Here are your Nationals updates for this week, Coach!
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Free Lunch for Students » We are excited to once again offer free lunch for competitors at Nationals! This year, free lunch will be available Monday through Thursday at all competition sites for competitors. Menus will be available soon, and all lunches will have gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian substitutes available upon request.
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Meals for Adults » Adults at schools can purchase a meal ticket from the concessions stand for the same meals served to students at schools for $6 using cards or cash. Adults at the Iowa Events Center may purchase from various food vendors, which will only accept cards. Lunch is not provided for judges, but light continental breakfast offerings will be available for judges in the hospitality lounge and snacks will be available throughout the day.
- Concessions » Concessions at all school locations will accept cards and cash. Concessions at the Iowa Events Center will only accept cards.
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Double Check Your Registration
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The registration deadline for Nationals was May 15. All entries, fees, judges, and materials are overdue. Please double check your registration on Tabroom.com! Issues will be flagged with a red X in the "Status" column on the "General" tab and must be resolved ASAP. For detailed instructions for how to solve registration issues, visit this document.
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Meet the 2025 National High School Coach of the Year
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We're thrilled to announce that Kelley Kirkpatrick has been named the 2025 High School Coach of the Year! Kelley was selected for her tireless dedication to inspiring students to believe in themselves, building a nationally competitive team at a Title I school, and leading efforts that have strengthened students, programs, and the speech and debate community across Washington. Learn more about Kelley »
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Congress Docket Now Available
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Preliminary, semifinal, and final round legislation is now available for high school and middle school. Thank you to the students who submitted legislation! Other tournament topics including resolutions, topic areas, round themes, prepared motions are also available.
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Last Chance for Judge Grants
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To strengthen our judge pool, we are offering a limited number of National Tournament Judge Grants to help offset the costs of travel, lodging, and meals for judges not currently planning to attend Nationals. Applications are due Thursday, May 23! Learn more or apply »
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Congratulations to the 2025 Student of the Year Finalists
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Join us in congratulating our 2025 Student of the Year finalists! These six students won their district awards and then were selected as national finalists by a panel of coaches. They will interview with a panel on Sunday at Nationals, and the winner will be announced during the National Awards Assembly Friday night.
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Internet and Generative Artificial Intelligence Usage at Nationals
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Internet Usage » Use of the internet is permitted in Extemp Prep and Commentary Prep and during round in all forms of debate except for World Schools. No electronic devices are permitted in World Schools rounds. This means that students will not be reading arguments off of their laptops, even in prepared rounds. The only exception is that a cell phone in airplane mode can be used for timing only. Debaters in World Schools should come prepared with their materials printed, as we will not have printers available at the competition venue. Please review the “Current Guidelines for Use of Internet-Enabled Devices” in the Unified Manual.
Generative AI » In events in which speeches must be the original created work of a competitor (OO, INF, IX, USX, SW, EXC, IMP, EXP), students are prohibited from quoting or paraphrasing text directly from generative AI sources. Generative AI should not be cited as a source. The exception is that a student delivering a speech about the topic of AI may quote AI to illustrate their points about AI, in accordance with existing quoted word limits. While generative AI may be used to guide students to articles, ideas, and sources, the original source of any quoted or paraphrased evidence must be available if requested.
In debate events, generative AI should not be cited as a source; while generative AI may be used to guide students to articles, ideas, and sources, the original source of any quoted or paraphrased evidence must be available if requested.
In Interpretation events, students are prohibited from performing material created by generative AI sources. Generative AI should not be used as a source of material; while generative AI may be used to guide students to articles, ideas, and material, the original source of any material that is performed must be available if requested.
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Celebrating the 2025 Administrator of the Year
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We're excited to name Marc Kerschner as the 2025 Administrator of the Year! Marc is an NSDA alum whose lifelong connection to speech and debate, unwavering advocacy, and volunteerism has championed student voice and this activity in profound, lasting ways for students at Cheyenne East. Learn more about Marc »
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Parking and Transportation
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Iowa Events Center » Parking is $12/day at the large outdoor lot near the Center. Upon arrival, the booth agent will give attendees a voucher that allows in and out privileges that day. Bus parking is also available and allowed overnight. In addition, there is metered street parking (free on Sundays) and some city ramps for $10 that are within walking distance.
School Transportation » Transportation is up to each individual program; there is no busing between school location.
Blank Park Zoo » Parking is free at the Blank Park Zoo for the NSDA's 100th birthday party Tuesday evening from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Participants should wear their NSDA ribbons/name badges or reference "NSDA" to guarantee free admission during that time.
Pre-Planning » If your schedule allows, we recommend teams reference the schedule to drive to the competition venues before their first morning of competition to become familiar with the daily route and expected travel times.
Vehicle Rental » A discount code for Hertz is available on our website.
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Refreshing Behavior Expectations with Students
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The National Tournament can be an intense, high-pressure experience. We encourage coaches to go over expectations for behavior with students in advance of the tournament, using the Code of Honor as a guide. The Code of Honor articulates our values and establishes standards for NSDA participation. We ask all attendees to honor the privilege of participating by modeling behavior that best represents themselves, their schools, and their districts by:
- embracing competition with fairness and civility, and without bias or prejudice;
- honoring all participants’ right to articulate diverse perspectives and ideologies while also respecting the tournament’s guidelines, rules, and procedures; and
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maintaining an atmosphere of respect in all tournament venues and competition spaces so as not to compromise any student’s experience.
Attendees who observe behavior that is not in alignment with NSDA standards or our harassment and discrimination policy should visit the Belonging and Inclusion Station.
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