Dear colleagues, competitors, and friends of NCFA,

From all of the leadership at NCFA, we are excited to invite you to the second NCFA sponsored tournament of this competitive session. We hope you and your teams have continued to stay safe and healthy during these challenging times. The onset of COVID-19 has forced major adaptions to the way we coach and participate in the forensics activity. With that in mind we are excited to invite you all to NCFA’s first ever asynchronous tournament this October. Our goal is to provide an accessible and affordable venue for your teams to compete in. We hope that you can join us!

Tournament Staff

Tournament Director: Ryan Guy (Modesto Jr. College)

Tab & Logistics: Jim Dobson (Las Positas College), Erika Jarregui, Taure Shimp (Modesto Jr. College)

Enter your students and judges in the tournament. Registration will take place through ForensicsTournament.net (FTN). You can access registration here.

Important Dates

Registration closes Friday, October 9th 2020 at 11:59 PM PST.

Students can participate in the full roster of Individual Events at this tournament. There are no debate events.

General Eligibility

1. Students must be currently enrolled in a class at the college they are representing. If students fail to meet the eligibility requirement but have a compelling justification, a coach or representative from the institution may petition the executive council and tournament staff for consideration to participate.

2. Each college participating at an NCFA sponsored or sanctioned event must be represented by a coach. The coach need not be from the same school as the contestants, but must be officially recognized as their faculty representative by their institution. Students will not be allowed to compete without a faculty representative at the tournament. Exceptions can be made for student-run teams, as determined by the Executive Committee in consultation with the host.

Division Eligibility

1. Any student may enter open division, regardless of experience. Students with four semesters of collegiate experience in an event type MUST enter open division.

2. Novice Division shall be open only to those students meeting the following NCFA Eligibility Requirements:

   • High school experience in Individual Events--if a student has competed in high school for two semesters, the student must compete in open division.

   • College experience in Individual Events--a novice competitor must advance to open division if he/she places (first, second, third) in an event, or like event type (i.e.-interpretation, limited prep, group event, and platform speeches), twice.

Awards

1. 1. Digital awards will be provided for all students that advance to elimination rounds in any event.

   2. Digital Team Sweepstakes awards will be provided for the top 3 institutions in 2 categories: 2-year and 4-year schools.

Judge Registration

The tournament is committed to managing the judge pool to minimize the expense of hired judging. It is imperative that we have accurate information about your judges. When you enter your judges online please indicate if judges are ineligible to judge open division rounds and/or are conflicted by prior association that prevent them from hearing competitors from other schools. Judges can also feel free to submit conflicts directly to the tournament director.

Competent Judge Standards

Each college entered shall fulfill the judging requirement outlined or pay the requisite judging fee. Only a competent judge may be used to fulfill this requirement. Competent judges shall be defined as one of the following:

1. A college forensics coach.

2. A former college forensics coach.

3. College instructors of Speech communication or allied disciplines.

4. A high school forensics coach or former forensics coach, teacher of speech, or allied discipline.

5. A college graduate who competed in at least one year of forensics

6. A student who has not completed a BA degree but who:

   • has retired from competition and has exhausted her/his competitive eligibility.

   • is at least one year removed from competition.

   • had a distinguished record in Open Division the type of event he/she is judging. Such a person may judge Novice Division rounds at their first tournament, and Open Division rounds thereafter.

Judge Coverage

One judge covers up to six Individual Events slots.

We will not be able to support entries without adequate judging. Hiredjudge.com is offering judges you can hire directly or through the tournament. Please contact the tournament director with any questions about your judging commitment.

Each judge will be asked to watch up to six (6) panels of speeches with 4-6 videos in each panel.

Judges must view all videos to completion and submit finished ballots with written feedback for each competitor. This is comparable to the amount of judging that would be assigned at a face-to-face tournament.

Judges can complete their evaluation at any time convenient to them as long as it is prior to the judging deadline for that round.

If a judge does not complete their assignment by the end of the judging period, an uncompleted ballot fee will be added to the invoice of the school they represent because the tournament will have to hire a replacement judge.

Students can and should use whatever recording equipment they have available. Judges will be instructed not to evaluate image and audio quality in their assessment of the round. However, being able to see and hear competitors clearly is important. Thus, here are suggestions for optimal results.

Recording Video

When it comes to recording video, using a higher-quality capture device will produce higher-quality results. This includes camcorders and DSLRs capable of recording in HD or 4K video. We recognize that this equipment may not be attainable and is cost-prohibitive. Similarly high-quality results can be obtained with a newer cellphone camera or external webcam. Cellphones that are older than three years and built in webcams tend to produce lower-quality video. For some suggested technology, see the NCFA recommended technology list for virtual tournaments. Additionally, it is important to consider lighting when recording video. Ensure that competitors are visible by avoiding overhead lights and dark spaces. Minimally, placing one front-facing light behind or beside the camera will provide adequate light. For best results, set up a three-point lighting system using a combination of lamps and/or an open window.

Recording Audio

Most phones and external webcams include a sufficient microphone. However, using an external microphone such as a lapel mic or condenser mic can greatly improve the audio quality of a performance. Students and coaches should review videos prior to submission to ensure the speaker is audible and that they do not cut-out during the presentation.

Overview

In order to ensure fairness and consistency, all entries will need to be uploaded to the appropriate Dropbox on this website. Once uploaded, videos will be scrubbed of their school affiliations and uploaded as unlisted videos to NCFA YouTube playlists. These playlists will be sent to judges.

Video-Release Forms

In order to compete, students will have to sign a video-release form. This document will need to be submitted by the close of the video upload period. After registering, each student will receive a request for a digital signature on an Adobe PDF. These forms must be digitally signed and returned by October 13th at 11:59 PM. If a student is under the age of 18, a parent or guardian will need to sign the form. Please contact us if you need forms for students under the age of 18. Failure to submit this form will result in disqualification from competition.

Format

If possible, please upload videos in .MP4 or .MOV format. These are the most compatible video files and have the least amount of issues when uploading to YouTube. We can also accept .AVI, .WMV, and .FLV files. However, you should be aware that these formats tend to have larger file sizes and decreased quality.

Guidelines

Videos should not be edited.

This includes animated text, title slides, and transitions as well as cutting out parts of the performance such as verbal fillers, memory flubs, or any other content. Videos that have been edited will be subject to disqualification at the tournament director's discretion.

Naming convention.

All uploaded files should adhere to the following naming convention: DIVISION_EVENT_COMPETITOR NAME_SCHOOL.

NOV_ADS_RYAN GUY_HUMBOLDTSTATE.mp4

Registration

September 18th at 12:01 AM - Registration opens via ForensicsTournament.net

October 9th at 11:59 PM - Registration closes.

Event Submissions

October 11th at 12:01 AM - Tournament opens for video uploads. Extemp and Impromptu topics released on this site.

October 13th at 11:59 PM - Tournament closes for video uploads and video release forms.

Judging Period

October 18th at 8:00 AM - Judging period begins. eBallots are released to judges.

October 23rd at 12:00 PM - Judging period ends. Ballots must be submitted.

**If a judge does not complete their assignment by the end of the judging period, an uncompleted ballot fee will be added to the invoice of the school they represent because the tournament will have to hire a replacement judge**

Awards

TBA Week of October 25th - Awards Ceremony LiveStream

At the beginning of the tournament you will confirm your entries but all fees will be assessed at the end of the tournament.

1. You are encouraged to pay electronically via Square. Paper checks will need to be made payable to NCFA and mailed to:

Ryan Guy, NCFA Treasurer

PO Box 474

Ceres, CA 95307.

2. Any school can apply for a fee waiver or reduction. Complete the form during registration to submit your fee waiver.

3. Event Fees

School fee: $25.00

Individual event slot: $1.00

Uncovered individual event slot: $25.00

Uncompleted Ballot Fee: $30.00 per ballot