Here are your Nationals updates for this week, Coach!
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Enter Info for Required Coach and Attendee Badges by June 1
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Every individual attending the tournament is required to have a ribbon or badge indicating that they are associated with the event and cleared to be in competition spaces. This helps us keep the tournament safe and secure! Please check that everyone attending with your school (including siblings, parents, etc.) is captured in Tabroom.com by June 1. Summary:
- Competitors entered in Tabroom — No additional action needed to secure a badge.
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Judges entered in Tabroom — No additional action needed to secure a badge.
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Coaches who are not judging — Additional action needed. Coaches must be entered in the General tab and toggled to On Site to secure a badge.
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All other individuals — Additional action needed. Attendees must be entered in the Attendees section of the Judging & Attendees tab in Tabroom to secure a ribbon.
Make sure you have entered everyone attending Nationals with your school into one of these four categories on your Tabroom.com registration by June 1 to avoid issues on site!
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Building Assignments: Each supplemental event is divided into two groups that will compete in different school locations. Students showing up to the wrong location will not be able to compete. To check where your pre-registered students will be assigned to compete if they re-register, visit the General tab of your Tabroom.com registration and reference the panel on the far right side. This lists your group assignment, either Wildrose or Goldfinch, as well as the assigned schools for Wednesday and Thursday. This information will also be listed for you as a reminder when you re-register students on Tuesday, June 17.
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Re-Registering: All students who intend to compete in supplementals must be re-registered to confirm their participation between 12:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 17, through Tabroom.com. Students who pre-registered but do not re-register will not be scheduled for competition. This applies to both students who compete in main events and students who are only competing in supplemental events.
- Patterns and Flights:
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To enable double entry, each supplemental speech event is either Pattern A or Pattern B. This is why rounds are labeled as A or B on the schedule (e.g. Round 1A and Round 1B). Pattern B rounds cannot start until Pattern A rounds are complete.
- PATTERN A: Extemp Commentary, Original Spoken Word Poetry, Prose, and Expository.
- PATTERN B: Impromptu, Poetry, and Storytelling.
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Each prelim round is also split into two flights, or groups of competitors, with one flight of the event performing immediately after the other in the same room with the same judge. Flight 2 starts about 35 min after flight 1. This means that in round 1, four different sets of competitors will compete in the same room—Pattern A with flight 1 and 2 and Pattern B with flight 1 and 2. This can be confusing for students, so please help prep those entered in supplemental speech to expect patterns and flights!
- The first four rounds of Extemp Debate rounds are quadruple flighted, meaning each room will host four sets of debates per round. There are no patterns, because students cannot double enter with Extemp Debate.
Poetry Rules: Selections no longer need to be cuttings from a single source; a Poetry piece may come from one or multiple sources. A Poetry piece may consist of one entire poem, a cutting of a single longer poem, or a collection of short poems or cuttings from one source or several sources arranged in a program.
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Storytelling Rules: If a chair is used in Storytelling, students may choose the original position of the chair. Use of the chair is not considered a prop as long as: 1) Once the performance begins, all legs of the chair remain stationary on the ground and do not move from their original position, and 2) Competitors do not kneel or stand on the chair.
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Congress Finals Held at the Iowa Capitol
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High school finals for Senate on Thursday and House on Friday will be held at the Iowa Capitol! We're excited to give students this special opportunity.
Observers are permitted and finals will be livestreamed as usual. The capitol is a five-minute drive from the Iowa Events Center and a map is available with drop-off and entry information. We can't wait to see which students get to debate in an actual legislative hall!
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Places of Worship in Des Moines
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This local guide can help attendees connect with places of worship in the Des Moines area while visiting for the tournament. The listing was developed in 2020 and should be verified before making plans to ensure accuracy.
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Exclusive Preview Screening of SPEAK. the Documentary
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You're invited to attend one of two exclusive preview screenings of SPEAK. The independent documentary follows five teens as they spend a year crafting their oratories with the dream of winning the world’s largest and most intense public speaking competition: Nationals. Join us in the Junior Ballroom of the Iowa Events Center on Sunday, June 15 at 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. during registration to catch a sneak peek of the film followed by a Q&A with three of the featured orators! Seating is limited.
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Assistant Coach of the Year
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We're thrilled to announce that Jennifer Kaskalla has been named the 2025 Assistant Coach of the Year! Jennifer was selected for her tireless work supporting students at Navajo Prep, and her efforts in fundraising, facilitating tournaments, and rallying parent volunteers.
Learn more about Jennifer »
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Congratulations to Sam Kane for being named the New Coach of the Year! When his students at Frederick Douglass expressed interest in a team, Sam jumped in. His willingness to say yes to coaching led his students to benefit from the hard work and confidence that comes from speech and debate. Learn more about Sam »
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Upcoming Judge Swap Window
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You will be able to check your school’s judging assignments by day and event during the Judging Swap Window from Thursday, June 12 to Saturday, June 14 at 12:00 p.m. (noon) CT. There is no way to enter judge availability until the window opens. During the swap window, you may log in to Tabroom.com and check which judge(s) we have assigned to judge which day(s) of the National Tournament. You will have the ability to swap around judges who are qualified in that event to ensure all of the days your school is obligated to judge in an event are covered. We understand that it can be hard to manage judge schedules, and we hope that this process will allow you the flexibility to schedule judging on the days and in the buildings that work best for you and your team! We will notify you when the window opens. Learn more about judging requirements »
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Celebrate the Centennial at Nationals
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There will be opportunities to help celebrate our Centennial year all week long at Nationals, with special events, giveaways, or surprises daily. Be sure to add these two to your agenda:
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Historic Centennial Timeline: Explore the skywalk between the Iowa Events Center and the Hilton to experience 100 years of history! Learn how the organization started, challenges we've faced over the years, and how we plan to further our reach over the next 100 years. This interactive experience features historic documents from the archives, videos, final round performances dating back to the 80s, a recording from the White House, and so much more! Want a sneak peek of what's in store? Check out this video about the evolution of debate over the years!
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Birthday Party: You're invited to our birthday party on Tuesday, June 17 at the Blank Park Zoo from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.! There will be food trucks, a DJ, activities, and a chance to see the animals. Plus, we'll be hosting HS Supplemental Only and Middle School registration on site. Entry is free with your NSDA badge or ribbon!
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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. 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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Restaurants » Our national office is in Des Moines, and our staff has put together a list of recommendations for places to eat around the Des Moines area.
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