EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
FORENSICS TEAM
December 6, 2013
Dear Colleague:
The coaching staff and students of the Eastern Michigan University Forensics Program and the
Department of Communication, Media and Theatre Arts cordially invite you and your team to
attend the 42nd Annual Tower Invitational, taking place on Saturday, February 7th, and
Sunday, February 8th, 2015.
The Tower Invitational is a two day tournament that will offer all 11 NFA and AFA Individual
Events, Parliamentary Debate, and LD Debate. Awards will be given to the top six I.E. finalists
and to all elimination round participants in Parliamentary and LD Debate. We will also be
acknowledging the top novice for each individual event. The top three speakers in each debate
category will also be recognized. Finally, we will recognize the top 5 competitors entered in I.E.
individual sweepstakes as well as I.E. team sweepstakes.
Finally, in keeping with our tradition, the Eastern Michigan University Forensics Team will host
a social at the Tower Inn on Saturday evening immediately following the Saturday portion of the
Tower Invitational Tournament. We hope you will make plans to join us for hot food and good
times as we unwind from the first day of competition.
Entries are due by 5 p.m. EST, Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015. We look forward to seeing you
in Ypsilanti!
Sincerely,
Nick Romerhausen
Raymond Quiel
Director of Individual Events
Director of Debate
Amy Johnson
Arthur Valenzuela III
Assistant Director of Forensics
Assistant Director of Forensics
Nick Marek
Patrick Seick
Graduate Assistant
Graduate Assistant
Isaac Reimer
Graduate Assistant
Eastern Michigan University Forensics Team · Department of Communication, Media and Theatre Arts
127 Quirk Building, Ypsilanti, MI 48197
Phone: (734) 487-0320 · Fax: (734) 487-3443
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
2015 TOWER INVITATIONAL
Saturday, February 7th, 2015
7:30-8:30 AM
Registration: Quirk Main Lobby (1st floor main entrance)
8:30 AM
Extemp Draw
9:00 AM
Round 1B (Extemp, Duo, Persuasion, POI, Parli)
10:15 AM
Round 1A (Info, Impromptu, Prose, LD)
11:30 AM
Extemp Draw
12:00 PM
Round 2B (Extemp, Duo, Persuasion, POI, Parli)
1:15-1:45 PM
Lunch Break
2:00 PM
Round 2A (Info, Impromptu, Prose, LD)
3:15 PM
Extemp Draw
3:45 PM
Round 3B (Extemp, Duo, Persuasion, POI, Parli)
5:00 PM
Round 3A (Info, Impromptu, Prose, LD)
6:15 PM
Round 4 Parli
7:30 PM
Round 4 LD
Sunday, February 8th, 2015
8:30 AM
Round 1C (Poetry, DI, ADS, RC) Outrounds Lincoln Douglas
9:45 AM
Round 2C (Poetry, DI, ADS, RC) Outrounds Parli
11:00 AM
Round 3C (Poetry, DI, ADS, RC)
12:45 PM
Extemp Finals Draw
1:15 PM
Finals of B and ½ A
-Parli, Extemp, Duo, Persuasion, POI, Imp, Prose
2:45 PM
Finals of C and ½ A
-LD, Poetry, DI, ADS, RC, Informative
Approx. 5:00 PM
Awards
*We will attempt to collapse finals if possible*
Entries:
All entries must be received bv 5:00 p.m. EST, Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015 through
http://www.speechwire.com/
Any adjustments made to the entry after the deadline but prior to the tournament will be subject
to a $10.00 nuisance fee, as well as a $15.00 fee per dropped judge. Any changes at registration
will be subject to a $25.00 nuisance fee and $50 per dropped judge.
Entry Limitations:
Students may enter three events per pattern in the Tower invitational tournament. Competitors in
Lincoln Douglas Debate may enter one other IE in pattern A; however, due to time constraints
competitors in Parliamentary Debate may not enter another IE in pattern B. Overall school entry
is unlimited. Judges will be instructed to allow double/triple entered contestants to perform first.
Patterns:
Tower Invitational Tournament
A: Informative, Impromptu, Prose, Lincoln-Douglas Debate
B: Extemporaneous, Persuasion, Duo Interpretation, Programmed Oral Interp, Parliamentary
Debate
C: Poetry, After-Dinner, Rhetorical Criticism, Dramatic Interp,
Scoring:
Parliamentary Debate: Awards will be presented to all debaters advancing to elimination
rounds. Speaker awards will be to the top 3 speakers in the open division. Sweepstakes awards
will be given to the top 3 schools participating in debate. For the purpose of calculating
sweepstakes, a school will be awarded 1 point for each preliminary round win. Only the top four
entries from a school will count towards sweepstakes. Events with over 50 entries will break to
semi-finals.
IE: Final team sweepstakes placement will be based on team points accumulated according to the
table below. Each school's top three speakers in each event will be used for tabulating prelims
sweepstakes. Half of the total prelim points will be added to points based on finals placement.
Team sweepstakes will recognize the top five IE programs. Individual sweepstakes awards will
be given to the top five students entered in at least five individual events.
Placing
Prelims – IE
Finals – IE
1st
3 pts
12 pts
2nd
2 pts
10 pts
3rd
1 pt
8 pts
4th
6 pts
5th
4 pts
6th
2 pts
Judges:
One judge is obligated to cover six I.E. slots, two Parliamentary Debate teams, or two Lincoln
Douglas competitors. We appreciate every effort to cover your slots. Additionally, any judge
who is an alumnus/alumna of EMU’s Forensics Team will cover eight IE slots instead of six.
Please designate alumni on your entry form.
Fees:
$8.00 for each I.E. slot
$10.00 for each uncovered I.E. slot
$30.00 for each LD slot
$50.00 for each Parli team
$50.00 for each uncovered Parli team or LD slot
$10.00 per drop prior to registration/$15.00 per dropped judge
$25.00 per dropped slot at registration
$100.00 per dropped judge at registration
Event descriptions:
Event descriptions for all ten NFA events and Lincoln Douglas Debate can be found at
www.nationalforensics.org; POI description can be found at www.americanforensics.org.
Additional rules are in place for Extemporaneous Speaking; please see below.
Impromptu Speaking
PURPOSE: A speech designed to motivate audience engagement of a significant
argument.
DESCRIPTION: Impromptu speeches are characterized by a clearly articulated argument
comprising a specific, direct response to the given prompt, well-supported claims, clear
structure, uniqueness, and vocal and nonverbal delivery choices that reflect the speech’s
purpose.
RULES:
a. Students will construct and deliver an original argument in response to a prompt.
Limited notes are allowed.
b. Impromptu prescribes a limit of 7 minutes, with speeches lasting at least 5 minutes.*
Prompts include ideas that can be comprehended and interpreted quickly such as
quotations, both actual (from history or contemporary culture) and fictional (from
movies, plays, novels etc.), single-frame cartoons, song lyrics, proverbs, rhetorical
situations etc..
* Unlike other event rules, minimum and maximum time limits provided for ALL events
are enforced at the discretion of the individual judge rather than the association.
***In the spirit of topic areas for the 2015 NFA, single words and quotations with
context may be included as prompts***
PROCEDURES:
a. Standard time signals should be given noting the expiration of preparation time
verbally in 30-second intervals, and the remainder of speaking time beginning at five
minutes remaining and indicating each minute thereafter, the final 30 seconds and the
closing five seconds nonverbally.
b. Contestants who have not spoken should not watch the performance of their
competitors.
c. One judge per section will receive a prompt with their ballot, and is responsible for
delivering the provided prompt to each contestant in the round.
Extemporaneous Speaking:
The following specific guidelines are in place regarding our Extemp prep:
Any and all electronic methods may be used to access reference documents as long as they meet
with the ethical implications inherent in the concept of “individual events.” This includes, but is
not limited to, the prohibition of using text messaging or Internet instant messaging to talk with
other people, as well as using prep time to discuss questions and responses with coaches. The
use of laptops and similar devices for file storage is allowed, but be advised that at this time,
EMU’s wireless network is only available to students and faculty, and the Internet will most likely
be unavailable for referencing web sites. Eastern Michigan University’s Forensics team strongly
recommends that laptops and other expensive devices not be left unattended in the prep room (or
anywhere else, for that matter), and we claim no responsibility for the loss or damage of such
tools.
[NPDA] Parliamentary Debate:
This is four-person team debate format following NPDA rules. Debaters are presented a different
topic per round. NPDA Debate may focus on propositions of policy, value or fact as dictated by
the topic. The Government affirms the topic and defines the parameters of the debate after a 15minute prep period. The Opposition refutes the government’s position. Parliamentary procedure
is incorporated into the debate with the opportunity for feedback from the peanut gallery. For
NPDA, a 16-minute (from topic release) forfeit policy is in place. Judges are asked to award the
forfeit promptly at the appropriate time and note the forfeit on the ballot. The decision of the
judge to award a forfeit shall be final.
[7 MIN] 1st Government Constructive (Prime Minister)
[8 MIN] 1st Opposition Constructive (Leader of the Opposition)
[8 MIN] 2nd Government Constructive (Member of Government)
[8 MIN] 2nd Opposition Constructive (Member of Opposition)
[4 MIN] Opposition Rebuttal (Leader of Opposition)
[5 MIN] Government Rebuttal (Prime Minister)
[15 MIN] Prep. Time for the Government Team From Topic Release
Directions: Quirk Hall, Ypsilanti, MI 48197
If you're on US-23, take exit 37A Washtenaw Avenue East. Continue on
Washtenaw, and take a left onto Hewitt (there should be a Walgreen's on the corner).
You should pass the football stadium on your right. Take a right onto Huron River Drive.
Stay on Huron River, it will take you past a McDonald's and the North Campus Lots and
will take a right curve and turn into a one-way street. Stay in the right hand lane, and
take a right at the light onto Jarvis. The Ford parking lot will be on your right; the
Alexander Pay Lot will be on your left. Quirk is the building on the left with the circle
drive.
If you're on 1-94, take exit 183, Huron River Drive (There should be signs
indicating it as the EMU exit). Go north on Huron River Drive, and continue past Cross
Street (Historic Fire Truck Museum) and past Forest. As Huron curves toward the left, it
will become a 2-way road. On your right will be the Railroad Tracks, on the left is the
Kampus Korner Gas Station. Take a left onto Ann; it is by the gas station. If you pass
the light and the McDonald's, you've passed it. Follow Ann as it turns left, and take a
right at the stop sign. You'll take a right at the first light onto Jarvis, and the Ford parking
lot will be on your right. Quirk is the building on the left with the circle drive.
Emergency:
Contact the Forensics Office at 734.487.0320.
Possible Lodging Options:
3.2 miles from campus: Ann Arbor Regent Hotel and Suites, 2455 Carpenter Rd. Ann Arbor, MI,
48108; 734.973.6100.
3.3 miles from campus: Days Inn, 2380 Carpenter Rd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48108; 734.971.0700.
3.4 miles from campus: Comfort Inn, 2455 Carpenter Rd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48108; 734.973.6100.
8.9 miles from campus: American Best Value Inn Suites, 3505 S. State St., Ann Arbor, MI,
48108; 734.665.3500.
8.9 miles from campus: Residence Inn, 800 Victors Way, Ann Arbor, MI, 48108; 734.996.5666.
9.1 miles from campus: Holiday Inn Express, 600 Hilton Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48108;
734.761.2929.
9.1 miles from campus: Marriot Courtyard, 3205 Boardwalk Dr., Ann Arbor, MI, 48108;
734.995.5900.
9.4 miles from campus: Motel 6, 3764 S. State St., Ann Arbor, MI, 48108; 734.665.9900.
9.8 miles from campus: Red Roof Inn, 45501 N. I-94 Service Drive, Belleville, MI, 48111;
734.697.2244
10.1 miles from campus: Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites, 46194 N. I-94 Service Drive,
Belleville, MI, 48111: 734.857.6200.
10.2 miles from campus: Hampton Inn, 46280 N. I-94 Service Drive, Belleville, MI, 48111;
734.669.2424
Food Options both on and off campus:
Student Union Food Court includes: Taco Bell, Wendy's, Subway, Sbarro’s, Sbarro’s Salad
Shop, KFC Express, Panda Express, convenience store.
Carpenter Drive: Go South on Carpenter from Washtenaw and you'll find a Bob Evans, Red
Robin, and Applebee's.
Washtenaw Ave: Drive west toward Ann Arbor and you'll find several options including fastfood fare such as McDonald's, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Big Boy, Subway, Quiznos, and sit-down
places such as Chili's, Paesano’s, Panera Bread, and multiple Mediterranean and Chinese food
restaurants.
IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A SPECIFIC RESTAURANT, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO
E-MAIL US BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT OR ASK ANY TEAM MEMBER DURING
THE TOURNAMENT.