District VII Constitution and By-Laws
American Forensic Association
National Speech Tournament
1. Guidelines
The District will adhere to the procedures established by the AFA-NST Committee and the AFA Code of Ethics.
2. Membership
All two- and four-year institutions of higher learning within Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia, as well as Ohio University, The University of Akron, and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, are eligible for membership in District VII. To participate in either District Qualifier, a school must pay the annual AFA-NST membership dues and relevant District Qualifier fees. Any school which has not paid all previous debts to the District will not be allowed to compete at any future District Qualifier until payment has been rendered.
3. District Committee
A. District Chair
The District Chair shall be elected at the Spring District Qualifier every odd-numbered year. The Chair will be elected by a simple majority vote of the member schools present. If a vacancy occurs at any time other than at the end of a term, a new election shall be held at the earliest possible convenience. Responsibilities of the District Chair include the following:
The District Chair must be a member of the AFA.
The District Chair is responsible for convening, running, and officiating over all District meetings.
The Chair will serve as tournament director for both District NST Qualifiers.
The Chair will serve as the District’s representative to the AFA-NST National Committee, performing all duties outlined by said committee.
The Chair will perform all other duties as necessary to fulfill the leadership and advancement of the District, including reporting all earned at-large and district qualifications from the District to the NST Tournament Director by the established deadline.
B. District Committee
In addition to the District Chair, the District Committee shall consist of no fewer than three and no more than five voting members and one student member (each serving a one-year term). The election for District Committee seats shall take place at the Spring District Qualifier. Nominations shall be open and elections shall be by plurality. District members need not be present to be elected to the Committee, but consent to serve must be obtained prior to nomination. All nominees (excluding the student member) must have coached speech events during the past year. The one student member on the District Committee will be selected following the procedure outlined in Section 3.C. “Student Representatives.”
A District Secretary will be appointed from the District Committee membership (excluding the student member). The District Secretary will be responsible for recording and distributing the minutes of District Meetings, as well as other responsibilities delegated by the Committee.
When possible, the Chair Emeritus will be a member of the District Committee.
C. Student Representatives
The District maintains two student representatives–one senior representative who serves on the District Committee as well as one junior representative. Each spring, a new incoming junior representative will be elected at the District VII Student Meeting, with each institution allowed one vote. This junior representative will serve a two-year term beginning the following season and will become the senior representative and District Committee student member in the second year of their term.
Both student representatives must attend the NST each year of their term, including the National Student Meeting held prior to the commencement of the AFA-NST. Attendance at the Spring District Qualifier will be required of both student representatives as part of their service to the District, with the senior student representative directing the Student Meeting with assistance from the junior student representative. If either student representative is unable to fulfill their role’s requirements, the remaining student representative shall fulfill the responsibility of both roles until an election can be held.
4. Eligibility
All verified full-time and part-time undergraduate students from a member institution are eligible to compete. The AFA-NST guidelines define an undergraduate student as one who has not yet received a bachelor’s degree. A student who graduates in mid-year (e.g., a December graduate) but has already qualified to attend the NST may do so; however, they may not attend the Spring District Qualifier. Each student is permitted a maximum of eight semesters of forensic competition, regardless of degree standing. Under no circumstances may a student attend more than four NIETs/NSTs or more than eight District Qualifiers. Under exceptional circumstances, students may be permitted to compete beyond the standard limit, provided that the procedures outlined in Section III.5.E of the AFA-NST By-Laws have been fulfilled.
5. District Qualifier
A. Summary
District VII will hold an NST qualifying tournament each semester to determine event qualifications for those students who have not yet qualified for the AFA-NST in a respective event. This tournament will follow all rules and procedures established in the AFA-NST Constitution and By-Laws.
B. District Business Meeting
A meeting open to all District coaches will be held during each District Qualifier. Any changes adopted by vote of member schools present will take effect the following season. To be a voting member of the District, a school must have paid the AFA-NST fee for the current year. All current member schools in the District are entitled to one vote. A member from that school must be present (whether physically or virtually) to vote unless a vote in absentia has been communicated to the District Chair prior to the District Meeting. The District Constitution and By-Laws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of member schools.
C. Tournament Site and Date
When possible, the site and modality of both District Qualifiers will be determined at the previous season’s Spring District Qualifier. The Fall District Qualifier will be held in November and the Spring District Qualifier will be held in February or March, both on weekends that, when possible, do not conflict with any other tournament within the District. An attempt should be made to rotate the site of the District Qualifiers. The District Committee will select the competition date(s) in consultation with each tournament host. If, for any reason, the site selected for a District Qualifier must be changed, the District Committee will choose a new site for the tournament and shall promptly communicate the change to all member schools.
6. Tournament Responsibilities and Procedures
In consultation with the District Committee and the tournament host(s), the District Chair is responsible for disseminating information about the District Qualifiers and receiving and confirming all entries. The District Chair will notify the respective tournament host(s) of all pertinent tournament figures as soon as possible.
The tournament host(s) will be responsible for all on-site arrangements, including securing hired judges, competition rooms, and tournament supplies. The District Committee, under the direction of the District Chair, will be responsible for scheduling the tournament, securing Extemporaneous Speaking and Impromptu Speaking prompts, slotting judges, tabulating results, and directing the tournament.
Each school may enter up to five competition slots per event, with no contestant entering in more than two events in any AFA-NST pattern or three events in any District Qualifier pattern. Students who have already qualified in an event are ineligible to compete in that event at the District Qualifier with the exception of Duo Interpretation (so long as the entered student pairing has not already qualified for the NST in Duo Interpretation). This rule applies whether or not the student plans to attend the NST. Prior to each District Qualifier, the District Chair will verify all at-large qualifiers from the District, except their own. (The District Chair will appoint a District Committee member to verify their school’s at-large qualifications.)
The entry deadline for each District Qualifier will be one week prior, or at a later time as designated by the District Chair, and only schools that have paid their AFA-NST fees may compete. All event, contestant, and/or judge drops must be communicated promptly to the District Chair. The entry, judging, and drop fees will be determined by the District Committee and shall be communicated to the District prior to the registration deadline.
The tabulation room will be staffed by members of the District Committee and the tournament host(s), if requested. Whenever possible, individuals working in the tabulation room will not also serve as judges.
There will be two preliminary rounds of competition in each event. When only one section of an event is necessary (i.e., seven or fewer contestants entered in an event), no final round will be held. Instead, two rounds of competition will be held with a total of three judges. Final standings of “one section” events will follow the same procedures as traditional final rounds at the tournament (see below). Advancement to the final round of competition in any event will be based on lowest cumulative ranks. Should rank ties occur in selecting six finalists, ties will be broken on the basis of speaker points. If ties still exist, all tied contestants will advance to finals.
Three judges will be used in final rounds. If possible, judges will not be assigned to hear an event in which they have judged any of the finalists during the preliminary rounds of that event. Final standings in each event will be determined by the following system: (1) majority of first place rankings; (2) lowest total of cumulative ranks; (3) judges’ preference; (4) highest total of cumulative speaker points; (5) number of first-place final ballots; (6) number of second-place final ballots; etc.
Team sweepstakes will be based on final round results: 6 points will be awarded for a first place; 5 points will be awarded for a second place, etc. Finalist points in “one section” events will be awarded the same as multi-section events.
In accordance with the AFA-NST, first, second, and third place finalists (or the top 10% of each event, whichever is higher) will earn an Auto District Qualification to the NST. District Qualifiers can count toward at-large qualification for the AFA-NST so long as the tournament meets the qualifications established for any other tournament. Any contestant fulfilling both qualification methods must use the at-large qualification, thus advancing to the NST as many contestants from the District from each District Qualifier as possible. The District will follow all AFA-NST By-Laws regarding “bump down” advancements for both District Qualifiers. The District Chair must be informed of any contestants unable or unwilling to attend the NST so that the next eligible contestant may be advanced. When a contestant is eligible for the NST in more than two events in an NST event pattern, the District Chair must be notified as soon as possible as to which two events the contestant will enter at the NST if the decision affects the advancement of another contestant from the District.
The District Chair will ensure that within a reasonable time, the results of each District Qualifier are made publicly available (e.g., posting full results packets online).
7. Judge Eligibility
Non-hired judges must be non-undergraduate coaches at the school they are to represent.
No judges (whether hired or non-hired) shall judge any contestants they have previously coached within the past two seasons, nor judge contestants from any school at which they have coached within the past two seasons, nor judge contestants from any school with which they are currently affiliated, nor judge contestants from any school in which they were enrolled as undergraduates within the past two academic years.
8. The District Committee may grant exceptions to the above rules with at least a two-thirds vote.
Revised by the District VII Committee, Summer 2025.
Approved by District VII Member Schools, Spring 2026.