MS TOC

MIDDLE SCHOOL TOC HOSTED BY UK

1-3 May 2026

DEADLINE

24 Apr 2026

ELIGIBILITY

6th-8th graders ONLY

LOCATION

Online

NO REFUNDS AT ANY POINT AFTER REGISTERING
DROPS AFTER THIS DATE WILL INCUR A FINE ON TOP OF THE ENTRY FEE

Information

Dear Competitors and Coaches,
We are pleased to invite you to the 2026 Middle School Tournament of Champions, held online May 1–3, 2026. This tournament brings together dedicated middle school competitors from across the United States and around the world and serves as a capstone experience for the Speech & Debate season.
Participation in the Middle School TOC reflects a year of hard work, growth, and commitment to learning and competition. Students arrive with a wide range of experiences, united by their effort, curiosity, and enthusiasm for Speech & Debate.
The Middle School TOC is more than a competition. Over the course of the weekend, students will engage in challenging rounds, strengthen their communication and critical thinking skills, and connect with peers in a rigorous, supportive online environment.
We look forward to welcoming you and celebrating the dedication and sportsmanship that define the Middle School TOC community.
“See” you in May!

Important Updates

The Middle School Tournament of Champions is open to students aged 14 and under
- We don’t allow 14-year-old freshmen into the MS TOC.
As usual, all competitors and judges must submit a signed MSTOC Media Release and Honor Code.

Adult Supervision

Schools, clubs/academies, and independent entry guardians accept liability for all of their competitors AND judges entered in the MSTOC.
Participants should be aware that MSTOC staff may periodically enter competition rooms, including while competitors are speaking; this should not be a cause for concern, nor delay or stop an ongoing round

Topics & Formats
All events are governed by the rules found in the 2026 Middle School Tournament of Champions procedures documents posted on Tabroom. Coaches, judges, and competitors should familiarize themselves with these materials prior to the start of the tournament. Please note that any sources read or cited as evidence in competition must be available upon request.

Lincoln-Douglas Debate
January/February 2026 NSDA Topic | 6-3-7-3-4-6-3 Speech Times | 5 Minutes of Preparation per Debater

Public Forum Debate
April 2026 NSDA Topic | 4-4-3-4-4-3-3-3-3-2-2 Speech Times | 3 Minutes of Preparation per Team

Speech Events
Synchronous (Live) Competition | No Pre-Recorded Videos
Maximum Total of 3 Speech Events per Competitor | Only 2 Speech Events in Any Single Pattern
Extemp and Impromptu details Posted on Tabroom.com by Friday, April 17, 2026.

Speech Patterns
Pattern A: OI/DEC, DUO, Extemp (Mix of domestic + international), Info
Pattern B: DI, HI, IMP, OO, POI

Judging Information
Judge Eligibility

All entries require full judge coverage for the duration of the tournament
- Judges must be available on all competition days.
Judges in Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum, and Policy Debate must post a judging philosophy on Tabroom (see instructions here) for their entries to be admitted into the tournament
MSTOC staff reserve the right to refuse judges entered in competition events for which they are not qualified, except Directors of Debate or Assistant Debate Coaches officially employed by a school or club

Judge Obligations

The MSTOC is a capstone event for hundreds of students from around the world, who deserve the highest quality of judging throughout the tournament. Consequently, you must provide sufficient judging to cover your school or club’s obligation, and judges must be available to fulfill their commitment during all scheduled rounds. Judges may not judge in more than 1 division. Penalties for missing a round when obligated are outlined below.

Preliminary Rounds

Lincoln-Douglas & Public Forum Debate: Judges must be available on all competition days.
Speech Events: Judges are obligated through the final rounds scheduled on Sunday, May 3, 2026.
Judges who are obligated but fail to appear on time for an assigned preliminary round, will be assessed a $100 fine per round.

Elimination Rounds

Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum: All judges are obligated through at least the first elimination round scheduled on Sunday, May 3, 2026, then 1 round beyond the elimination of your program’s last entry.
For example, if your last entry is eliminated in Quarterfinals, all of your judges are obligated through Semifinals. Even if none of your entries, or your own child, advances from the preliminary rounds, all of your judges remain obligated through the first elimination round scheduled on Sunday, May 3, 2026.
Speech Events: Judges are obligated through the final rounds scheduled on Sunday, May 3, 2026.
Judges who are obligated but fail to appear on time for an assigned elimination round will be assessed a $150 fine per round, and their school or club may be barred from participation in future tournaments.

Judge Conflicts

Non-disclosure of judge conflicts, or preclusions, is an ethical concern. Non-disclosure creates competitive imbalances and is taken very seriously by the Middle School Tournament of Champions.
Please indicate all conflicts, for all judges, on Tabroom.com. Judges should preclude themselves from judging any competitors whom they have previously coached, whether online or in-person, paid or unpaid; with whom they’ve had a close, personal relationship. Judges should preclude themselves from judging entries from their alma mater. For additional guidance on what constitutes a judge conflict in a given competition event, please refer to the MSTOC procedures documents posted on Tabroom.
In the event that a judge and/or competitor reports a conflict after a pairing is distributed, resulting in a change to the pairing—the associated program will be assessed a $500 fine.

Mandatory Waivers

Media Release
All participants must submit a signed MSTOC Media Release in advance of the tournament.
This form allows us to live stream competition events, post recordings on third-party platforms (e.g. YouTube), and incorporate footage into future educational materials. For participants under 18 years of age, the signature of a parent/legal guardian is required.

Honor Code
All tournament participants—including competitors and judges—must submit a signed MSTOC Honor Code in advance of the tournament.
Coaches/chaperones and/or parents/legal guardians should review the MSTOC Honor Code and procedures documents posted on Tabroom, as well as the honor and integrity policies of your own school or club, with each individual representing your squad.
The MSTOC Honor Code conveys the significance and importance of competitive integrity to all members of our community, in the interest of maintaining the highest standards of conduct at the annual tournament. The MSTOC expects all participants to act with dignity and respect, and refrain from undermining the integrity of speech and debate as an institution. Participants should neither seek, nor encourage others to seek unfair assistance or advantage in competition. All participants, including observers, are expected to act in good faith and preserve the competitive integrity of the Middle School Tournament of Champions.

Pledge
As a participant in the Middle School Tournament of Champions, I pledge not to lie, cheat, steal or otherwise undermine the fairness of the tournament. I pledge to actively contribute to a climate of fair competition. I understand that competitive integrity and fairness are important to all tournament participants, and I promise to uphold the highest standards of honesty and integrity in competition.

Entry Price

One PF event and parent is judging $135
One PF event and parent is OPTING OUT of judging $285

One LD event and parent is judging $165
One LD event and parent is OPTING OUT of judging $365

One speech event and parent is judging $165
One speech event and parent is OPTING OUT of judging $265

Two speech events and parent is judging $215
Two speech events and parent is OPTING OUT of judging $340

Three speech events and parent is judging $265
Three speech events and parent is OPTING OUT of judging $415

Each person in a PF team would be responsible of providing their own judge, so one PF 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 - EST

Please note that all times will be in Eastern Time Zone (EST)

Click here to view the schedule for LD debate

Click here to view the schedule for PF debate

Click here to view the schedule for speech events

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

Before you proceed with the registration below, make sure ALL STUDENTS must fill out the forms below. Failure to do so will result in the tournament dropping you without a refund.

MSTOC Media Release & Honor Code

STUDENT INFORMATION

* Indicates required field

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

Signed Honor Code (competitor) *

Max file size: 20MB

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

Double entry policy:

Students can only enter in speech OR debate.
If competing in speech, students may enter in up to two events per pattern. Three maximum overall.

Got any questions? Please email [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

I CAN ONLY ENTER IN EITHER SPEECH OR DEBATE. IF DOING SPEECH, I CAN ENTER IN UP TO TWO EVENTS PER PATTERN. *

YES, I UNDERSTAND THE DOUBLE-ENTRY RESTRICTIONS

JUDGE PROVISION

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

Judge Name *

Judge phone *

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

Does your judge have a Tabroom account? *

Yes No but I will create one before submitting registration Not judging (opting out)

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

Yes, understood Not judging but understood as well

Judge Philosophies
For debate, all judges must submit a judging philosophy to Tabroom.com (see instructions here). No LD entry will be considered complete until all affiliated judges have submitted a judge philosophy. This 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".

Has your judge updated their paradigm/philosophy on their Tabroom account? *

Yes Not judging

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