Contests! Jack Levitt, DTM, Chief Judge

The Basics We have contests twice each year o Fall—Table Topics and Humorous Speech Contests o Spring—Evaluation and International Speech Contest Contests begin at the Club Level o Winners of Club Contests go to Area Contest o Area Contests Winners go to Division Contest o Division Contest Winners go to District Contest o For Humorous, Table Topics and Evaluation, the Winner of the District Contest is the Champion! o For International Speech, the Winner goes to the Semi-Finals at the International Convention o If the winner of any contest cannot be present, the second place contestant should take his/her place.

It All Starts at the CLUB! EVERY club should hold contests! Each contest should have as many ELIGIBLE members as possible participating o Eligible Members are members in good standing (paid membership at the start of the contest) of a club in good standing (dues paid to TI on time) As many members as possible should have roles in the contest Club Contests should have A LOT of judges o This is where members learn to act and judges and become eligible to judge at higher levels

The Chief Judge Selects members of Judging Team (Judges, Ballot Counters, Timers) o Ensures there is parity at higher level contests Ensures contestant eligibility, collecting signed Eligibility/Originality forms prior to contest o Includes determination of speaking order Responsible for thoroughly briefing all contestants and Judging Team Handle all protests from Judges or Contestants prior to announcement of winners Informs Contest Chair at next level of winner

Contest Chair ‘Toastmaster’ of the Contest Provides rules and speaking order to the audience Directs Sergeant-at-Arms, (Evaluation/Table Topics) to escort contestants in and out of the room Introduces speakers o For Table Topics and Evaluation: Contestant name (twice) o For Humorous and International Speech: Contestant Name, Title, Title, Name Calls for minute of silence for judges before next speaker Helps deliver results o With contests of 5 or more contestants announce 3 rd, then 2 nd, then 1 st o Fewer than 4, only 2 nd and 1 st places are announced.

Contestants Must meet eligibility requirements o For International Speech, that includes having given 6 manual speeches Must be present at the start of the contest Must deliver an original speech within time limits specified for contest Arrange any prop use or stage direction with contest Sergeant-at-Arms

Other Roles Interviewer o Have fun with the contestants to help them not focus on waiting for results! Timers o 2 timers work independently to ensure fairness…the average of their times is the official speech time o Only the Chief Judge knows if a contestant is outside the time limits and will announce if needed when revealing results Ballot Counters o Work independently to ensure accuracy o Once results are final, destroy all ballots o JUDGES’ VOTES MUST REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL!

Judges Critical for making a contest fair Must be unbiased!! Your results must remain confidential o Dispose of your ballots at home, not at the contest venue…or eat it! Be sure to indicated your choice for 1 st, 2 nd and 3 rd place o TIE BREAKER JUDGE MUST RANK ALL CONTESTANTS!!! Contestants should not know who you are SIGN YOUR BALLOTS..or they are invalid! Note the audience reaction to a speech, but don’t let it overly influence your scoring Careful of pitfalls!

Judging Pitfalls Give someone else a chance Not familiar with the Judging form Prejudices and Personal Preferences 2 nd Time Around Syndrome First or last speaker is best Let’s help the underdog The Halo Effect The Reverse Halo Effect