Minutes

May 18, 2002

I. President Cardoza called the meeting to order at 9:17am. Ross Steinbach served as proxy for Eileen DeBruno. Katherine Obregon served as proxy for Wes Kriesel. Johnson was absent. All others were present.

II. Corrections to the minutes from January 12:

A.  p. 2 of Executive Council minutes: January 2003 meeting is at the Hyatt Islandia in San Diego, not the Radisson.

B. p. 7 of General Council minutes: The League Presidents were NOT given Hall of Fame ballots at the meeting.

C. p. 12: "languag" should be "language"; "motione" should be "motion"

 

 

III. President Cardoza

A. Several awards were left behind at the State Tournament. See Cardoza if you are missing any.

 

B. Officer election ballots were distributed so members may vote early in case they had to leave for flights home. Cummings asked if the candidates would be speaking during the meeting. Cardoza said they would just after the lunch recess.

 

C. Thanked the Area Chairs for their work with the new database used to register students for the State Tournament.

 

D. Read two letters regarding the misconduct of a school during the presentation of the first place sweepstakes award at State. The first letter was from GGSA President Willford, and the second came from Miramonte H.S. Both letters apologized for the misconduct, and the former was signed by Coach Maguire and a myriad of student officers representing the Miramonte students at the State Tournament.

 

            E. State Tournament Protests

                        1) One protest involved timing in a round.

2) Four protests involved the "author's intent" clause in interpretation events.

3) One protest was filed before the State Tournament:

a. A clerical error at a qualifying tournament left a student out of finals when, in fact, she should have advanced.

 

b. The error was discovered two days after the tournament. Appeals to the League President and Area Chair were denied.

 

c. The State Tournament Grievance Committee heard the protest (despite the fact it was filed after the deadline stated in the Constitution) and upheld the decisions of the League President and Area Chair.

 

d. Cardoza has sent a letter to the student plaintiff explaining the decision in more detail and encouraging her to continue in forensics.

 

F. Thanked Reed Niemi and Karen Boone for an excellent State Tournament -- a sentiment that the Council echoed.

 

G. The Jim Lehrer NewsHour is currently editing a piece on competitive speech, footage for which was taped during the State Tournament. The Council will be informed as soon as an airdate is announced. The Corporation of Public Broadcasting also wishes to increase its involvement in forensics through the creation of a web site.

1) Thanked Tommie Lindsey for contacting Lehrer and asking that the state's programs be emphasized rather than one school.

2) Also thanked the Area Chairs for agreeing to be interviewed by the Lehrer team.

 

H. A Constitutional amendment was distributed. The amendment would establish the position of Legal Counsel as a non-voting member of the Council. Leagues are asked to distribute the amendment to all member schools and solicit feedback. It will be reconsidered by the Council in September and voted upon in January 2003. (Counsel would not vote so as to reduce any conflicts of interest.)

 

I. Read a letter from James Copeland of the National Forensic League commending Greg Cullen for receiving a sixth diamond. He is only the fifteenth coach in NFL history to accumulate six diamonds. The Council congratulated Mr. Cullen.

 

IV. VP Activities Niemi

A. State Tournament Thanks:

1) Boone and Richards for hosting and running an excellent State Tournament.

2) Cardoza for the database. Glitches in data entry and the deletion of consonants were acknowledged and shall be remedied.

3) All who worked on the Tournament for their tireless efforts.

4) Alexander for the card sent by his students.

5) S. Niemi for her patience. (Cardoza)

 

B. Only three evaluations from State have been received. Please offer more feedback!

 

 

 

C. State Tournament issues to revisit:

1) There was an insufficient supply of timers, and those timers often received varying instructions. Niemi hopes to standardize the instruction process, perhaps by calling a "timers' meeting" with a designated supervisor. This could ensure that all timers receive the same instructions.

 

2) The Awards Assembly was scheduled for 5:00, but a protest was filed at 4:15. In the future, Awards will begin at 6:00 to accommodate late protests and Sweepstakes tabulation. [ SECRETARY'S NOTE: The State Tournament Awards Assembly ended at 7:15pm. ]

 

3) In general, Niemi hopes to communicate more information through the Bulletin.

 

V. VP Curriculum Williamson

A. Welcomed Fiene and Steinbach to the Committee.

B. Pritchard proposed the development of videotaped judges' instructions to supplement written instructions that she has already created.

1) Through the Summer and Fall, she will work with her school's Media teacher to assemble a tape of Congress instructions. She hopes to incorporate commentary from students and parents.

 

2) If the Congress tape proves successful, she will develop tapes for Individual Events and Debate. The goal is to, perhaps, have a special screening at the State Tournament for judges with little or no experience.

 

3) Corey asked if the tapes could be kept generic so that leagues could supplement the tapes with their own specific guidelines. Pritchard confirmed that the tapes would be generally based on the event rules from the State Constitution so that leagues could tailor the instructions to their own specific tournament(s).

 

            C. Coaches' Handbook

1) Johnson's office (our original publisher) is a bit overwhelmed. Steinbach's wife is a professional transcriptionist, so the Committee will ask for her help.

 

2) Revisions for Individual Events are complete and entered. Congress revisions are complete, but have not been entered. Debate revisions will be delivered from the Debate Committee members in June.

 

3) The goal is still a check-box on the 2002-2003 Assessment form that will enable coaches to order the new Handbook.

 

           

 

D. Multimedia Packet is still being revised.

1) Problems in inter-computer communication, combined with a flood of new ideas, have delayed the process.

2) Several sections will be added, including:

            a. Avoiding plagiarism when using Internet sources

            b. Citing online sources with MLA format

            c. Use of perspective (point-of-view) in video/film storytelling

            d. Storytelling via flashback in video and film

            e. Creating book reports with PowerPoint

3) Carleno asked how the packet and new handbook would be bound. Williamson replied that she wants to put both on loose-leaf pages with three, binder-friendly holes punched. This would make it easy to include later revisions and additions.

 

E. S. Niemi expressed concern that University of California has started denying English credit for Rhetoric courses, and they will actually start removing credit from approved Rhetoric courses.

1) Cardoza explained that UC is re-evaluating all approved courses as it enters them into the UC database. For instance, all creative writing courses are having their English certification removed and replaced by elective certification.

2) He further announced that President Martha Beams retired in March, and the UC is currently looking for a replacement. That, along with the abnormally high number of new courses submitted in February, has contributed to the delay in many courses' approval.

3) Williamson agreed to look into the matter of Rhetoric course accreditation further.

 

VI. VP Public Relations Fernandes

A. Inquired as to who stayed at the Piccadilly Airport and the Piccadilly Shaw at the State Tournament. Some schools were accidentally mischarged because of the preponderance of Piccadillies in Fresno, but those errors have been cleared.

 

B. Whenever you register at a CHSSA hotel, please call the hotel directly, give your name and the school's name, and make sure to mention "California High School Speech". Do not use 1-800 numbers or e-mail; those methods generally won't give you the special rate.

 

C. Area Chairs are asked to please distribute registration materials for the State Tournament as soon as schools qualify. Some schools did not receive materials until two weeks prior to the tournament this past year.

 

D. Area Chairs are also asked to give Fernandes the names of hotels around any potential site for a State Tournament. She needs to begin discussion with these hotels two years in advance. Area Chairs should also research any other major events that are happening in the area during the weekend of State, as well as potential Dinner Dance sites. Dinner Dance sites need to hold a minimum of 500, and they must have a dance floor. (500 tables that can be "moved for dancing" will not provide enough room, since students wish to start dancing right away.)

 

E. Upcoming Council meetings/events: Hotels for Council meetings are always booked for Saturday night, as well.

 

1)      Fall 2002: Sept. 18-21 (Th-Sun), Radisson LAX, $84. [Not to be confused with the Westside Radisson in Culver City!]

2) For the Santa Clara University Invitational, the Hyatt in San Jose is available for $75.

3) Winter 2003: Jan. 9-12 (Th-Sun), Hyatt Islandia in San Diego, $84.

4) State Tournament 2003:

a. Moved to the first weekend in May due to a lack of hotel space the end of April. (NASCAR will be in town.)

b. The Hilton will be available May 1-5 for $83. 145 rooms have been booked -- 120 doubles and 25 kings. The kings are for coaches only, please.

c. Other hotels in the area, including the La Quinta and the Comfort Inn, are still in negotiations.

5) Spring 2003: May 15-18 (Th-Sun): Negotiations are still in progress for the Hyatt in San Jose, the Marriott in San Jose, and the Hilton in Santa Clara.

                       

F. Finance Report: $150 was donated by the Spanos family and placed in the 21^st Century Fund. Cummings will issue a further report.

 

G. Cardoza added that the Dinner Dance was a great success, and Natalie Weber will be added to the Council directory so that students and coaches can send letters of thanks to her directly.

 

VII. Secretary Pinza

A. Circulated committee rosters as well as the Council directory so that members could correct committee assignments. Johnson has been moved to the Executive Council page in the directory; Weber will be added there as well.

 

B. Asked if coaches were having trouble accessing minutes via e-mail. Macdonald pointed out that her minutes always arrived with viruses. Brasher, R. Niemi, Montgomery, and Underwood also noted that they had trouble opening attachments at times. Pinza will send them postal copies of the minutes.

 

VIII. Treasurer Barembaum

A.     CHSSA is too healthy financially -- about $14,000 in the black. Fortunately, many expenses have not been received yet. A handout was distributed to Area Chairs to help track down refunds.

B.     It was also suggested that fees could be decreased and scholarships increased. Winners of scholarships at the State Tournament could send Barembaum their contact information so that he could deliver the checks directly.

~ Stockton asked about the process for proposing new scholarships. Barembaum replied that he should be sent those proposals.

 

IX. Editor Glahn

A. The May issue of the Bulletin is not in the mail due to some late additions, including a solicitation for bids from potential Webmasters (see Area Four report). Bulk Mail may slow the Bulletin's arrival until the summer.

 

B. The May issue will feature pictures from the State Tournament, student feedback on State (the Dinner Dance is better than the prom), and a response to Barembaum's article on judging debate.

 

C. Calling for submissions (as always, e-mail is preferred):

1)      Respond to articles in the Bulletin. Start a dialogue.

2)      Profile your league! Include digital photos of league events!

3) Deadline for submissions is Sept. 1, but that may be adjusted depending on when submissions are received.

~ Ko asked if there were space limits. Glahn answered that the printing is relatively cheap, and adding a couple of pages isn't that expensive. She's happy to add more.

~ Ko also suggested that a regular feature in the bulletin (ie a "League Spotlight") might facilitate submissions. Glahn noted that each issue is already thematically structured: Sept. = State recap, Jan. = State preview, May = Curriculum. However, a rotating "Area Spotlight" might be helpful.

 

X. Historian Cummings

A. Only Leland and Logan sent scripts for Cummings perusal. A Logan student sent a letter of thanks after she qualified for State.

 

B. Cummings will present a series of debate workshops to students from migrant worker families through the Stockton County Department of Education. He'll begin with an introduction to Congressional debate and moved towards a Lincoln/Douglas format using policy topics.

 

C. A client of Johnson's - who is widowed - may be willing to make a sizeable donation to CHSSA in exchange for some gesture recognizing her late husband (ie name of an award, scholarship, etc.). This man was involved in the field of languages, though he was not a competitor or coach as far as Cummings knows. The Executive Committee is currently discussing options for honoring this man if the donation comes through.

 

D. More kudos for Boone, Richards, and R. Niemi for running an outstanding State tournament.

 

E. This year, the State Champions in National Extemp and Congress received checks of $500 each in honor of Avinash Raina. Raina was a former student of Cummings who died of throat cancer in November. His mother asked that his name be "kept alive" through the scholarships, which will return in 2003.

 

F. Cummings announced the specific vote tallies from the last Hall of Fame election.

 

G. Fernandes has asked for background material that she can present to potential donors who often ask: "What does your organization do?" Cummings asked all coaches with at least ten years of experience to solicit letters from former students extolling the virtues of speech and debate. Cummings read one letter from a former student of his.

~ Fernandes thanked Williamson and Cummings for their contributions in this regard. Weber is also compiling materials.

 

H. Deaths in the CHSSA community:

1) Marian Mellgren Swanson - coach at Stagg HS in Stockton. Served as YFL President, Editor, and Vice President of CHSSA.

 

2) Sandra Gray - coach at Ramona, Tustin, and Foothill High Schools. Served as OCSL President, Area Four Chair, Vice President of Activities, and President of CHSSA. Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1988.

 

~ Cardoza recommended sending a letter of condolence to Redlands and its district. Macdonald advised that a letter to her church might be more appropriate since that is where she was most active over the last twenty-five years.

~ Johnson suggested putting this letter in the bulletin.

 

 

I. Underwood asked if Hall of Fame videos could be made available to the Council members. Cummings said they could, but was unclear about how the videos would be shown.

~ Corey suggested digitizing the videos to DVDs so they could be easily distributed. Cummings approved of the idea, but needed a referral to someone who could provide the service.

~ Underwood suggested that the videos could be shown at the State Tournament. Cardoza added that the judge houses, which experience some down time at State, could show the videos.

~ Fiene also suggested editing the videos into an "infomercial" that could be shown to school districts.

~ Brasher was asked if she had the technology to edit and/or digitize the videos. She said she didn't have the capabilities, but she knew it could be done. Glahn suggested talking to the San Joaquin County Department of Education; they might be able to make it a student project. Macdonald added that several companies in her school district offered this service.

 

~ Cummings will issue a report in September on possible methods and venues for showing and/or distributing Hall of Fame videos.

 

 

XI. Area Two Chair Underwood: "I told you Buchanan was the place to go."

 

A. Boone thanked Alexander and Richards for their assistance, especially considering that Southern Valley (host league) is so spread out, geographcially. Ballingal and Corey complimented the coffee cart and the food, respectively.

 

B. Carleno's students had some trouble getting receipts from some vendors, which made it difficult to get reimbursements from their district. Richards suggested buying a receipt book and presenting it with each purchase.

 

C. Ballingal had asked TNT Enterprises for the number of T-shirts sold at State, but they weren't forthcoming with the information. Boone explained that "Terry" wasn't on site until Sunday since she was attending her daughter's graduation. The assistants that sold shirts earlier in the weekend may not have conducted business the way Terry wished. Alexander added that Terry had several press-logos left for anyone who wanted them, and she was quite upset with her help that weekend. Boone gave Ballingal contact information for TNT.

 

D. Cardoza asked if an order form for shirts could be included in the State registration packet. R. Niemi replied that he wanted to try that this year (2002), but it's really up to the host leagues how they want to handle it.

 

E. Keller-Firestone mentioned that the shirts were made on site in 2000. Boone replied that, if Terry has a press and is on site, she is willing to make them.

 

XII. Area Four Chair Macdonald

A. State 2003 will be May 2-4. This is a change! Macdonald apologized for the late date change.

B. There is a wide range of restaurants in various price categories near the campus (CSU San Bernadino).

C. The Executive Assistant to the University President is the wife of Congress Director Bob DeGroff. Steve Rodriguez is in charge of gathering college judges. The University has also recently expanded.

 

D. Report from ad hoc Webmaster Committee

            1) Extended thanks to Barembaum for all his work on the current site.

2) A call for bids will be published in the upcoming Bulletin. Bids should fit the following criteria:

            a. Knowledge of CHSSA activities

            b. Willingness to sign a long-term contract

c. Billing at an hourly rate for time used, plus a start-up fee of no more than $2,000 and maintenance costs of no more than $600 per year.

d. Site should take up at least 50 MB

e. Site should allow uploads from and downloads to a variety of platforms.

f. Site should support e-mail accounts for CHSSA members.

g. Site should be up and running by September 1. (With a grand unveiling, hopefully, at the September meeting.)

h. Bids must be sent to Macdonald no later than July 1. The Committee will choose a bid by July 10.

i. Stockton requested a bid form to take with him at meeting's end. Macdonald promised to make five copies for him and other interested parties.

 

3) The new site can feature much more than our current one (no disrespect to Barembaum -- he's just overworked with Treasurer duties, etc.):

            a. Constitution online

            b. State tournament forms

            c. Congress topic areas

            d. Curriculum materials

            e. Links to the CPB site (see IIIG), NFL, etc.

f. Invitationals could post invitations on the site for a fee (to pay for maintenance).

 

XIII. Area Three Chair Cullen

A. Thanked the Council for the acknowledgement of his sixth diamond. Also credited his wife for aiding in this achievement.

 

B. Commended Area Two for the State Tournament. Noted that three cell phones were lost at the tournament, and all three were returned.

 

C. Area continues to grow in both size and success. One league even attained a bonus entry in every individual event.

 

D. Alexander asked where State 2005 would be held. Cullen said he's working on it.

 

E. Announced that Alexander will be leaving the Council. Cullen (as well as the Council) thanked him for his years of service.

 

 

XIV. Area One Chair Brasher

A. Welcomed David Matley from Monte Vista-Danville to the Council as a member of the Congress Committee. Also welcomed Jennifer Johnson from the Bay Area Urban Debate League as a guest.

 

B. Currently exploring sites for State 2004, which will probably be hosted by GGSA.

 

C. Announced that Hoon Ko will be the new Chair of Area One. Brasher will be retiring from teaching, though she still plans to coach full time. She has thoroughly enjoyed working with the Council members and everyone in Area One. She hopes to help coaches find interpretation selections and to serve as a resource (consultant?) for young, upstart programs.

 

1) Cardoza praised Brasher's service, stating that her presence, support, and enthusiasm have been a boon for the state. Willford presented a card from GGSA, thanking Brasher for her outstanding work. The Council likewise applauded Brasher for her dedication.

 

2) Ko emphasized that schools with new programs should contact Brasher. She is an enthusiastic source of wonderful ideas; she can also talk to principals and garner administrative support.

 

XV. Committee Reports

 

A. ad hoc Webmaster Committee (see Area Four)

B. ad hoc Sweepstakes Committee

1) Cummings suggested the creation of three Sweepstakes categories: schools with 4 or fewer entries, schools with 5-16 entries, and schools with 17 or more. The top five sweepstakes earners would win awards in the "small" category, top four earn awards in the "medium", and top three in the "large".

 

2) Brasher suggested naming the three categories after Hall of Fame member coaches. These names would change each year so that coaches from the host area would be represented. She hopes that each category's namesake would be present at the State Tournament to present his/her awards. Stockton suggested showing the Hall of Fame videos for these coaches during the Awards Assembly.

 

3) Brasher further pointed out that, of the original ten Hall of Fame members, five survive. Of those five, three reside locally: Fernandes, Cummings, and Weber. She suggested that these be the inaugural names for these new Sweepstakes categories.

~ Barembaum asked who would be small, who would be large, etc. Cummings responded that his schools won the "small" category a few times, so he'd be happy to represent that division. Weber and Fernandes both coached larger programs.

 

4) The Report was adopted as a motion to divide Sweepstakes into three separate categories (as stipulated), with each one named after a Hall of Fame coach.

           

a. Underwood asked about the difficulty of changing the names of the Sweepstakes divisions each year. Stockton commented that the standard, computerized forms make such changes quite easy. Macdonald added that such explanations could be posted on the new web site.

 

b. R. Niemi suggested using names of inactive coaches whose programs would fit the Sweepstakes category to which his/her name was attached. He also recommended that a page-long background/biography of each coach could appear in the State program.

 

c. Ballingal proposed that the categories be named after Area Four coaches, since next year's tournament is in that area.

 

 

5) Division of Sweepstakes categories

a. Alexander asked if the schools competing in each category could be published in advance (ie in the State program). Barembaum replied that last-minute adds/drops might affect a school's placement in a given category.

 

b. Macdonald suggested that, by dividing Sweepstakes into these divisions, we lose the sense of one school becoming the State Champion. Montgomery contended that this gave us three State Champions.

 

c. Ko observed that successful, large programs would be shut out if only the top three in the "large" category earned awards. Alexander suggested awards for the top five in every category. Corey, Underwood, Macdonald, and Ballingal voiced their agreement.

 

d. Montgomery argued that the disparate number of awards in each category reflect the disparate number of schools competing for awards in each category. Barembaum also indicated that increasing the number of awards in the smaller categories sounded like an "affirmative action" method of recognizing more schools.

 

6) Cardoza appointed the four Area Chairs to the Sweepstakes Committee to ensure that all interests of the state would be considered.

 

C. Congress Committee - Stockton

[ SECRETARY'S NOTE: a list of issues that the Committee is currently discussing is attached to these minutes. Also included is a letter from Bob DeGroff which summarizes the Committee's meeting during Congress Finals at State. ]

 

1) Praised the judge houses at State for delivering Congress judges to the Congress tab room for instructions. The judges arrived in a timely manner, which helped Congress run on time.

2) In the Fall, the Committee will discuss:

a. the process by which Presiding Officers are selected for Semi-Finals and Finals.

 

b. Methods for preventing a judge from being assigned multiple rounds of Congress at State.

 

c. Encouraging other leagues' involvement in Committee business (especially during the Final Session meeting at State).

 

d. Developing a Congress ballot that offers better guidance for scoring.

 

e. Clarifying the wording in the Constitution, specifically the directives for Presiding Officers.

 

f. Facilitating a student discussion of Congressional ethics at the league level.

~ Cardoza noted that, thus far, there hasn't been a discussion of what is ethical in Congress. He suggested that each league set aside 30-40 minutes during a Congress tournament in the Fall semester to have this discussion. League Presidents could present any findings at the January meeting.

~ Cardoza added that these findings could be shaped into a Congressional Code of Ethics, which could be the model for other events. We could also reinstate the Oath of Office, which contestants could recite before Round 1 of State.

g. Increasing the number of experienced Parliamentarians in the state.

 

3) Macdonald was congratulated for receiving the WCSA K-12 Curriculum Award for her cross-application of Oral Communication throughout Holtville's departments.

a. Nominees need a letter of nomination and a second letter from someone who currently is not connected with WCSA.

b. To receive the award, you must be present at the WCSA meeting. Next year's will be in Salt Lake City, 2004 in San Francisco, 2005 and 2006 in Palm Springs.

c. Macdonald stated that she took her district superintendent to the meeting this year (when Macdonald was honored). Shortly thereafter, the district gave her program a budget. It pays to attend WCSA meetings.

 

            D. Debate Committee - Ballingal

1) Presented a revised version of 01-09-E, which would prohibit hybrid debate teams from competing in State qualifiers and the State tournament.

Hybrids would not be outlawed from regular league tournaments.

a. Montgomery contended that, if hybrids aren't allowed at qualifiers, they shouldn't be allowed at regular league tournaments. Macdonald added that a "super-hybrid" (consisting of two top debaters from different schools) competed in the San Diego league; this should not be allowed.

 

b. R. Niemi countered that allowing hybrids would give more students a chance to compete. Underwood agreed that adoption of this motion would encourage new debaters to compete.

 

c. Ballingal mentioned that the Southern California Urban Debate League -- which is integrated into the OCSL -- exists in order to increase participation. Johnson added that the UDL targets economically disadvantaged students especially. Forbidding hybrid teams would segregate the debate activity along economic lines, leaving the disadvantaged students in the cold because their schools can't support a complete program.

 

d. Richards added that leagues could still prohibit hybrid teams if they so wished. S. Niemi agreed, stating that several students are dying to get debate rounds for experience. They need to form hybrid teams in order to participate, but the original wording of 01-09-E would forbid those students from the State qualifiers.

 

e. R. Niemi claimed that, in the long term, the UDL seeks to work with our leagues to sustain interest in these new schools. The students who *are* interested will lose that interest if they are denied their only chance to participate. Allowing hybrids will foster that interest and, perhaps, enable it to grow into new programs.

 

 

2) Does NOT recommend 01-09-I, which would codify the arguments that should be included in constructives and rebuttals. It also explicitly forbids new arguments in rebuttals. Committee does not recommend the motion because it would increase protests and allow coaches to appeal the decisions of the judges.

 

 

a. Barembaum pointed out that students already believe this is a by-law; therefore, the number of protests shouldn't increase. Besides, the status quo allows students to claim there isn't a rule in order to justify presenting new arguments in rebuttals.

 

b. Montgomery argued that if this is the correct rule, it should be in the By-Laws, and we shouldn't fear the prospect of protests. Steinbach agreed that the By-Laws should reflect the way coaches train debaters, and vice versa.

 

c. S. Niemi: The protests that would result from this By-Law would be difficult to resolve. The judges' instructions cover the enforcement of this rule, so perhaps it need not be codified. Ballingal added that extensions of old arguments and brand new arguments are sometimes hard to distinguish.

 

d. Obregon argued that this motion could affect the power of judges' discretion; they would have to take notes in order to prove their decision in the face of a protest. Corey added that the burden of proof should be on the student to prove an argument's validity and appropriateness.

 

e. Matley contended that a new argument in the last speech cannot be addressed, since the opponent has no more speeches. Currently, this rule exists as a "gentleman's agreement". Cardoza added that the Constitution allows a student to rise to a point of order when a new argument is introduced in rebuttals.

 

f. Johnson pointed out that new arguments in the last speech have no chance to develop, so their impact may not be as great. Further, this motion could create a situation where a judge is pitted against the Constitution and a student's coach in a confrontational way.

 

g. Carleno added that, while compelling all judges to take notes would be a good thing, passage of this motion would force us to re-evaluate the way judges are assigned and handled.

 

 

~ Niemi asked if a By-Law revision was required to change the debate judges' instructions for the State Tournament. Cardoza replied that he had the power to propose changes on his own.

 

3) Presented Motion 02-05-B, which would create a seeding system for pairing debaters in the quarterfinal round (Round 7) at State. The seeding system is recommended because it helps ensure that the best two teams meet in Finals. The only conflict that would necessitate an adjustment of the pairings would be if someone was paired against an opponent from the same school.

a. Macdonald asked if this motion would slow down the tabulation process. Ballingal believed it would speed up the process.

 

b. Matley asked how pairing are currently adjusted in the event that a student is paired against a schoolmate. Ballingal said the cards were simply reshuffled until a proper pairing landed on the table. Corey added that, even if a same school matchup is inevitable, the random shuffling of the status quo is hard to justify. The seeding system provides a more justifiable basis for compelling a school to debate itself.

 

c. Alexander stated that this motion mirrors the way Congress semifinalists are placed in houses -- students are moved only to avoid same school conflicts. S. Niemi added that IEs are also similar in this vein.

 

 

 

 

 

4) Presented Motion 02-05-C, which would remove the ban on note-taking in all debate rounds. The current rule does not prevent scouting (students can simply ask peers who debated against a specific contestant), but it does prevent students from practicing their note-taking, discussing the round with their coaches, and learning from the debate.

 

 

 

5) Revisions for the new Coaches Handbook are on the way.

 

6) The Bay Area Urban Debate League will host a debate workshop for coaches on Saturday, August 24 at UC Berkeley. Glahn will publish a flyer for the workshop in the Bulletin. If this pilot is successful, the UDL hopes to host a similar workshop in Southern California a year later. Urban Debate League personnel will conduct workshops in Policy Debate, while Debate Committee personnel will hold workshops in Lincoln/Douglas. The fee will probably be around $30.

~ Fiene pointed out that the SCUDL hosts a week-long camp at CSU Fullerton. Non-UDL members can attend for $150 (covering the entire week).

 

7) Committee will continue its discussion regarding Policy Debate instructions.

 

8) Parliamentary Debate: there are some concerns about the logistics and current practices in this event. John Meaney of Claremont College is willing to bring a demonstration debate to the Fall meeting if the Council is interested in seeing one.

~ Cardoza asked if Meaney would object to the demonstration taking place during a working lunch. Ballingal said there would be no such objection. The Council extended its invitation to Mr. Meaney.

 

9) Cardoza thanked Ms. Johnson for her work with the Debate Committee and her presence at the Council. He praised her for voicing her ideas and proving that they can have an impact even without an official Council vote.

E. IE Committee -- Marcucilli

1) Appointed an ad hoc committee to discuss the definition of a "professional" as it relates to a student's eligibility for competition. Jardine, Marcucilli, and Underwood will sit on this committee.

 

2) Professionally manufactured visual aids in Expository -- is the student relying on the work of professional artists/ designers, or are they a professional execution of the student's original vision?

a. The Committee feels that the only element within our control is the way in which judges weigh visual aids when evaluating an Expository round.

b. The Committee recommended adding wording to the judges' ballots for Expository so that judges are encouraged to weigh the speech more heavily than the visuals in their evaluation.

c. Carleno added that Underwood surveyed his students, and they supported this kind of directive.

 

 

3) Recommended that a school's classification into one of the three proposed Sweepstakes categories be assessed after Round 1 of the State Tournament. This way, late adds and drops can be accounted for, and schools will be accurately classified.

 

4) Several issues remain regarding the addition of Storytelling as a State event: What is the protocol for the event? Which IE, if any, needs to be dropped to accomodate Storytelling? Could it be a consolation event? Do we have enough judges to support it? These will continue to be discussed in the Fall.

 

5) Recommended a change in the By-Laws regarding requirements for interpretation materials. Current By-Law language that material must be "widely available" is too vague. Material should have an ISBN or ISSN number, which verifies it is nationally published. This would make some Internet scripts legal, since they contain ISBN numbers. A more specific By-Law revision will be presented later.

 

6) Tabled discussion of a By-Law revision to address materials printed from DVDs. The current language of the Constitution allows these materials.

 

7) Presented By-Law Revision 02-05-D, which would impose penalties for failing to submit State registration by the April 1 deadline. Schools submitting entries from April 2-10 would pay a $150 fine. Schools submitting entries after April 10 would be disqualified.

a. Underwood received at least twelve schools' entries on or after April 15. Macdonald likewise received four schools' entries around April 11.

b. Montgomery noted that only the forms need to be sent in by April 1; the fees can arrive later. Corey pointed out that the Constitution stipulates that both fees and forms are due on the first.

c. Richards stated that the NFL enforces its deadlines rigorously. Typically, the same schools submit late entries, and this motion would give the Area Chairs the power to enforce CHSSA's deadlines.

 

 

 

8) It is difficult to determine when a student's performance in interpretation violates the author's intent. In the past, characters have been combined, dramatic pieces have been performed humorously, and vice versa. Which of these violates author's intent? Committee recommends that League Presidents read through scripts carefully. R. Niemi will address script reading at the January meeting; Area Chairs will be asked to attend the League Presidents meeting.

a. Cummings questioned whether a careful reading of a script could indicate the nature of the performance. Glahn agreed that most speeches must be seen in order to determine whether they preserve the author's intent.

 

b. Montgomery asserted that "author's intent" is ambiguous and almost impossible to pinpoint. Further, the burden should be on the student to figure out what the author's intent is.

 

c. Brasher said that, while reading scripts won't bring every infraction to light, it enables us to catch what we can before State.

 

d. Carleno reiterated that a script's pages must be arranged in the order they are performed. Marcucilli confirmed this, stating that pages may have to be copied multiple times if text from the page is used in different parts of the speech.

 

                       

10) Presented 02-05-F, which changes the number of schools needed to enter the qualifying tournament in order to qualify contestant to State. If the league qualifies less than three students in an event, three schools must compete in that event in the qualifier. If a league qualifies more than three, the number of schools entered in that event must equal the number of qualifiers for that event.

 

a. Montgomery stated that some leagues have trouble meeting the current requirement of five schools entered in an event at a qualifier. This leads to students entering the tournament as a last-minute "filler" with a slapdash speech. Further, the current requirement of five schools for all events seems arbitrary.

 

b. Cummings noted that the increased quota (for leagues that qualify more than five) would encourage leagues to sell their unpopular events in the Fall, rather than waiting until just before the qualifier. Carleno added that the judges' experience is worsened by the participation of the last-minute "filler"s.

 

c. Corey countered that the "filler" experience often exposes students to events that they wouldn't ordinarily try. Steinbach likewise pointed out that the five school quota gives schools and leagues an impetus to grow. Lowering that quota for small leagues may stunt that growth.

 

d. S. Niemi asserted that raising the quota is unfair to large leagues who still struggle to fill unpopular events at the qualifier. Brasher agreed: leagues do address the issue in the Fall, but students in smaller programs naturally flock to popular events. They don't have the extra students to enter all events.

 

 

 

 

 

            *** ELECTION RESULTS:                President - Cardoza

                                                                        Vice-President of Activities - R. Niemi

                                                                        Vice-President of Curriculum - Williamson

 

12) Marcucilli presented By-Law Revision 01-09-H regarding the use of additional published materials as introductions and/or transitions in interpretation speeches.

 

~ Corey also clarified that any words inserted into an interpretation speech, whether they are the work of the contestant or taken from a second published source, must be counted against the limit of 150 added words. Cardoza confirmed that this is true.

 

 

 

XVI. No Old Business; therefore, we turn to New Business.

A. Cullen presented a series of suggestions for improving timing at the State Tournament.

1) Rules regarding which events will be timed and how they will be timed (ie which signals are given by timers) should be standardized.

2) Instructions to timers should be consistent between both judge houses at State and, as much as possible, the qualifier tournaments.

3) Contestants at State should be informed in writing of the timing rules well in advance of the State Tournament.

4) Cardoza labeled these suggestions 02-05-I and remanded them (without objection) to the I.E. Committee.

 

B. Motion 02-05-A, regarding the establishment of Legal Counsel on the Executive Committee was remanded to the Executive Committee pending the acceptance or rejection of the similar Constitutional amendment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

F. Barembaum moved to issue a refund of $140 to Jeffrey Sobel of Dorsey HS. This covers his fees and judging deposit for the State Tournament. He was not able to bring his student to State because his district prohibited from going since he was a single male coach chaperoning one female student. Further, the district made its decision on the Tuesday before State.

1) Barembaum addressed concerns that this would set a dangerous precedent. He isn't worried about that because, in this instance, the district stripped the coach of his ability to attend State.

2) Sobel also paid the money out of his own pocket; no school funds were used. Refunding the money would show that CHSSA understands and empathizes with the personal sacrifices that many coaches make for the sake of the activity.

 

 

G. Cullen requested that the various forms for the State Tournament be printed in different colors. R. Niemi said he would distribute white copies of all forms to the League Presidents, who could then color code their copies if they wished. Niemi added that all forms would be available on a computer disc.

 

H. Brasher requested that the first place awards read "held at ___(site name)___". Otherwise, it looks like the site school won the award. R. Niemi thanked her for the suggestion.

 

 

 

I. Cardoza asked all Council members to please attend the California Home School Speech Championships on June 15. The tournament takes place at Oak Grove Baptist Church in San Jose, and they need judges for Rounds 2-5. Please see Cardoza for details on how to volunteer.

 

 

XVII. Meeting was adjourned at 5:30pm.

 

(Whew!)

Submitted, Paul C. Pinza