Saturday, October 10, 2026 · 8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. · Ballantine Hall, Indiana University Bloomington. Entry fees are waived through the generous support of The Walter Center for Career Achievement; complimentary food and beverages are provided through the same support. No prior debate experience is needed for the novice divisions.

Divisions & events

All Indiana middle-school and high-school students are eligible, including students enrolled in private schools or homeschooled. College events (Constitutional Convention and Policy) were cancelled for 2026 because of insufficient entries.

The shape of the day

Registration and check-in run 8:00–8:30 a.m. (every adult entering the building must bring a government-issued photo ID), followed by a welcome and orientation for students, families, and judges. Most two-team events debate four rounds; Varsity Congressional Debate meets in two extended sessions and Novice Congress in three shorter ones. A Founding Documents Forum (3:45–4:45 p.m., Woodburn Hall 100) opens with an introduction by Interim Executive Dean Caroline Chick Jarrold and offers remarks and Q&A with Honorary Chief Judge Dawn Johnsen, Walter W. Foskett Professor of Law Emerita at the IU Maurer School of Law, while final rounds conclude. Awards run 5:00–6:00 p.m. in Woodburn Hall 100: trophies for places 1–5 in each debate event; medallions for top speakers in each non-Congress debate event and best presiding officer in each Congress division; ribbons for places 6–10 in all debate events; certificates for the top ten in each speech event; sweepstakes trophies for up to three schools in each division; and a commemorative keepsake for every participant. The number of places awarded in each event and division depends on its entries: up to five trophy places, and never more places than entries minus one. The full grid is on the Schedule page.

Judges make it possible

Every event needs judges, and no debate background is required for the novice divisions — parents, teachers, and college-age or older siblings are all welcome, and chaperones may double as judges. Each school must register judges on SpeechWire according to its entries, counting each entry, or fraction thereof, in each event separately:

• Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas, and Middle School LD (flighted): 1 judge for every 4 entries
• Policy and World Schools (not flighted): 1 judge for every 2 entries
• Congress: 1 judge for every 4 entries
• Middle school speech events: 1 judge for every 6 entries

An entry is one competitor, team, duo, or squad; for example, a Public Forum team or a World Schools squad counts as one entry. A school with 3 Policy teams and 5 Public Forum teams needs 2 + 2 = 4 judges. SpeechWire shows each school’s judge obligation during registration. The $1 missing-judge fees on SpeechWire invoices are nominal placeholders that show how many judges a school still owes; they cannot be paid to buy out of a judging obligation. Please contact Candy Brown if you cannot meet your obligation.

Parents, teachers, coaches, and invited civic leaders may judge any event. High school students who compete in varsity debate may judge middle school debate, and high school students who compete in varsity speech may judge middle school speech. College students may judge any high school or middle school event.

Judges check in at 8:00 a.m. with a government-issued photo ID and attend the 8:30 judges’ meeting; postings and balloting are electronic at live.speechwire.com, with a paper option. Event-specific judge guidance is on the Events & Rules page, and the Novice Congress Judge Guide is a friendly first read for any new judge.

Registration & key dates

• August 10 — Registration opens via SpeechWire.com.
• Registration deadline extended. Please enter students on SpeechWire as soon as possible so we can plan rooms, judges, and food; adds and drops are accepted until October 5, 5 p.m. Events or divisions with fewer than six entries may be combined or cancelled.
• October 5, 5 p.m. — Add/drop deadline via SpeechWire.com.
• October 10, 6 a.m. — Final drop deadline (via SpeechWire until October 9 at 10 p.m.; after that, text 812-269-2710 and/or email [email protected]).
• Photography and recording. Photographs and/or video will be taken at this event. By taking part in this event, you grant the event organizers full rights to use the images resulting from the photography/video filming, and any reproductions or adaptations of the images for fundraising, publicity or other purposes to help achieve the group’s aims. This might include (but is not limited to), the right to use them in their printed and online publicity, social media, press releases and funding applications. If you do not wish to be photographed, please inform an event organizer.

Teachers bringing school teams: the For Teachers guide has the full timeline, the judge expectations, and the drop policy in detail.