Workshops
Monday 3:45 pm Sessions
Club Building - presented by MelRae Ambs & TJ Harding
How do I start a club? What exactly do I DO at a club meeting? Are there any resources to help me get started? How do I teach both beginning students and advanced students? How do I keep my advanced students coming back for more? How can I get other parents involved? Are there any resources to make this job easier? If you have ever wondered these questions, or if you have answers to these questions, THIS is the session for you! Come visit with TJ Harding and MelRae Ambs about how to build a club.
Planning a Tournament – presented by Susan Schalin
Congratulations! You are going to plan a local tournament. This session will help to make you a successful tournament director. Planning a tournament means planning ahead with many decisions to be made. Stoa trusts local leaders to make decisions on how best to serve those in their local community. But no matter how big or small the tournament there are some common elements to all tournaments. Susan Schalin will present the areas where you get to decide about what kind of tournament you would like to have and follow up with ideas to help you plan to make your tournament a sure hit.
Apologetics 2.0! - presented by Robert Kwong & Debbie Snyder
There's more to Apologetics than coming up with 100 cards with answers and outlines. Let's take a deeper look into this incredible limited prep category and learn ways to make it more than just an event. After much input and discussion, some significant changes have been made to Apologetics. Come and see what they are!
Policy Resolutional Analysis – presented by Katie Herche & Mike Winther
This session will take an introductory look at the 2015-2016 policy debate resolution. Your presenters will analyze the key terms of the resolution, identify likely cases and plan actions, and present a list of resources to get coaches started. In addition, Mike and Katie will discuss some of the deeper philosophical, political and economic concepts that may develop during the year.
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Monday 6:00 pm Sessions
The Growing Club – presented by Steven Vaughan
As the local club grows, some of the things you did with a smaller club will need to change to accommodate the larger numbers. Steven will speak to these issues including venue, parental/alumni involvement, registration fees, costs, assignments, club unity, as well as a question and answer time for other issues you may be dealing with.
Worldview of Competitive Forensics - presented by Mike Winther
We have all heard it said that we do speech and debate to train up “world changers”. Are we really doing this? Will our students really change the world? Will they change if for the better? We may not be doing as well as we think. In the areas of both head and heart, we can do better! In this session, Mike takes a sober look at the benefits and risks of this activity (both speech and debate) and presents practical ways to maximize the benefits and minimize the risks of forensics.
Some of the questions to be addressed include...
How do we transition our students from family faith to real personal faith? How do we best prepare them to “survive” college or the workplace? What are we forgetting to teach our kids? How should the world be changed? What should our kids know that we never learned & how do we teach what we don’t know?
Sailing Through Script Submission - presented by Sandra Bateman & Debbie Snyder
Is there an easier way to do the works cited page? And do we really need all those sources cited? What is the interp photocopy actually supposed to look like? This session will show you all the finer points of tacking through the script submission sea of approval.
Overview of LD Resolutions – presented by Robert Kwong
Through lecture, handouts and a question and answer period, we will analyze each of the two LD resolutions with the goal of better understanding the real life issues and values pertaining to formal education (liberal arts vs. practical skills) and the dynamic tension between economic growth and environmental protection. When parents and coaches are better informed, their debaters are enriched.
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Tuesday 8:30 am Sessions
Fundraising 101 – presented by Maggie Carabelos
Fundraising is a great tool that teaches your students that money really doesn’t grow on trees! Join Maggie for this session that will have you and your club successfully raising money for traveling and competition.
All Things Judges – presented by Steven Vaughan
Tournaments can’t happen without judges. But once you get them there, what can the tournament, esp. the Judge Orientation Staff do to get them oriented properly? And how do you answer those tough questions they have without giving your bias? Come and learn the art of JO, and helping judges answer their own questions and thereby giving them the tools they need to better make decisions when similar situations arise.
Interps: Where To Find 'Em & How To Cut 'Em - Presented by Craig Smith
You've probably been asked, "Where can I find a good piece?" or "How can I trim 45 seconds off my perfect-as-it-is speech?" In this popular workshop, you'll see that there's really more material out there than you could use in six seasons. Discover a treasure-trove of interps that your students can explore to find their own perfect piece.
Tab Philosophy – presented by Mike Winther & Jeff Yeates
Description Coming
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Tuesday 9:45 am Sessions
“Whack a Mole” – Keeping Up – presented by TJ Harding & Mary Winther
In this session we will discuss those annoying little "issues" that creative students bring to the surface. Some of these could just be creative license, while some may actually be rule violations. We will give you guidelines and suggestions as coaches for curbing issues within your club. Dealing with undesirable practices at a local level prevents unnecessary rules at a league level. We will be discussing the "moles" that are popping up in your areas, so please come prepared to share.
Extreme Reality Show or Art? - presented by Sandra Bateman, Sue Danielson, & Leslie Martin
Is a good interp an extreme reality show or is there an art to a good interp piece? Impactful interpretations will connect with the audience through stories by portraying a realistic emotional journey of a character or characters. A relatable situation using humor or drama makes for a piece that audiences can identify with and remember.
Drills, Drills, and More Drills – presented by Katie Herche & Isaac Harris
Drills can make club time a little more fun, and make practice at home more structured. In this session you'll learn about a variety of drills for both speech and debate. Each drill targets a specific debate or speaking technique that your students will want to master. Learn about which drills target which weaknesses, and how integrating drills into your coaching style can strengthen your students' performances in competition.
Junior Speech – presented by MelRae Ambs & Maggie Carabelos
In this session we give you the nuts and bolts on how to build and implement a successful Junior Speech Program. We tackle Junior Tournament Directing, Judging and finally, the importance of imparting a lifetime love of forensics.
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Tuesday 1:30 pm Sessions
Questions, Ideas, Suggestions – presented in four separate sessions by
the STOA Board, Speech Committee, Debate Committee & Tournament Experts
One of the great things about STOA is that they do listen to the members. For this Academy, we have set aside a time for you to ask questions of the Speech and Debate committees, as well as the Board, and a couple of Tournament Experts. Each panel will be in separate rooms so you can target your questions, ideas, and suggestions for the specific area of interest. Feel free to take this time to not only ask your questions, but to also present specific ideas and make some suggestions to any or all of these panels, or to just come and learn why certain things work the way they do.
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Tuesday 2:30 pm Sessions
The Relationship Ladder -
Proven steps for smoothing out disagreements presented by Dan Bobinski
Disagreements, tension, and conflict are part of life, but left unresolved, they interfere with unity—and with learning environments. In this session, taught by the author of the best-selling book “Creating Passion-Driven Teams,” you will learn—and practice—a unique “works every time” five-step method for conflict resolution. Also covered: The seven deadly sins of not listening, the two biggest obstacles to resolving conflict, and proven techniques for bringing tension levels down very quickly.
Building A Platform That Will Stand - Presented by Leslie Martin and Craig Smith
What are the key materials needed in crafting an Original Oratory, Persuasive, or Expository speech? How do you get your non-writer to come up with a ten-minute presentation that flows from their pen to their lips? There are answers to these questions that will get you and your students excited about composing and delivering a message with impact, grace, humor, and a purpose.
Judging at the Next Level – presented by Mike Winther
Judging is hard. But there are ways to make it easier. In this session, Mike will explain different judging paradigms and he will present techniques to help you become a better judge—and equally important, they will give you confidence while making your decisions easier. Mike will also offer tips on how to offer better critique on the ballot. This session will focus primarily on the three forms of debate, but some content will relate to individual events judging as well.
TD – Assembling the Team – presented by Steven Vaughan
A Tournament Director is only as good as the team they put together. In this session, we will examine the different key positions for a tournament, what are the lines of communication not only for each “department” but also for the handling of the ballots, and who to go to first when problems find their way into the mix.
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Wednesday 9:30 am Sessions
Wild Cards & Next Season's Tweaks - presented by the Speech Committee
A first look at Monologue. A second look at Motivational Speaking. And an overview of other changes for 2015-2016, including new Mars Hill Impromptu prompts, a Duo redo, and a fresh look at Extemp. Learn what's new for taking home and sharing with your clubbers!
Parli Particulars – presented by TJ Harding
Take a walk through the fundamentals of coaching Parliamentary debate. Learn how to identify the types of resolutions and how to set up cases through effective resolution analysis. Explore how Opposition can effectively prepare against a metaphor resolution and why Topicality and counter plans are relevant tools in a Parli debater's arsenal. We will also touch on perennial issues including how to handle points of order and points of information and the role of "evidence" in Parli debate.
Policy Debate Theory – presented by the Debate Committee
Come and learn from the Debate Committee some of the similarities as well as differences in how they view and teach debate theory (since debate theory is debatable, there will be some variations on this theme). Areas covered will include Stock Issues, Criterion, Counter Plans (Topical vs. Non-Topical), as well as whatever else may come up. Time will also be given for your questions.
Navigating the Two LD Resolutions – presented by Larry Sparks & Isaac Harris
With a dual resolution format, questions arise about how to set up students for success with double the workload. This session covers strategies that will exponentially increase how quickly your students can grasp topic matter, and solidify argumentation to ease transitioning between resolutions.