JACK HOWE MEMORIAL INVITATIONAL

    30 September - 2 October 2023

    DEADLINE
    17 September 2023 if traveling with team
    24 September 2023 if traveling on your own
    ELIGIBILITY
    Open to middle and high school students
    *Unless students and their parents book their rooms and travel on their own, we can only take the first 21 students who sign up. The GSA team will likely rent cars and drive down to Long Beach.
    LOCATION
    California State University Long Beach

    Information

    Welcome to the 31st Annual Jack Howe Memorial Tournament!

    Friends and Colleagues,
    We hope that everyone has been keeping safe and healthy! The faculty, staff, students, administration, and alumni of the California State University, Long Beach would like to cordially invite you to attend the 31st Annual Jack Howe Memorial, hosted by the CSULB “Beach Forensics” Program on Saturday, September 30–Monday October 2, 2023.

    THIS IS AN IN-PERSON ONLY TOURNAMENT - which means all events and judging will be in person on our campus.
    Thank you for all of the returning schools and welcome to all of the newcomers! GO BEACH!


    Attendees should download the CSULB mobile App  HERE
     
    Bid List:
    Quarters bid in Open Public Forum (Yes NSDA rule)
    Semis bid in TOC Lincoln Douglas Debate 
    TOC and NIETOC bids in Speech
    ​

    LOGISTICAL INFORMATION

    REMINDERS ABOUT FACE-TO-FACE COMPETITION:​
    1. At the time this invitation is being published, mask-wearing on the CSULB campus is optional in classrooms and outdoor spaces. The tournament will provide hand sanitizer, but in a limited quantity. Guests should review the campus policies in detail at https://www.csulb.edu/covid-19. It is strongly recommended that vulnerable populations wear KN95-grade face coverings.
    2. Sanitary stations will be placed in high-traffic corridors on campus. This information will be updated and provided to tournament guests.
    3.  3. By registering for the 2023 Jack Howe Memorial Invitational, you are accepting the risk of becoming infected by COVID-19. The tournament will do everything possible to reduce the risk of infection, but we cannot guarantee you will avoid contracting COVID-19. We are unable to offer refunds to competitors/for judges that contract COVID-19 after registration closes. The following recommendations will help the tournament and its guests the week of competition:
      >>> ​Refrain from unnecessary human contact the week of the tournament and test regularly.
      >>> Regularly and rigorously wash your hands, carry hand sanitizer, and wear a medical-grade face covering.
      >>> Keep water nearby and remain hydrated.
    4. 4. There will be NO hybrid divisions offered. All events will be fully in-person.

    GENERATIVE A.I USAGE: The 2023 National Tournament has provided a wonderful message about the novel use of Generative AI, that we have graciously borrowed.  At the Jack Howe, generative artificial intelligence should not be cited as a source or used to construct entire cases; while something like ChatGPT may be used to guide students to articles, ideas, and sources, (brainstorming) the original source of any quoted or paraphrased evidence must be available if requested for transparency reasons . Students are prohibited from quoting or paraphrasing text directly from generative AI sources like ChatGPT in events in which speeches must be the original created work of a competitor.

    ​
    IMPORTANT NOTES FOR 2023:
    1. The Nugget, Caffeine Lab, and Coffee Bean will be open on Saturday and Sunday. The Food Court in the student Union and Caffeine Lab will be on Saturday, and we will provide 3 food trucks on Sunday. This means there will be on-campus food options both days of competition. PLEASE only seek these for your food needs first.
    2. ​ALL judges must be 18 or older and hold a GED/high school diploma. If this becomes an issue we will apply nuisance fees.
    3. Competitors must be in 6th grade and above, approximate age 11.
    4. LD will have FOUR divisions: TOC LD, CA Open LD, CA JV LD, and Novice LD. To participate in Novice LD, a student must be in their first year of competition and in middle school or 9th grade. Any student in their second year of competition or in 10th grade (and beyond) must register for CA JV LD or above.
    5. We will offer a middle school division for Public Forum ONLY.
    6. Additionally, there will be OPEN divisions ONLY for: Duo Interpretation, Programmatic Oral Interpretation, and Humorous Interpretation in speech due to low numbers every year.
    7. Speech will run on Saturday and Sunday with FOUR prelim rounds (three on Saturday, one on Sunday). Each event will break to Semi-Finals or Finals contingent on entry numbers.
    8. Monday Elimination rounds will be held at the Long Beach Marriott for the TOC divisions.
    9. Maverick Policy: No mavericks in any team event with a TOC bid can enter. No mavericks can be registered in ANY  team event. However, if a partner drops post registration, the team can maverick during up to two prelim rounds but will be unable to advance to elimination rounds.
    10. We reserve the right to expedite elimination rounds to single-flight elimination rounds if the judge pool permits in order to save time and help our guests leave campus at an earlier time on Sunday.


    NOVICE ELIGIBILITY
    The following policies will guide our definition of novice eligibility. Please refer to these polices as you evaluate whether to register students in Novice or higher:
    1. For Students That Competed In Middle School: A high school freshman [or beyond] that competed in an event at more than five total tournaments in middle school cannot register for that event as a novice. A high school freshman [or beyond] that competed in an event at less than five total tournaments in middle school may register as a novice for that event.
    2. General Definition For Novice: A “novice” constitutes a student that has competed in less than one complete competition season. “One complete competition season” is four tournaments or less in a school year. E.G. A high school sophomore that competed in LD at five tournaments in the previous year would not be a novice.
    3. First-Time Entries In New Debate Events: A student who has no more than one complete competition season [or less] of LD, or PF but has not competed in other debate events may enter as a novice in policy debate. A student who has one complete competition season of policy debate [or more], however, may not enter LD or PF as a novice.
    4. First-Time Entries In New Speech Events: A student who has competed in no more than one complete competition season [or less] of debate events, but has not competed in any speech events, may enter as a novice in speech events. A student who has competed in no more than one complete competition season [or less] of speech events, but has not competed in any debate events, may enter as a novice in debate events.
    5. Middle School Public Forum: This year, we will offer separate divisions for students in middle school who wish to participate in public forum. A student may enter these events if they have not matriculated into 9th grade. There is no cap of prior years of experience to enter students in middle school public forum.
    WARNING Spectatorship in Competition: Spectators are welcome to watch competition rounds, but they are prohibited from communicating with competitors in any form during competition as per the Chaperone Form. This includes, but is not limited to: oral communication, electronic communication, and telecommunication. Spectators who violate this policy will be removed from the tournament, and competitors who receive coaching/assistance/help of any kind from spectators will be subject to disqualification from competition.


    HOTEL OPTIONS (for those who are traveling independently and not with GSA)
    We have two options for hotels:     OR
    • GOLDEN SAILS HOTEL ( EX-BEST WESTERN)
      6285 E. Pacific Highway
      Long Beach, CA 90803
      Direct: (562)594-0210 Ask for Vicki and Jack Howe rate
      Hotel: (562) 596-1631, ext. 294
      www.goldensailshotel.com TAKE OUR VIRTUAL TOUR! https://youtu.be/wmYSOpGS2m8

    PARKING ON CAMPUS:
    Visitors may purchase parking and then park in General (G) Lots including the three parking structures or in Short-Term parking spaces. Visitors may also choose to purchase parking in Employee (E) Lots after 5:30 p.m. and all day on weekends. 
    Please visit the campus map to view all available parking locations CSULB uses the License Plate Recognition (LPR), a paperless permitting system. Your license plate number is needed when purchasing parking. Please have your license plate information with you prior to leaving your vehicle. For more information click HERE

    ​

    TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

    ​​DOUBLE ENTRY POLICY FOR ALL EVENTS
    *The Tournament cannot count on running on time all weekend. Doubling entry is at the risk of missing rounds.
    The following policies are in place for double entries this year:
    1. Entries are not allowed to double enter in two limited prep events (e.g., Impromptu, or Extemporaneous Speaking).
    2. Entries in California LD may only double enter in one speech event.
    3. Entries in Open Public Forum, TOC LD, and Policy debate may not double enter in any event.
    4. Speech-only entries may double enter in up to two speech events.​

    ENTERING STUDENTS IN NOVICE DIVISIONS (NOVICE ELIGIBILITY):
    The following policies will guide our definition of novice eligibility. Please refer to these polices as you evaluate whether to register in Novice, Junior, or Open.​
    1. For Students That Competed In Middle School: A high school freshman [or beyond] that competed in an event at more than five total tournaments in middle school cannot register for that event as a novice. A high school freshman [or beyond] that competed in an event at less than six total tournaments in middle school may register as a novice for that event.
    2. General Definition For Novice: A “novice” constitutes a student that has competed in less than one complete competition season. “One complete competition season” would include either five [or more] tournaments in one semester AND/OR at least one tournament in two semesters. E.G. A high school sophomore that competed in LD at five tournaments in the fall of the previous year would not be a novice, nor would a high school sophomore that competed in one tournament in the fall and the spring of the previous year.
    3. First-Time Entries In New Debate Events: A student who has no more than one complete competition season [or less] of LD, or PF but has not competed in other debate events may enter as a novice in policy debate. A student who has one complete competition season of policy debate [or more], however, may not enter LD or PF as a novice.
    4. First-Time Entries In New Speech Events: A student who has competed in no more than one complete competition season [or less] of debate events, but has not competed in any speech events, may enter as a novice in speech events. A student who has competed in no more than one complete competition season [or less] of speech events, but has not competed in any debate events, may enter as a novice in debate events.

    ​JUDGE OBLIGATION POLICY:
    • Judges in debate are obligated to stay and judge the first elimination round on Sunday OR one round past any round in which GSA students are actively competing, whichever is later. ​Judges in TOC LD, Public Forum, and Policy who have entries that competed in the last elimination round on Sunday Night are obligated for the first elimination round on Monday Morning. Speech judges are obligated for all rounds at the tournament.
    • Speech judges are obligated for all rounds at the tournament.
    • TOC LD and Open PF will now occur over three days (e.g., Saturday, 9/30 to Monday, 10/2). Judges in these events are obligated for all three days at the tournament.


    OTHER POLICIES
    1. ALL Chaperone and Liability forms must be filled out before registering. Chaperone forms are for all folks that are above the age of 18 that come along with your group (parents, judges, coaches, etc). Liability forms are for every single individual, regardless of age, in your group (students, parents, judges, coaches, etc).
    2. NO TEAM is to set up shop on or around ANY memorial or statue on campus: there will be penalties for doing so. People will be asked to immediately leave that area and clean it up if witnessed. If you decide to set up shop in any area on campus, ESPECIALLY the union and outdoor spaces, we should not have to walk around and see mounds of trash on your tables or spaces. PLEASE constantly clear your trash when finished. It doesn’t look proper to other visitors to the campus on that day or general staff that are around. We have had problems with people disposing their trash in the past. We would like to not have to be the enforcers, but WE WILL. If we see that people have mounds of trash on the property, we will ask you to dispose of it immediately. If you need extra bags to dispose of your trash, please let us know and we will take it to the nearest dump.
    3. FLIGHTING ROUNDS: Please inform your students and judges that competitors that are flight 2 should be allowed to be in the room to watch the first flight. Inform your students on the process of flighting so they do not panic or cause any delays because of confusion. Several events will be flighted.
    4. JUDGE/ COMPETITOR NO SHOW: If a judge or competitor has not shown up within 5 minutes of start time, please alert the tournament via the helpline number so that we can route that information to the tab room.
    5. ALL people who intend on participating (competitors and judges) MUST have an active and confirmed TABROOM.COM account.
    6. All judges that need to have training should watch: NSDA Judge training. If you have further questions, we will have a Zoom based question room assigned.
    7. DOFs: It is your responsibility to train judges for this and every tournament. We are trusting you to bring qualified adults who can judge and create a safe environment for our students. Please make sure they watch the judge training from NSDA.  If a judge or competitor has not shown up within 5 minutes please alert the tournament via text message to the helpline number/Campus mechanism so that we can route that information to the tab room. PLEASE make sure that all your debaters and teams know this number to report issues. That number is: 562-277-1606 (TEXT ONLY - DO NOT CALL)
    8. This year we will adopt the CHSSA Harassment and Discrimination Policy with some specific additions.​

    Harassment and Discrimination Policy
    The California High School Speech Association is committed to providing its participants, judges, coaches, and members the opportunity to pursue excellence in their endeavors. This opportunity can exist only when each member of our community is assured an atmosphere of mutual respect. CHSSA is committed to maintaining an environment that is free from all forms of harassment and discrimination. Accordingly, all forms of harassment and discrimination are prohibited, whether committed by participants, judges, coaches, or observers. CHSSA is committed to the enforcement of this policy. Individuals who are found to have violated this policy will be subject to the full range of sanctions, up to and including removal from the tournament premises and prosecution by authorities. Any individual or group of individuals who believes they have been a victim of harassment and/or discrimination should report it to the Help Desk or appropriate authority immediately.
     
    The addition and specificity that we add to what all forms of harassment and discrimination includes but not limited to online bullying and harassment on social media of ALL kinds or within a round, zoom bombing, use of racial, ethnic, ableist, religious, gendered, and sexual slurs, and other inappropriate comments or “advancements” from or to ANY participant. All judges’ web cameras should ALWAYS be at eye level and on while judging. If any violations to these additions occur, the violator will be asked to no longer judge or be disqualified. I take this very seriously DO NOT take your chances.
     
    We will be bringing back the following features of the Jack Howe:
    Sweepstakes calculation. We will use a percentile system to calculate the top debate program and the top IE program; we will use an "equalization" system to determine the top overall school. This new sweepstakes calculation system is a result of persistent errors in calculation that have resulted from the system we have used to calculate sweepstakes in the past.
     
    Over $10,000 in scholarships to students who win first place speaker/team in a senior division event. Each top-place finisher will receive a renewable $800 scholarship to attend CSULB (upon acceptance) and compete on our nationally ranked forensics team, where they will be required to compete for a year. This scholarship is only renewable based on grades, competition, work ethic, and need.  
      

    ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

    ​REQUIRED LIABILITY AND CHAPERONE FORMS
    Here is the NEW Code of Conduct form and Liability form that accounts for the new terrain of COVID-19. ALL parents, judges, coaches, and anyone who is attending in any capacity where one interacts with minors, must fill out these forms. Students must only fill out the Liability form.
    If you would like to turn in electronic copies, the form must be compliant with authentication protocols. Programs such as DocuSign or AdobeSign are REQUIRED, or just scan the printed paper version.
    Liability Form (for everybody)
    Code of Conduct Form (for judges and parents who will come along)


    EVENT-SPECIFIC INFORMATION

    PUBLIC FORUM TOPIC
    NSDA PF Sep/Oct
    Resolved: The United States Federal Government should substantially increase its investment in high-speed rail.

    LINCOLN DOUGLAS TOPIC
    NSDA LD Sep/Oct
    Resolved: The United States ought to implement a single-payer universal healthcare system

    ​LINCOLN DOUGLAS DIVISION DIFFERENCES
    CA LD/NOV vs TOC/JV
    We have different iterations of Lincoln Douglas (LD) at our tournament that I want to make clear. We have done this to have respect to different styles, competitive aspirations, and argumentative directions/choices that students would like to engage in. There are 4 potential LD divisions. This was done to juggle the regional and national circuit debate differences so that all parties can be satisfied. 
    • The CA LD OPEN/ NOVICE divisions (e.g., CA-LD and Novice LD) is governed by CHSSA Rules ONLY. CA LD is more traditional and non-circuit debate or in some cases lay debating. There ARE argument limitations that are sanctioned by The California High School Speech Association. Please review the rules posted above. In a nut shell this means no Kritiks, Counterplans, Plans, or other arguments that are not allowed. 
    • The TOC LD/ JV divisions (e.g., TOC LD and JV LD) is governed by NSDA/TOC rules and procedures. These events are more aligned with circuit norms and procedures. there are NO limitations on argument styles and plan usage. The TOC bid for the Quarterfinal would be the result of competition in the TOC LD division. There will be no TOC bid in the JV pool. 
    Please consider the differences in these divisions when registering in Lincoln Douglas events. The judge pools will only be connected by the groupings listed above. 

    ​Entry Price

    The fees below assume that you will be traveling on your own (parents will take their child to Southern California and book their own accommodations).
    If you are leaving your child to travel with the GSA team, we will collect a $200 deposit. The final expenses per student minus the deposit will be invoiced once we know the final cost.

    One speech event and parent is judging $75
    Two speech events and parent is judging $100
    Novice/JV LD and parent is judging $135
    CA LD and parent is judging $140
    CA LD + one speech event and parent is judging $165
    TOC LD and parent is judging $170
    Novice/MS PF and parent is judging $95
    Open PF and parent is judging $110

    One speech event and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $165
    Two speech events and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $220
    Novice /JV LD and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $315
    CA LD and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $320
    CA LD + one speech event and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $415
    TOC LD and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $350
    Novice/MS PF and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $250
    Open PF and parent is OPTING OUT OF judging $270

    Fines for Late Drops $25
    Prelim Judge No show $75 
    Elim Judge No Show $100
    ​
    Each person in a PF/Policy/Duo team would be responsible of providing their own judge, so one PF/Policy/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

    Middle School PF, Novice PF, Novice LD, Jr LD, CA LD, Speech Schedules

    Saturday (9/30)
    Registration 7:00 AM-8:00 AM
    Debate 1 8:00 AM-10:00 AM
    Debate 2 10:00 AM-12:00 PM
    Speech 1 12:00 PM-1:30 PM
    Debate 3 1:30 PM-3:30 PM
    Speech 2 3:30 PM-5:00 PM
    Debate 4 5:00 PM-7:00 PM
    Speech 3/Debate 5 7:00 PM-9:00 PM

    Sunday (10/1)
    Debate 6 8:00 AM-10:00 AM
    Speech 4 10:00 AM-11:30 AM
    Debate Elim 1 11:30 AM-1:30 PM
    Debate Elim 2/Speech Elim 1 1:30 PM-3:30 PM
    Debate Elim 3/Speech Elim 2 3:30 PM-5:30 PM
    Debate Elim 4 5:30 PM-6:30 PM
    Debate Elim 5 ASAP If needed
    Debate Elim 6 ASAP If needed


    Open PF, Open TOC LD Schedules

    ​Saturday (9/30)
    Registration 7:00 AM-8:00 AM
    Round 1 8:00 AM-10:00 AM
    Round 2 10:30 AM-12:30 PM
    Lunch 12:30 PM-1:30 PM
    Round 3 1:30 PM-3:30 PM
    Round 4 4:00 PM-6:00 PM

    Sunday (10/1)
    Round 5 8:00 AM-10:00 AM
    Round 6/NCX Quarters 11:00 AM-1:00 PM
    Double Octos/NCX Semis 2:00 PM-4:00 PM
    Octofinals/NCX Finals 5:00 PM-7:00 PM

    Monday (10/2)
    Monday @ The Tournament Hotel Long Beach Marriot
    Quarterfinals 8:00 AM-10:00 AM
    Semifinals 11:00 AM-1:00 PM
    Finals 2:00 PM-4:00 PM

    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:  vrivasumana@tgsastaff.com
    Nadia Budiman 
    Contact email: nbudiman@tgsastaff.com
    Or info@tgsastaff.com

    Registration Form

    ​REQUIRED LIABILITY AND CHAPERONE FORMS
    Here is the NEW Code of Conduct form and Liability form for this year. ALL parents, judges, coaches, and anyone who is attending in any capacity where one interacts with minors, must fill out these forms. Students must only fill out the Liability form.
    If you would like to turn in electronic copies, the form must be compliant with authentication protocols. Programs such as DocuSign or AdobeSign are REQUIRED.
    ​
    ​Liability Form (for everybody)
    Code of Conduct Form (for judges and parents who will come along)
    STUDENT INFORMATION
    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.
    Max file size: 20MB
    EVENT SELECTION

    Double Entry Limitations
    1. Entries are not allowed to double enter in two limited prep events (e.g., Impromptu, or Extemporaneous Speaking).
    2. ​Entries in California LD may only double enter in one speech event.
    3. Entries in Open Public Forum, TOC LD, and Policy debate may not double enter in any event.
    4. Speech-only entries may double enter in up to two speech events.

    ​Got any questions? Please email nbudiman@tgsastaff.com, info@tgsastaff.com, vrivasumana@tgsastaff.com
    ​JUDGE PROVISION
    Max file size: 20MB
    Max file size: 20MB

    ​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? Click here to learn how to do it! Or watch our Youtube playlist here.
    ​There are also these training cards available that include a summary of each event's rules and comments.​

    ​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

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: info@tgsastaff.com

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