CHSSA

CHSSA MIDDLE SCHOOL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

15-17 May 2026

DEADLINE

28 April 2026
NO REFUNDS AFTER THIS DATE

ELIGIBILITY

Open to 6th-8th graders

PLATFORM

Online through NSDA Campus

Information

Welcome
On behalf of the California High School Speech Association, I'm excited to welcome all California Middle Schoolers to our Online California Middle School State Championship Tournament held online via NSDA Campus! Our synchronous, online tournament dates are Friday, May 15th - Sunday, May 17th, 2026.
All middle school competitors in sixth through eighth grades, in public or private programs, in California are welcome to compete with other outstanding students from across the state. This Tournament is currently limited to middle students attending schools or programs based in California ONLY. Students need to be residing in California to be eligible for this Tournament.

Events Offered
We’re excited to offer a variety of events to showcase students' talents:

Speech Events:

Spontaneous Argumentation (SPAR)
Dramatic Interpretation (DI)
Duo Interpretation (Duo)
Combined Extemp (EXT) - Topics shall alternate between International and National topics
Informative Speaking (INFO)
Declamation (Dec)
Program Oral Interpretation (POI)
Poetry Interpretation (POE)
Prose Interpretation (PRO)
Original Platform (Combined OA and OO)
Original Prose & Poetry (OPP)
Humorous Interpretation (HI)
Impromptu (IMP)
Storytelling (STORY)

Backup Video Submissions: For Interpretation and Platform events, students may choose to submit a prerecorded video in case of technical difficulties during the tournament. If a student experiences a tech issue and has submitted a video, the judge will watch it instead. If no video is submitted and the student cannot perform, they will receive last place in the round. Videos must be sent to Nadia by May 8. Please keep in mind that the video shall only be used for genuine tech issues. Videos will NOT be used if students cannot make a specific round due to a time conflict.

Debate Events:

Public Forum (NSDA High School April Topic)
Lincoln-Douglas (NSDA High School March/April Topic)

Rules
We will be following Rules for the following events:

CHSSA Event Rules for: DI, Duo, Combined Extemp, HI, IMP, INFO, Declamation, Original Platform, OPP, POI, LD, PF
- Our “breakpoints” per event shall deviate from the written CHSSA Rules and shall be dependent on entry numbers.
NSDA Rules for: Congress, Poetry, Prose, and Storytelling.

Tournament Format
We’re excited to offer a range of events in both Speech and Debate, with multiple preliminary and elimination rounds based on participation:

Debate: 4 preliminary rounds with two judges per panel
Speech: 3 preliminary rounds

Breaks to elimination rounds will deviate from CHSSA Rules per event above, and shall be determined by entry numbers per event. We anticipate:

Debate: Up to Triple Octofinals, dependent on entry size
Speech: Semifinals or Quarterfinals, dependent on entry size

Cross Entry
Students shall be allowed to enter between Debate and Speech.
Students competing in Speech are allowed to enter up to two (2) Speech events. If a student is entered in multiple events, they and their coaches are responsible for ensuring they get to their rounds on time. The Tournament shall not re-run rounds or give students extra prep if they are late to round or prep.
The Tournament strongly discourages, but will not disallow, cross entry between multiple limited prep events (i.e., Extemporaneous Speaking, Parliamentary Debate, and Impromptu) due to the risk of losing prep time.

Judging Requirements
To keep the tournament running smoothly, we will assess fines for missing rounds:

$75 for the first missed round
$150 for each additional missed round
Schools with 5+ missing judge fines may be dropped from the tournament.

Judges for Speech are obligated for ALL Rounds of the Tournament.
Judges for Debate are obligated for one FULL Elimination Round after their ENTIRE team is eliminated, even if their own child has gotten eliminated way earlier.

Late Changes
A $50 nuisance fee per occurrence shall be assessed for late entry adds or changes after the deadline.

We can’t wait to welcome students, parents, and coaches to this exciting, challenging, and rewarding tournament! ✨
Save the dates, encourage your students to participate, and get ready for an unforgettable experience!

Warmly,
Xavier Liu
CHSSA Middle School State Tournament Director, on behalf of the CHSSA Middle School Tournament Committee

Entry Price

One event and parent is judging $90
One event and parent is opting out of judging $240

Two events and parent is judging $130
Two events and parent is opting out of judging $300

Three events and parent is judging $170
Three events and parent is opting out of judging $360

Each person in a PF/Duo team would be responsible of providing their own judge, so one PF/Duo team would need to either provide two judges, both pay the judge fee, or one of each option.

Registration will not be complete until payment is received.

NOTE: We will charge set up fees if we have to create tabroom.com accounts for judges. It is recommended you do so on your own.

Schedule - PST

TENTATIVE TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Debate: PF, LD
Speech: Spontaneous Argumentation (SPAR), Dramatic Interpretation (DI), Duo Interpretation (Duo), Combined Extemp (EXT), Informative Speaking (INFO), Declamation (Dec), Program Oral Interpretation (POI), Poetry Interpretation (POE), Prose Interpretation (PRO), Original Platform (Combined OA and OO), Original Prose & Poetry (OPP), Humorous Interpretation (HI), Impromptu (IMP), and Storytelling (STORY)
Preliminary Rounds in Debate shall have a panel of two judges in each round and shall be DOUBLE FLIGHTED for Preliminary Rounds.
All Elimination Rounds shall be SINGLE FLIGHTED.
Extemp Prep shall start 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the round.

Friday, May 15th, 2026
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM – Debate Round 1 (preset)
6:45 PM - 8:45 PM – Debate Round 2 (preset)

Saturday, May 16th, 2026
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM – Debate Round 3 (powermatched by ballot)
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM – Speech Round 1
11:30 AM - 1:30 PM – Debate Round 4 (powermatched by ballot)
1:30 PM - 3:00 PM – Speech Round 2
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM – Debate Elimination Round 1
4:45 PM - 6:15 PM – Speech Round 3
6:30 PM - 8:00 PM – Debate Elimination Round 2

Sunday, May 17th, 2026
8:00 AM - 9:30 PM – Speech Elimination Round 1
9:30 AM - 11:15 AM – Debate Elimination Round 3
11:30 AM - 1:00 PM – Speech Elimination Round 2
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM – Debate Elimination Round 4
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM – Speech Elimination Round 3
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM – Debate Elimination Round 5 (if necessary)
4:30 PM - 6:00 PM – Debate Elimination Round 6 (if necessary)

Drop Fee

Drop fees will be the same amounts as the entry fee PLUS any fees the tournament charges us for late drops. Drop requests should be made to Victor and Nadia.

Please do not drop out last minute to avoid being charged these fees.

Contact Info

Victor Rivas Umana
Contact email: [email protected]
Nadia Budiman
Contact email: [email protected]
Or [email protected]

Registration Form

To participate at this tournament, parents are required to sign the following media letter form. Make sure to do this before you proceed with the registration. You may leave 'league' blank.
RELEASE FORM

* Indicates required field

Signed Release Form *

Max file size: 20MB

STUDENT INFORMATION

Student Name *

First

Last

Student Email (DO NOT USE PARENT'S EMAIL) *

Student Phone Number *

Does the student have a Tabroom account? *

Yes and it is linked with GSA's account(s) Yes but it is not linked and we need you to add to your roster No but I will create one before submitting registration

If this is your first time competing, make sure to first create a Tabroom account here: https://www.tabroom.com/user/login/new_user.mhtml
It's super simple and quick (<1 minute), but follow the guidelines here in case anything is confusing: https://docs.tabroom.com/Sign_Up

PARENT CONTACT INFORMATION
Your email address will be the one included when we send the logistics email.

Parent Name *

First

Last

Parent Email *

Parent Phone Number *

EVENT SELECTION

Partner Name (write N/A if none) *

First

Last

Speech: We will offer all CHSSA speech events synchronously (live). If they wish, competitors may also upload a prerecorded video of their interpretation & platform speeches to be used in case the competitors experience technical difficulties during their rounds. This is optional. Video links should be listed here or sent to Nadia by 8 May 2026.

Speech #1 Video Link *

Speech #2 Video Link *

JUDGE INFORMATION
Descriptions of each event can be found here.

Will you (parent) be judging at this tournament? *

Judge Name *

Judge email (Must be linked to a tabroom account. Register first at tabroom.com before completing this sign up) *

Judge phone *

Does your judge have a Tabroom account? *

Yes No but I will create one before submitting registration Not judging

Does your judge understand that he/she is responsible for the entire tournament schedule and that missing a round incurs fines from the tournament? *

Yes, understood Not judging but understood as well

Click here to complete the highly recommended Cultural Competency judge training course

Signing up a judge without having a Tabroom account will result in us charging you for the set up fee.
You can do this easily on your own by going to tabroom.com. It literally takes less than a minute.

First time judging?
This is a great collection of short videos that one of the leagues have put together to learn each event: click here.
There are also these training cards available that include a summary of each event's rules and comments.
Click here to find other training and official certification resources. Or watch our Youtube playlist here.

Tournaments encourage judges to have a paradigm on their Tabroom account, which can be a few sentences on your preferences of debating styles, etc. See here for example. It doesn't need to be this long, but make sure to add something before you sign up. For example: "I am a parent, please speak clearly and slowly and avoid technical jargon".

More tournament resources can be found here.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

I will keep a copy of this form for reference. *

YES

We are signing up with the understanding that my child will work to be ready by the tournament date. If we choose to drop out because my child is not ready that will be considered when making assessments for future classes. *

YES

I understand that if I fail to drop the tournament before the deadline that I will still be responsible for the fees of both my son or daughter, along with that of his or her partner and the fines. *

YES

I understand that if payment is not received we won't be registered and our spot will be given up to someone else. *

YES

I confirm that I have completed all necessary paperwork for this tournament. *

YES

I understand that The Golden State Academy has no control over tournament entries other than the initial sign up. I understand that my child's priority will be based on either the last time I signed up OR the date paid, whichever is latest. *

YES

I understand that my child must check in and check out periodically at the tournament with the coach and that if I do not my child will be barred from participating in following tournaments. This is to ensure coaches can see where students are at competitively and to give any initial feedback for improvement. *

YES

I understand that I can check my entry status through tabroom.com. *

YES

I am a consenting adult. I understand that by submitting this form I agree to all that has been covered. *

YES

Submit/take to payment

We would love to have you visit soon at one of our open houses.
Check our home page for the schedule!

School year Hours

M-F: 3:45 pm - 8:30 pm
Sun: 10:00 am - 4:00 pm

Telephone

510-270-8480
510-470-0531

Email (preferred)

For more info email us at: [email protected]

Locations

Fremont: 200 Brown Rd #201, Fremont, CA 94539

Cupertino: 20432 Silverado Avenue Suite 211, Cupertino, CA 95014

Aborn Institute: 2804 Riedel Road, San Jose, CA 95135

Dublin: Loving Tree Academy, 6693 Owens Dr, Pleasanton, CA 94588

CHSSA MIDDLE SCHOOL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

15-17 May 2026

Information

​Entry Price

Schedule - PST

Drop Fee

Contact Info

Registration Form

We would love to have you visit soon at one of our open houses.Check our home page for the schedule!

School year Hours

Telephone

Email (preferred)

Locations

Entry Price

We would love to have you visit soon at one of our open houses.
Check our home page for the schedule!