For Parents and Students

Parent and Student Requirements

Parents are Key!  Vector Speech and Debate is a parent-led cooperative effort. This is not a drop-off activity, but instead requires a cooperative effort by our parents. Parents should:

• Attend and help run weekly meetings (icebreakers, speech drills, teaching and coaching)  
• Attend the Novice Speech Camp-Orientation and/or Novice Debate Camp-Orientation offered by Vector coaches in early September to be trained to teach and coach.
• Judge at all tournaments in which your student participates. Usually 2 rounds of judging per student per event.
• Provide food items for each tournament in which your student participates.
• Help with recruiting community judges for each tournament in which your student participates.
• Attend the Vector Tournament Planning meeting (held in November)and take on a role in running our tournament at Patrick Henry College (Friday & Saturday, March 5-6, 2021).
• For all Vector-sponsored tournaments, parents are required to serve in a tournament job, and remain on site to help for the duration of the tournament.

Students — Participation in Vector can be a rewarding and fulfilling experience!  There is a learning curve with speech and debate. In order for students to succeed, we strongly encourage student to do the following:

• (New students) Attend the Novice Camp & Orientation for Speech and/or Debate with at least one parent.
• Attend weekly meetings and complete assignments in a timely and excellent manner.
• Compete in a minimum of two tournaments for Speech and/or Debate. (i.e. Speech students will compete in two speech tournaments; Debate students will compete in two debate tournaments; students who are doing both will compete in a minimum 4 tournaments total during the year.)
• (Speech) Compete with at least one prepared scripted speech (Platform, Interp, and certain Wildcard events apply).
• (Veteran Speech) Compete in Extemporaneous Speech at a minimum of two tournaments. Ideally, this event is well suited for Juniors & Seniors as college prep.

• Varsity & Jr. Varsity Awards are available for those who excel in Speech or Debate or both.  This can be impressive for scholarship and college applications.

Speech and Debate Award Requirements

Speech Award:

• Compete in at least three speech categories (Interpretive, Platform, & Limited Prep) at two Stoa tournaments. (All prepared speeches must be memorized)
• Record eight hours of club/speech community services inside or outside the club. This can include, but is not limited to, mentoring a novice student, working a job at a tournament, helping with administration for meetings, helping with a speech/debate camp, etc.
• Display leadership in the club, which can include but not limited to serving as an event captain, teaching a lesson, mentoring novice students, taking initiative in organizing limited prep files, leading a speech skills drill, etc.
• Speech Award Form

Debate Award:

• Compete in at least one form of debate, at two different tournaments (Team Policy, Lincoln Douglas, or Parliamentary)
• Perform a minimum of eight hours of Club Service, which can include but not limited to, mentoring a novice student, cleaning up after meetings, working a job at a tournament, performing with administration tasks for meetings, teaching a lesson, helping with debate camp, etc
• Demonstrates exceptional effort in skill development by participating in extra-club debates (debates outside of club time, not including tournaments)
• Debate Award Form

Excellence Award:

• Compete in three Stoa speech categories (Interpretive, Platform, & Limited Prep) in at least two Stoa tournaments.
• Compete in one type of debate (Team Policy, Lincoln Douglas, or Parliamentary) in at least two debate tournaments.
• Record eight hours of club/speech community services inside or outside the club.
• Excellence Award Form

Tournament Links

Links to register for tournaments will be posted here.