Welcome Parents!
NCFCA is not a drop-off activity! When we say we NEED parents every step of the way, we aren’t exaggerating.
Experienced parents can attest to learning almost as much from speech and debate competition as their students. We hope you’ll enjoy meeting the challenge with your competitors.
Embrace the Rich Blessings and Real Challenges!
Competing in speech and debate requires competitors to put their hearts on the line in a way that few other activities do. This means that in NCFCA competition, you'll gain new glimpses into what's going on in the hearts and minds of your children, and you'll have the opportunity to walk along with them as they navigate new challenges. There are moments of joy and moments of disappointment. Your words and your example in these key moments can make a difference beyond measure as they gain the skills to face bigger challenges later in life. Hear from some of our most experienced parents about what the parenting journey looks like in our league.
Parents FAQs
Does NCFCA provide a printable copy of the rules?
We have transitioned to using our NCFCA.org website as the official means of publishing all competition rules and guidelines. This change allows for improved navigation, organization, and content presentation options, especially for new families.
However, we realize that some participants also like to prepare using printed documents. We offer a print-button option on all of our rule pages, but the formatting options are limited and can be cumbersome with some browsers, so here are some tips you can use to save paper and ink if you feel like you need to print the rules.
Make your own printable pages. You can easily copy the rules you want into a Google Doc and the formatting will be maintained nicely.
- This step-by-step guide will show you how to start a Google Doc.
- Once you have a Google Doc open along with the website rules on a different browser tab, use your cursor to highlight the section of rules you would like to print and then simultaneously press the keys: CTRL/C (PC) or COMMAND/C (Mac). Note: The process works best if you highlight only one set of rules or one set of guidelines at a time (without highlighting over the break between rules and guidelines).
- Next, place your cursor in the document and simultaneously press the keys: CTRL/V (PC) or COMMAND/V (Mac). This should make the text appear in your document.
- This process will work in a similar way with Microsoft Word and other document options.
- With the text copied into your own document, you can change the font size and margins to your own preferences.
Avoid duplicate content for speech rules by printing the guidelines only once for each event category (limited prep, interpretation, and platform). The guidelines for each speech category are replicated on the appropriate event pages. The exceptions to this are that Digital Presentation has an extra “Digital Presentation Protocols” section, Apologetics includes the topics, and Extemporaneous has unique timing protocols.
Please keep in mind that our website contains the official copy of all rules. We will alert participants through our affiliate communications emails if we make any substantive changes to rules or guidelines, but it is the responsibility of competitors to follow the officially published rules.
What policies and rules do I need to know before a tournament?
Parents, designated adults, and competitors should read the NCFCA League Policies as well as the event rules for each events they will be participating in.
We know that for a first tournament, the rules and policies can seem a bit overwhelming, but you’ll get the hang of it in no time. If there’s a misstep or a question, our experienced families, volunteer teams, and tournament staff members will respond with grace and understanding. We’ve all been there!
What are the chaperone requirements at a tournament?
Each competitor and at least one parent or legal guardian must be available to actively participate for the duration of each NCFCA tournament for which they are registered.
Each parent will be designated to serve as a judge or to assist in a tournament staff role. If a parent is unable to participate, he or she may appoint another adult as a proxy, but must ensure that the designated adult meets all criteria outlined below.
A designated adult:
- May not be a competitor.
- Must be at least 21 years old or at least 19 years old if he or she is a sibling of the competitor.
- Must be prepared to fully participate in the tournament by serving as a judge or in another tournament capacity throughout the event.
- Must view one Judge Training each season for speech and for debate prior to judging.
- May only be responsible for students in one family regardless of the number of students in the family.
- May not be an adult who is already responsible for their own competing children
How many rounds do parents need to judge?
Parents or a designated adult should expect to judge throughout all days of the tournament unless they are serving in a full-time tournament staff role.
What do younger children do while their parents are judging?
Children under competition age must be supervised by a parent, or another adult whom the parent designates except during the designated times for supervised Junior Activities. Parents often take turns watching younger children for one another, and young children who are capable of watching rounds quietly can sit with parents who are judging.
When and how do competitors get their ballots?
After the tournament, ballots will be available from the Ballots button on the right side of the dashboard just above the Tournament Results button.
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