SPEECH, DEBATE, AND THEATRE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Held: May 5, 2015
Board Action: June 17, 2015
Recommend an addition to Section 5-A: For contests held on Monday thru Thursday nights you may
combine a maximum total of six rounds of competition to equal one tournament. Partial contests
shall be rounded up so that a student who has participated in less than six rounds of weeknight contests,
will be deemed to have used one full contest of their 11 eligible tournaments, meets or festivals.
Recommend to change Section 5-D-3-(a-b) as follows:
Public Forum Debate
b. The district and state tournaments shall use the NFL topic for March. NSDA topic for the month
in which the tournament is held.
Recommend to change Section 5-2-b as follows:
Lincoln-Douglas Debate
b. The district and state tournaments shall use the NSDA topic for March/April NSDA topic for the
month in which the tournament is held.
Recommend to approve recommendation #1 from the Debate Scheduling Committee:
Recommend to to strike the following statement on page 28, Section 11-B-1(b)-i.
A school’s stronger team shall be designated its “A” team.
Recommend to approve recommendation #2 from the Debate Scheduling Committee:
Recommend to strike and add the following language to Section 11-B-1(b)-I, to replace, A school’s
stronger team shall be designated its “A” team. A school’s stronger team need not be designated
its “A” team.
Recommend to approve recommendation #3 from the Debate Scheduling Committee:
Recommend additional language to Section 11-A-2 and Section 11-B-1(b)i in regards to the
drawing of debate codes.
11-A-2: The manager shall establish a time by which all teams must arrive in order to draw debate
codes and after that time, a proxy shall be used to draw codes. Districts with 12 or fewer schools
entered in all debate events may, upon agreement from a majority of coaches with debate
entries, draw for debate codes up to 72 hours in advance of the first day of debate.
11-B-1(b)i: On the day of debate, when all debate entries have registered, each coach shall draw a
number(s) which shall be used to identify his/her team(s) throughout the tournament, and determine
the teams his/her school will meet. (See Section 11-A-2).
Recommend additional language to Section 7-B-1-b, 7-B-2-c and 7-B-3-d to read.
NOTE: Teams using flash drives will officially end their prep time when the flash drive is physically
removed from the computer.
Recommend to change Section 7-B-2-c as follows to allow for more consistency in prep time for all
tournaments:
NOTE: Each debater will be allowed a total of three four minutes of preparation time during the course
of the debate to be divided as he/she sees fit.
Recommend to add to all “new” Policy ballots that are produced: “Reason For Decision” in the same
manner as is currently listed on Public Forum and Lincoln-Douglas ballots.
(Next Page)
Recommend to add MSHSAA Rules for Laptop Use as Appendix J to the MSHSAA Speech/Debate/Theatre
Manual.
Recommend to change the language in Section 7-B-5(h) and (k) as follows:
h. If possible, the host school will provide chairs, stools, and reading stands. If these are not available, the
manager will notify the participating schools so they can bring their own. In addition, free standing ladders
and/or cubes boxes may be used but participating schools will be responsible for bringing their own. NOTE:
Ladders and/or cubes boxes may be used only for the same purpose as stools. A cube is defined as an object
with 6 equal dimensioned sides. A free standing ladder is one which stands by itself with no assistance from
any other object.
k. Stage movement and business shall be limited; the narrator may move about and the compositional grouping
may change. No props or set pieces shall be allowed other than scripts, stools, chairs, free standing ladders,
cubes boxes and reading stands, none of which may be decorated, beyond a single color per object. A cube is
defined as an object with 6 equal dimensioned sides. A free standing ladder is one which stands by itself with
no assistance from any other object.
*** Recommend to change pay for OAP and RT judges at the district tournament addressed in Section 10-F-1. 1. Readers Theatre, One-Act Play and Speech event judges shall be paid $50.00 per day, provided
the individual judges a minimum of 5 hours, and shall be paid $25.00 per half day, and provided the
individual judges a minimum 2.5 hours. Judges completing less than a full day or half day as designated
above shall be paid at the rate of $9.00 per hour actually spent judging. All Readers Theatre and One-Act
Play judges shall be paid at the rate of $9.00 per hour actually spent judging.
Amended:
Recommend to change pay for OAP and RT judges at the district tournament as addressed in Section 10-F-1.
1. Reader’s Theatre and One-Act Play: judges shall be paid $9 per entry judged.
2. Speech (Individual Events): judges shall be paid at $9.00 per round judged.
3. Debate: Policy Debate judges shall be paid $9.00 per round judged. Lincoln-Douglas and Public
Forum debate judges shall be paid $4.50 per flight judged, ($9 per round judged).
4. Travel expenses: When a judge must be secured from outside of the city in which the tournament is held,
the individual shall be reimbursed for transportation expenses at the rate of 38 cents per mile per car actually
driven if the judge travels by automobile, or shall be reimbursed for other transportation expenses actually
incurred. Any meals provided to judges by the host school shall not be charged to expenses of the tournament
without pre-approval by the MSHSAA office.
5. All expenses incurred in the administration of the district event must be approved by the MSHSAA Office.
Recommend to change language in Section 7-B-6-c (DI) and Section 7-B-8-c (HI) to eliminate the following:
This event is an oral interpretation. Characterization and action are to be suggested rather than represented.
Contestants shall be required to stand in place except for minor stance alterations. Communication of the
interpreter's understanding of the ideas and mood of the scene is of primary importance.
Recommend to add item iv to Section 7-12-b for Radio Speaking to include.
iv. Not portray multiple characters.
* Denied
** Tabled for further study
*** Approved as amended
**** No Action
All others approved