you a loss (this hasn’t happened yet throughout my career).

Speed:

· I’m about a 6/10. I can give you a little room to go faster if I have your doc in front of me on my computer.

· Please slow down on your tag lines so as to help me flow. I don’t tend to flow authors unless they’re addressed in the round, so please let me know what the author said (the tag), let me find it on the appropriate flow, and THEN give me your analysis.

-If you try to read at a 10/10 pace and mumble over half of your evidence, that is grounds for 25 speaks. This is almost the same thing as clipping to me.

Disadvantages:

· Go for it.

· Full, 4-card DAs are best for a 1NC.

· Case-specific links are best. As debates get better, I like to see more unique DAs that are more specific to the AFF. Then again, I’m probably more familiar with the generic DAs, so you do you.

Counterplans:

· Go for it.

· Not a fan of multiple CPs as a neg strat.

Impact Calc:

· Please be sure to evaluate risk of impacts instead of making the round about how a nuclear war is definitely going to happen. Appropriately evaluating impacts improves quality of debates tremendously.

K Debate:

· This is probably not the best way to my ballot, but I’d love for a good K team to help me change this mindset.

· While I understand real-life impacts are present in our society (structural violence, racism, sexism), I’d prefer to have some kind of policy solution to these problems rather than just talk about them. I will roll my eyes if the word "reimagine" is in the text of your ALT.

· I have not read any of your literature. I am not familiar with any of your literature. Please make appropriate adjustments if you choose this strategy.

· Not at all a fan of non-topical affirmatives. 1AC should always have a plan text.

Ethical Challenges/Cheating:

· If there is an accusation of cheating, the round will stop, and the burden of proof is on the accuser to prove that the accused cheated. If cheating is proven, the round will be awarded to the accuser, if cheating is not proven the round will be awarded to the accused. 30 speaks for winning team; 20 speaks for losing team. The purpose of this is to discourage false accusations, but at the same time encourage teams to challenge if they have solid evidence that cheating has occurred.

· Debaters are accountable for the evidence that they read. I will be a little more lenient if the card is from a camp file, but that does not excuse blatant misrepresentation/academic dishonesty.

Hi i’m Ashley! I attended Jersey Village High School and was an executive council member for the varsity debate team for 3 years. I’ve competed in Tfa state,Nsda, and Uil tournaments for 4 years but my main event to judge is World Schools Debate but overall I judge everything including ie’s, speech, and debate events. Time signals can always be given if wanted :)

Debate overall:

• I will be flowing the round but my flow will not be in my comments. I will provide feedback in my comments and if asked will provide verbal feedbacks.
• Please be civil and respectful during the round there is a difference between being assertive and or witty v.s just being rude.
• I judge mostly on content and argumentation.
• Please do not spread :|
• I would appreciate and prefer off time roadmapping before speeches.
• You are allowed to time yourselves but I will be timing as well so try not to go overtime.

LD/PF:

• I like structured arguments ( claim, warrant, impact ).
• I put heavy emphasis on weighing when judging so make sure you show me that your impacts are more probable/severe.
• When clashing make sure you emphasize why your evidence is better than your opponents especially when your opponent is saying the complete opposite. Repeat your strongest evidence against them and provide a solid link to your argument.
• I flow crossfire.
• Make sure to try to address all of your opponents main points and don’t ignore or drop them. If your opponent has completely ignored a main point in your argument make sure to bring up their lack of rebuttal.
• Again do not spread as this is NOT Policy debate! I do not mind stuttering and would rather you take a second to recollect your thoughts than feel worried about not speaking fast enough.

WSD:

• For content make sure to provide solid international examples in your arguments as this is WORLD schools. I prefer less hypothetical evidence but if stated make sure the hypothetical is actually likely to happen or at least even be plausible.
• For style I really like well structured speeches with off time roadmapping but I also like some sort of personality in the speech as that’s what makes this event so fun! Good attention getters, anecdotes and humor would be really interesting to hear just make sure not to be blatantly rude to your opponent.
• For strategy structure your team in order of who’s best for each speaking position. Make sure your substantives and rebuttals are carried throughout the bench consistently and answer and ask POI’s as I do evaluate them.
• Again do not spread as this is NOT Policy debate! I do not mind stuttering and would rather you take a second to recollect your thoughts than feel worried about not speaking fast enough.
• I put heavy emphasis on weighing of worlds when judging so make sure you show me how your world is most beneficial under your burden.
• Clearly define your definitions. If your definition has been challenged please address it ASAP.
• Make sure to try to address all of your opponents main substantives and don’t ignore or drop them. If your opponent has completely ignored a main point in your argument make sure to bring up their lack of rebuttal.
• When clashing make sure you emphasize why your evidence is better than your opponents especially when your opponent is saying the complete opposite. Repeat your strongest evidence against them and provide a solid link to your argument.

Extemp:

• Make sure you structure your speech when answering the question.
• Questionable facts will be checked!
• Try not to fidget so much but including movements like hand gestures and moving when transitioning to the next point (triangle method) is great!
• Try to include around 2-3 sources within your speech and include an attention getter preferably one that can connect to your conclusion and has a little personality and or humor.
• Try to maintain good eye contact and tone of voice. I do not mind stuttering and would rather you take a second to recollect your thoughts than feel worried about not speaking fast enough.
• You are allowed to time yourselves but I will be timing as well so try not to go overtime.

Speech:

• I like organized speeches with credible sources.
• Try not to sound monotone the whole speech, the most crucial parts of your speech should be distinguishable.
• I really like humor, relatability and personal connections as it can really let personalities shine through.
• Please shed light on the importance of your topic that we listened to for 10 minutes, and how we benefit from being aware of the solutions or just being aware of the topic overall.
• Try not to fidget so much. Move with your points and include some hand gestures.
• I do not mind stuttering and would rather you take a second to recollect your thoughts than feel worried about not speaking fast enough.
• Try to maintain good eye contact and tone.

Interp:

• A big thing for me is to be able to understand and follow the plot of the piece, try to make sure your piece is cut into a clear narrative.
• Try to make sure your teaser does not appear confusing to your audience.
• I really like clearly defined transitions!
• Try not to sound monotone and use dynamics throughout your piece.
• Make sure to show the ranges of emotions throughout your piece not just yelling.
• It is extremely crucial to me to be able to also distinguish characters from each other and I really like when I see clear developments within characters throughout the story.
• I really like the use of creative blocking but make sure it’s not confusing.
• Make sure your intro contextualizes the theme/topic of your piece well.
• I do not mind stuttering and would rather you take a second to recollect your thoughts than feel worried about not speaking fast enough.
• Try to maintain good eye contact and tone.

If you have any questions about my paradigms or judging style you’re more than welcome to ask :)

Individual events: in extemp, I'm looking for you to first answer the question and then answer the question with the best possible information that you can give that is factual. My expertise is more on the domestic side but I can do international extent with some basic knowledge of what it is that's going on around the world. Also what I'm looking for is a person that reads like a human encyclopedia or a human archive newspaper person who knows all the facts of the question that is being given them. I can also be flexible in terms of politics but the politics has to still come across as somewhat neutral in nature.

In drama and humor, what I look for the most is a performance that makes me forget that you are performing the peace and that you have somehow become the characters that you have portrayed. The more I get into your peace the better your chances at winning in this event.

My favorite category is original oratory. In oratory all that I look for is for you to tell me a topic and give me all the information that is there. Make sure your sources are correct and that you're not trying to be too showy and sometimes even more natural will get the job done for me.

In duo interp what I always do is that I always look at both performers I'm not looking for a performance where it's just an exchange of lines but what feels like a real dialogue. I'm also looking to see what happens when the other partner is not speaking and if they are performing their character while not being able to speak. You must be in character at all times during the performance.

In prose and poetry, it is similar to what I look for in drama and humorous. I'm looking for performance where I'm no longer seeing a person reading something and more like feeling like you are very much in character in telling a story.

In big questions, your arguments are still important but just like in public forum I look at what it is that is said during The question period. More information can be gleaned from asking questions then what it is that is said during regular arguments.

LD: I will honestly say the I don't judge LD in the traditional sense and I draw my decisions based on my IE and PF experiences. Like PF your cross and rebuttal speeches usually wins the day in my eyes so if you can extract good counter information in cross and use it in rebuttal, then you'll likely get the win.

PF: I put more weight on crossfire than anything else. Be efficient to get your points across and you will win the debate.

I put more emphasis on your time during crossfire because of the shared time for all four speakers. If you use the time efficiently, you should get the win.

Congress: the key to winning Congress is a simple case of taking the chamber seriously and delivering your speeches to say three things. The first thing that you're saying is that you read the bill completely and understand it. The second thing you want to say is that not only do I understand it but my position is this way because I researched it. And the third thing you want to say is that you want to be able to say that you put the time and the effort to push the bill forward because it's the right thing to do. As long as you move the legislation and you don't bother down the bay with amendments and points of order that are unnecessary you are going to go far. If you aren't designing officer it's almost the opposite of what has to happen because as long as you are not cold out and as long as you stay fair and if you keep yourself practically anonymous during the session you'll also do well.

Being the presiding officer it means that you have to dedicate your life and your time at the chamber to the speakers and making sure everybody speaks when they're supposed to. I compare being a presiding officer in a congress chamber the same way of football offensive lineman in a football game. When they barely know you, you've done your job. When you're constantly being pointed out for the mistakes that you made, then you haven't done your job. Presiding officers will always rank high and in the top half of my ballot as long as the chamber is running well and everybody seems satisfied in his or her control of the chamber and considering it's a thankless job that has you not even being able to speak.

I judge on the premise of what did you do to move legislation forward during a session.

My primary judging experience includes the Northeast and Texas regions.

I believe that everyone has a voice which needs a platform to embrace self-expression, unique personalities, and the social construct of expressive speech in a safe, nurturing environment. As long as we follow the words of Benjamin Franklin, "Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment," for ignorance shall not prevail!

It is imperative to be polite, purposeful. and punctual.

With Lincoln Douglas (LD), I prefer traditional value and criterion debate, impact calculus, solvency, and line-by-line. Speech should have obvious organization which allows me to make a well-informed decision, focusing on presentation, logic, argumentation, and conclusion with a summary to wrap up the topic presented.

With Public Forum (PF), I prefer line-by-line, impact calculus, solid evidence from valid sources, be polite, and time yourselves. There should be a pre-determined resolution based on current events and trends. I should hear valuable insights. If you are providing a "filler", this will guarantee a low score, especially if it is personally offensive to the opponent or other marginalized groups.

With World Schools, I prefer obvious teamwork, focused on the issue presented with in-depth, quality argumentation creating solves with real-world examples while challenging the opposing team on a principled level.

With Congress, I look for proper parliamentary procedures and clarity of delivery through rigor, focused on democracy and clarity of ideas, seriousness in demeanor, and effective empowerment in speaking extemporaneously about the topic. Authenticity with clear speaking points such as sentence structure, eye contact, transitions, and word choice. The standard of decorum must be met.

In terms of speaking events, be purposeful when presenting the piece(s) to the extent that I feel as if you wrote it and expressed it with rigor, intensity, and passion.

You've got this!

Sonya Smith

I like clean, clear, concise, warranted arguments and responses. Speed is not an issue as long as you are organized and coherent.Slow down if speed interferes with the flow of ideas.I think conditional arguments are abusive and cause me to intervene. Theory can be a voter if arguments are developed and applied. Generic theory arguments are a waste of time. I appreciate debaters making logical arguments that are specific to the round instead of reading prepared responses. A sense of humor is appreciated. Crystallize issues in rebuttals. Tell me how you want me to weigh arguments in the round and which arguments are voters. Use CX time to clarify issues and to establish your strategy.

Performance events should be polished. Characters should be engaging and have definite vocal and physical characteristics. The piece should have different emotional levels. Movement should make sense.

A quick note about myself:

Hi. My name is Jackson. I competed for Northland Christian School in Houston for four years. I have an extensive background in congress. It was my primary event. I competed in nat circuit tournaments like Berkeley, Emory, TOC, Sunvite, and others.

Congress:

-Before reading into this: don't feel like you need to change yourself as a debater. I understand people have different styles and techniques. I will equitably evaluate all of these.

- Facts first. You aren't making this activity educational by making things up.

- Relevant and captivating introductions will get even the most experienced judge's attention.

- I like hearing direct lines and quotations from your evidence. Sometimes paraphrasing is necessary. Use good judgment here.

- Cite your evidence to the full extent that you can (don't leave out author, date, etc. when that info is made available in the book or article). Make it easy for me to find your evidence!

- Think about the kind of speech you are about to give. Is it a constructive AFF/NEG, Rebuttal, Crystallization, Refutation, Combination? Remember that this is a debate event. Just as LD or PF starts the round with constructive speeches to set that debater's position, the first few aff/negs in congress do the same. As you get further along in an item, the speeches should be getting more conclusive/overviewing.

- Be careful about tautological arguments.

- As the PO, you will start at 1 and can move down with errors. Please be efficient. I'm not asking you to abbreviate parliamentary procedure but think about your word economy when calling for speakers and questioners. This could make the difference between a few more speeches happening or not. If you run against someone to get to the seat, I will expect more from you.

LD, PF, & Policy:

If you get me for these, don't spread. It would be best for you to stay topical, but if you decide to take the theory route, I will listen.

Everyone:

- Have fun :)

- Be respectful, civil, and kind

- Think of what you are about to say. Is it problematic and potentially harmful to someone? If you don't know, think of something else to say!