Hosted by the University of California, Berkeley
Sat –
Mon, February 17-19, 2007
Greetings,
This is the formal invitation to the 2007 Cal High
School Forensics Tournament. This tournament is a TOC qualifier at the
octafinal level in LD and policy and at the finals level in student congress.
In this you should find all of the information you need to enter and attend the
tournament. There are very few changes from last year, but one major change is
that we will adopt a system of limited mutual preference judging in the Varsity
division of policy debate. There will be a section of the invitation that
describes this in more detail.
As we did last year, we will run the 2006 Cal
tournament at both the Cal-Berkeley campus and at Berkeley High School. The
preliminary rounds for individual events and Varsity Policy and Lincoln Douglas
Debate will occur on Saturday and Sunday on the Cal Campus. The preliminary
rounds of the JV divisions of Policy and Lincoln Douglas Debate will take place
at Berkeley High School. The high school is about a 15 minute walk or a 5
minute drive from the Cal campus. We will NOT provide a shuttle service or any
transportation between the Cal campus and Berkeley high during the tournament.
Thus each school with entries in both varsity and junior varsity divisions will
need to provide coaching/judging and supervision at both campuses. We realize
this is an inconvenience, but the benefits of allowing greater participation
will outweigh the negatives. Elimination rounds will occur on Monday at the Cal
campus for ALL events.
As a result of this move Junior Varsity debaters will
be unable to double enter in debate and individual events.
We will also provisionally remove entry restrictions
on numbers of teams. Given the use of two campuses
we should be able to accommodate significantly larger
entries. Theoretically we should be able to allow 100 JV policy teams and 200
JV LD'ers at the high school and allow 250+ Varsity Policy teams and 350
Varsity LD'ers. Entries will be taken on a first come first served basis and
should a wait list be needed schools who enter early will receive preference.
Should a waitlist become necessary we will use the online system to manage
entries. Thus it is important to BOTH enter via mail and online at
PLEASE, enter online as soon as possible after
sending in your entry.
Some important reminders:
DO NOT MAKE PLANE RESERVATIONS UNTIL YOUR ENTRY IS
CONFIRMED IN WRITING. Space limitations on this tournament are absolute and we
cannot make space at the last minute. I will send you an email as soon as I
receive your entry.
All
entries, accompanied by fees, must be received by January 10th, 2007. Please allow additional time for your entry to
navigate the Berkeley mail system.
Any entries received after the January 10th deadline
will be accessed a $25 late fee. Any entries received after February 1st will
be assessed a $50 late fee. It is also possible that we will have to turn away
late entries due to space limitations.
All inquiries should be directed to gregachten@berkeley.edu.
You must
register on Friday night at the Marriott Courtyard Emeryville, no exceptions.
EVENTS OF COMPETITION: The California Invitational
offers open and junior varsity division policy and Lincoln-Douglas debate. Junior Varsity is limited to students in
their first two years of debate competition.
There will be one open division of individual events. The events offered are original oratory,
extemporaneous speaking, dramatic interpretation, humorous interpretation, duo
interpretation, expository speaking, impromptu speaking and Student Congress.
POLICY DEBATE: Policy
debate teams participate in 8 preliminary rounds, clearing all 6-2 teams to
either a partial triple or double-octa finals in open and either
partial double octa-finals or octa-finals in junior varsity (subject to change
depending on entries). A team is two debaters from the same school. The teams
will debate the 2005-2006 NFL debate resolution. 8-3-5 format with 8 minutes of elapsed preparation time per
team. The tournament does not break brackets for teams from the same school
meeting in elimination rounds. The school's coach must inform the tab room by
the end of the round which team will advance in these instances. Elimination
round brackets are published Monday morning.
LINCOLN-DOUGLAS: 8
preliminary rounds clearing all 6-2 teams to either a partial triple or
double-octa finals in open and octa-finals in junior varsity (subject to change
depending on entries). 6-3-7-3-4-6-3 format with 4 minutes of preparation time
per team. Debaters use the NFL's Jan/Feb topic. The tournament does not break
brackets for debaters from the same schools meeting in elimination rounds. Tab
room notification policy as per policy debate above. Varsity LD'er may double
enter in individual events. JV Ld'ers may NOT.
INDIVIDUAL EVENTS: 4 preliminary rounds with elimination rounds beginning at
quarterfinals. All speeches must have been prepared during the current school
year. Penalties for slight infractions of time rules are left to judges'
discretion. The California Invitational follows CHSSA guidelines for events.
Contact the tournament director for questions regarding these guidelines. Rules
will be interpreted by the CHSSA official on-site.
STUDENT CONGRESS: 4 preliminary sessions, breaking to
finals. Each house is limited to no more than 25 speakers. Each session
considers only the bills assigned to that session. No amendments are permitted.
Speakers are limited to 3 minutes per speech, with one minute for questions.
DOUBLE-ENTRY: Students may double enter with the
exception of entering in both duo interp and extemp. Students who enter in duo
interp may not enter extemp and vice-versa. Students may not double enter in
IEs and Congress. A student may not double enter in the same event. STUDENTS
MAY NOT DOUBLE ENTER IN JV POLICY/LD DEBATE AND INDIVIDUAL EVENTS. THE
TOURNAMENT MAKES NO SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR DOUBLE-ENTRIES.
ENTRY LIMITATIONS: As explained above we will not
have initial entry limits. If it appears that we are approaching our entry
limit we will institute a waitlist using the online entry system. All entries
must be completed online and we will manage the entries and wait list using the
online system. There are no limits in IE. Spaces are not reserved until fees
are paid.
INDEPENDENT ENTRIES: None are permitted. Please do
not ask for exceptions to this rule.
FAIR WARNING: Enter
now! When room capacity is reached, we
are closed, NO EXCEPTIONS. Despite the use of Berkeley High this year,
it is better to be safe than sorry regarding entry. Fire code does not permit
events to be held in spaces other than those assigned to the tournament. DO NOT
MAKE TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS UNTIL YOU HAVE RECEIVED CONFIRMATION IN WRITING!
Unfortunately, "I have already made plane reservations" does not
create new rooms for us. We want to accommodate everyone, but we cannot risk
the fire marshal shutting the whole event down.
ENTERING THE TOURNAMENT: Fees must accompany entry
forms. Please send entry forms, fees,
and judge rating form to:
Greg
Achten
Director,
California Invitational
UC
Berkley Forensics Program
102
Sproul Hall #2430
Berkeley,
CA 94720-2430
All correspondence should be directed to Greg Achten
via email at gregachten@berkeley.edu. Competitor names should be entered online,
per the instructions below.
ENTRY/DROP DEADLINES: The entry deadline is January 10th, 2007. Your fees will be
assessed as of this date. You will not be refunded for drops subsequent
to this date.
JUDGING: Each
school judge covers 2 policy team entries or 3 LD debate entries or 5 events
entries. Schools must bring sufficient experienced judges to cover
their entries. You may hire no more than one-half your judging commitment. If
you cannot meet these requirements, contact the tournament director. All debate judges must be entered online
1 week prior to the start of the tournament. All debate judges are
committed through the double-octafinals or one round beyond the elimination of
your teams, whichever is later.
MUTUAL PREFERENCE JUDGING: In an effort to improve
judge quality we will institute a system of mutual preference judging in the
varsity division of policy debate. We will only take preferences online at the
entry website www.debateresults.com One week prior to the tournament all judges
must be entered online. Each school will then receive an em ail to the address
they use to register at the online entry site with instructions for filling out
the preference sheet. We will do our best to honor preference sheets for all
teams that turn them in, but we do reserve the right to not honor preferences
if faced with a severe judging shortfall.
MISSED BALLOT FEES: Judges must be in the judges'
room 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the round until the last ballot
for that round has been distributed. Judges scheduled for availability but not
called must serve as "stand-by" judges for that round. Missed ballot
fee is $30 per ballot, which must be paid before students are allowed to
compete in elims and before awards or ballots are distributed. Every year we
lose money because we have to hire judges to cover for judges who fail to pick
up their ballots. We do not impose this fee in an attempt to turn a profit but
rather to emphasize the extremely difficult situation that missed ballots
create for the tournament.
PARKING: Please park in designated areas only. Follow
the signs in front of each lot carefully. Parking enforcement is vigilant and
campus parking enforcement will not hesitate to tow if you are parked illegally
or in spaces marked for professors. You may purchase daily permits at
individual lots with quarters or you may purchase parking permits from the
tournament.
LODGING: Make reservations now! Last year there was a
hotel room shortage in the area due to a large volleyball tournament. That
tournament is the same weekend. To remedy this we have made arrangements with a
number of local properties to offer reduced rates during the event. Some are
closer to campus than others. Once these are full, you will be on your own.
Below is a brief description of each property. They are listed in order based
on the quality of the hotel and its proximity to campus.
The Marriott
Courtyard Emeryville (5555 Shellmound Street, Emeryville. 866-244-9330) is the
official tournament hotel. We have arranged a rate of $99/night for up to four
people in a room. This hotel has a variety of food options within walking
distance and has free high speed internet. This is also where pairings will be
released in the morning and where registration will occur on Friday. You can
make reservations by calling the above number. Reservations must be made by
January 24th. Ask for the Berkeley High
School Debate Rate.
Oakland Marriott City Center (1001 Broadway, Oakland,
CA 94607, 800-991-7249) This is a large convention style hotel in downtown
Oakland also offering a rate of $99 per night for up to four people per room.
In addition there are parking fees of $25 per night for valet and $15 per night
for self parking (subject to changes). To reserve rooms here call the number
above and ask for the University of California Berkeley Debates rate.
The Marriott Courtyard Richmond/Berkeley (3150
Garrity Way, Richmond, CA 94806, 1-800-321-2211). Located about 25 minutes from
campus near a major shopping mall this is the least expensive hotel offering a
rate of $94 per night. To make a reservation call the above number and ask for
the Speech/Debate Tournament rate.
The Marriott Courtyard Oakland Airport (350 Hegenberger
Road, Oakland, CA, 94621, 1 (800) 321-2211) Located very close to the Oakland
Airport and about 25-30 minutes from campus this hotel is convenient for those
traveling from out of state. They are offering rooms with two double beds for
$109 per night and rooms with King bed
and a pullout sofa for $99 per night. Reservations can be made by calling the
above number and requesting the University of California at Berkeley Debates
rate.
Fairield Inn Oakland Airport (8452 Edes Ave, Oakland,
CA, 94621, 510-568-1500). Also, convenient to the airport, this hotel is
offering rooms with two double beds for $99 per night and rooms with one king
bed for $89 per night. Reservations can be made by calling the above number and
requesting the University of California at Berkeley Debates rate.
We believe we have reserved enough rooms in these
blocks to meet the needs of all tournament attendees. However, you should make
hotel reservations earlier rather than later as I am sure most people will want
to stay at the official tournament hotel and we would like to be able to
accommodate as many people there as possible.
SCHEDULE: 2007 CALIFORNIA
INVITATIONAL
FRIDAY, 16 FEBRUARY
7:00 - 9:00 PM Registration - Marriott Courtyard
Emeryville - All must attend
Schedule for Varsity Policy and Lincoln Douglas and
Individual Events
SATURDAY, 17 FEBRUARY (Lincoln Douglas and Individual
Events - At Cal Campus) Pairings for Debate Rounds 1 & 2 are available at
7:00 AM, ballots will be distributed at 7:30 AM, and Round 1 will begin
promptly at 8:00 AM. The 15-minute forfeit rule will be strictly enforced in
Round 1! 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM DEBATE 1 (Pre-Set) 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM DEBATE 2
(Pre-Set) 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM DEBATE 3 (Pre-Set) 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
EVENTS/CONGRESS 1 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM DEBATE 4 (High-Low) 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
EVENTS/CONGRESS 2 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM DEBATE 5 (High-High)
SUNDAY, 18 FEBRUARY (Varsity Policy Lincoln Douglas
and Individual Events - at Cal Campus) Pairings for Debate Round 6 are
available at 7:00 AM, ballots will be distributed at 7:30 AM, and Round 6 will
begin promptly at 8:00 AM. The 15-minute forfeit rule will be strictly enforced
in Round 6!
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM DEBATE 6 (High-Low)
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM EVENTS/CONGRESS 3
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM DEBATE 7 (High-Low)
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM EVENTS/CONGRESS 4
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM DEBATE 8 (High-Low)
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM EVENTS QUARTERFINALS/CONGRESS
FINALS
8:00 PM - 10:00 PM DEBATE PARTIAL TRIPLE-OCTA FINALS
MONDAY, 19 FEBRUARY (All Events at Cal Campus)
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM EVENTS SEMI-FINALS/ DEBATE DOUBLE
OCTA-FINALS 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EVENTS FINALS/ DEBATE OCTA-FINALS 2:00 PM -4:00
PM DEBATE SEMI-FINALS
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM LD DEBATE FINALS (Runs through
awards)
4:30 PM - 5:30 PM AWARDS (NO BALLOTS/AWARDS
BEFOREHAND!)
JV POLICY AND LINCOLN DOUGLAS DEBATE SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, 17 FEBRUARY (At Berkeley High School)
Pairings for Debate Rounds 1 & 2 are available at
7:00 AM, ballots will be distributed at 7:30 AM, and Round 1 will begin
promptly at 8:00 AM. The 15-minute forfeit rule will be strictly enforced in
Round 1! 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM DEBATE 1 (Pre-Set) 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM DEBATE 2
(Pre-Set) 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM Debate Round 3 (High-Low) 4:30 PM - 6:30 PM Debate
Round 4 (High-Low) 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM Debate Round 5 (High-High)
SUNDAY, 18 FEBRUARY (At Berkeley High School)
8:00 AM - 10 AM Debate Round 6 (High-Low)
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM Debate Round 7 (High-Low)
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM Lunch Break
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Debate Round 8 (High-Low)
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM First Elimination round in JV LD
and Policy Debate
MONDAY, 19 FEBRUARY (All Events at Cal Campus)
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM POLICY DEBATE OCTA-FINALS
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM POLICY DEBATE QUARTER-FINALS
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM POLICY DEBATE SEMI-FINALS
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM POLICY DEBATE FINALS (Runs through
awards) 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM AWARDS (NO BALLOTS/AWARDS BEFOREHAND)
Note: Our goal is to allow the tournament to finish
as early as possible so debate rounds will inevitably be pushed up on Monday.
Follow the times on the posted schematics, even if they conflict with this one.
Also, please be advised that we may make minor alterations to the schedule
prior to or during the tournament. We will make every effort to communicate
these changes, but please be on the lookout for these changes.
Entry procedures
There is a two step entry procedure. First, you must
mail an entry to the tournament director by January 10th that contains the
following:
* A
complete list of your entries.
* A
complete list of your judges including which division they should be eligible
to judge. Please enter
your less experienced policy and LD judges
in junior varsity, REMEMBER, JV and Varsity debate will
be at different locations. Divide your
judges accordingly. If you have JV teams you are REQUIRED to
have JV judges.
*
Contact information for the coach of you program, including cell phone number
if available.
* A
check for the entirety of your entry fee.
After sending in your entry you should also enter the
tournament online at www.debateresults.com.
This is the procedure we have used for the last two years and it is very
straightforward. You must enter all of your entries as well as all of your judges
online. IMPORTANT -- Cal also hosts a college tournament using the same website
for registration. Please be sure to register for the High School tournament.
Also, if your judges are judging policy or LD do not enter them to judge more
than 8 debates. This will foul up the system and hamper our ability to run the
tournament. If your judges are judging both LD and IE's, you need to enter them
as judges in both places. A judge
cannot judge both JV LD or policy and IE's as they are at different locations.
Your
entry must be completed online by February 1st , but keep in mind that your entry is not officially
complete until you enter online. The earlier you enter online the less chance your
teams will be subjected to a potential waitlist situation. Entering online
early is also a great favor to the tournament director. You may make minor alterations to your entry
up until February 10th online. If your
entries change you must both email the tournament director and make the change
online. PLEASE DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST DAY TO DO THIS. After 5pm West Coast
time on February 15th, the online system will be closed. Any changes made at
registration will incur a $20 late fee. Hopefully this will provide you maximum
flexibility in creating your entry.
To summarize:
1. MAIL IN FEE SHEET WITH FEES. Fill out the forms listed
below and send it to our office. You must include the full details of your
entry. At the bottom of the page, write the names of the students and the
events they are competing in.
The forms, with fees attached, are due 1/10/2007.
YOU MUST INCLUDE THE COMPLETED CONTACT INFORMATION
FORM!
Mail these
completed forms with your check:
Invitational Fee worksheet (Word Doc.)
Contact and Entry Form (Word Doc.)
2. COMPLETE YOUR ONLINE ENTRY. The website will have
instructions for how you do this. Final entry is due February 1, 2007, although
you can make minor alterations until February 10th. You should be able to print
out a copy of your entry online. Do so.
3. WE WILL EMAIL YOU A CONFIRMATION. This
confirmation will be your official proof that you were accepted into the
tournament.
4. COME TO REGISTRATION. This is where you will get
your parking permits and receipts.
Also, any informational changes will be announced here.
5. PARKING NOTE: Parking at the Cal campus is scarce and
expensive. We have a number of parking permits available for sale. If you have
Junior Varsity debate entries, parking at the High School is free or at least
much easier and more reasonable on Saturday and Sunday. However you will need
to purchase a permit for Monday. If you have Varity Policy and LD entries or
Individual Event entries you will need a permit for all 3 days.
6.
CHECKS: Please make checks
payable to "UC Regents".
Making checks payable to the wrong payee may result in delays in processing
your entry and may incur a nuisance fee.
Mail these
completed forms with your check:
Invitational Fee worksheet (Word Doc.)
Contact and Entry Form (Word Doc.)