[eDebate] National Novice Invite

[Scott Deatherage]

Below is the invitation for the 39th Annual Chicago National Novice 
Tournament at Northwestern University.  Entry is available at 
www.debateresults.com.  MAKE HOTEL RESERVATIONS YESTERDAY.  MAKE HOTEL 
RESERVATIONS TODAY.  MAKE HOTEL RESERVATIONS VERY SOON.  There are several 
other groups in the hotel that weekend, and the tournament rate expires 
soon.  (Sorry it took me so long to get this 
up).  ORRINGTON:  847-866-8700.  Of there is a URL listed in the invite 
below.  Here's the invite, also on the Bruschke web page.



February 1, 2005

Greetings Directors, Coaches, Judges, Students, and Friends.  This serves 
as invitation to the 39th Annual Chicago National Novice Debates, to be 
held on the Evanston Campus of Northwestern University, March 5-7, 2005.

Eligibility Requirements and Entry Procedures:  The Chicago National Novice 
is open to any student participating in their first year of intercollegiate 
debate.  To be eligible, students must be a ?degree seeking undergraduate 
in good standing,? and must have no more than two college tournaments under 
their belt in previous academic years.  The tournament typically attracts 
first year college debaters, many of whom have two, three, or four years of 
high school debating experience.  We do not mean to defame the definition 
of ?novice;? in fact, we have great respect for those programs who promote 
beginning debaters who lack prior high school experience.  Our tournament 
takes its name from tradition, and we welcome others who share similar 
names and similar concepts.

This year, entries are accepted at the now famous ?Bruschke? web page, 
available at <http://www.debateresults.com/>www.debateresults.com.  Use of 
the web page offers a number of advantages for the community.  Principally, 
it permits data on a variety of issues of community wide interest to be 
available to all.  The page is easy to use, particularly if you have 
entered other tournaments through that venue.

Tournament Hotel:  The Hotel Orrington, no longer an Omni property, but 
rather independently owned, is the nicest hotel on the North Shore 
(probably too nice for a debate tournament, but, hey, they signed the 
contract).  The newly completed renovation makes the hotel competitive with 
the very nicest properties in Chicagoland.  It offers a complete state of 
the art business facility, complete with wireless high speed internet in 
all public spaces, COMPLEMENTARY high speed internet connections in all 
sleeping rooms (yes, complementary), two completely renovated restaurant 
and bars, three high speed elevators, and a redesigned open space lobby 
area, and a full workout facility complete with spa.  All public space in 
the new Hotel Orrington is non-smoking.  Some sleeping rooms have been set 
aside for guests who smoke; accordingly, it is important to be specific to 
your needs when making sleeping room reservations.

Rooms are available at a rate of $109 per night, plus appropriate city 
taxes.  The $109 dollar rate is good for up to four persons per room.  You 
can reach the hotel directly to reserve rooms:  (847)-866-8700.  Or 
register on 
line: 
<https://reservations.ihotelier.com/crs/g_reservation.cfm?groupID=8302&hotelID=3538>https://reservations.ihotelier.com/crs/g_reservation.cfm?groupID=8302&hotelID=3538
You will need to secure your reservation with a major credit card.  Be sure 
to mention to the reservation clerk that you are associated with the Owen 
L. Coon Debates.  Reservations must be made no later than Friday, February 
18, 2005, to secure the tournament rate.  A substantial number of preset 
debates will be held at the Hotel Orrington on Saturday, March 5, and 
elimination debates will be held there on Monday, March 7.  Accordingly, we 
strongly encourage you to choose the Hotel Orrington.  Should you have 
difficulty with Reservations, please contact Fred Wheeler, our primary 
contact for Reservations and Room Assignments.  You can reach Fred at 
fredw at hotelorrington.com or (847)-556-7921.

Should you need to cancel a reservation, the Hotel Orrington asks that you 
do so no less than 48 hours in advance of your scheduled arrival, or 3:00 
p.m. on Wednesday, February 2.  Failure to do so, as well as an unplanned 
early check-out, will be billed according to the full duration of your 
planned stay.

The Hotel Orrington is located at 710 Orrington Avenue in 
Evanston.  Directions from various points of entry are as follows:

 From O?Hare International Airport:  From Arrivals Terminal, follow signs 
?To Chicago.?  Exit at I-294 NORTH.  (There will be a 50? toll).  Exit at 
Dempster Street-EAST.  Continue east on Dempster approximately 15?20 
minutes into Evanston.  Turn Left on McCormick Blvd and right on Church 
Street.  The hotel is on the corner of Church Street and Orrington 
Avenue.  The main entrance is on Orrington Avenue.

 From Chicago and  South:  North on Lake Shore Drive to its end at 
Hollywood.  Right onto Sheridan Road.  Continue north into 
Evanston.  (There are many turns. Watch for Sheridan Road signs).  Left on 
Dempster Street to Chicago Avenue.  Right on Chicago; four blocks to Davis 
Street.  Left on Davis.  One block to Orrington Avenue.  Right on 
Orrington.  1 ? blocks to Hotel Orrington on left.

 From Milwaukee and North:   Take I-94 East to Dempster -EAST 
exit.  Dempster into Evanston.  Turn left on McCormick Blvd and right on 
Church Street.  The hotel is on the corner of Church Street and Orrington 
Avenue.  The main entrance is on Orrington Avenue

Tournament Debates:  Most preliminary debates occur in classrooms around 
?The Rock.?  As is historical practice, we will transport evidence to and 
from the Orrington.

Air and Ground Transport:  Chicago is easily accessible via air 
transportation via both Chicago?s O?Hare International Airport, and Midway 
International Airport.  Both ports are approximately twelve miles from 
Evanston.  North Shore Cab (847)-864-7500 offers a flat rate of $25 between 
Evanston and O?Hare, and $42 between Evanston and Midway.  Midway is home 
to ?discounter? airlines, at least two of which, as of this writing, still 
permit passengers to check three bags per ticket:  Airtran Airlines, and 
Southwest Airlines (SWA).  The ?three bag? rule was negotiated between 
Airtran and the National Debate Coaches Association (NDCA); accordingly, we 
encourage you to travel Airtran if at all possible.

Airport Express (800) 654-7871:  Shared van service departs O?Hare every 20 
minutes between 6:00 AM and 11:00 PM.  Upon arrival at O?Hare, see ticket 
agents in baggage claim areas 1E, and 3E and ask for a suburban 
shuttle.  Cost is approximately $25.00 per person and $46.00 round trip 
(2nd and 3rd passengers are $8.00 per person one way).  They require a one 
day advance notice for return trips to O?Hare.

Parking:  Should you drive to the tournament or decide to rent your own 
ground transportation upon landing, you have several parking options in 
Evanston.  You may valet your vehicle at the Orrington for a cost of $18 
for each 24 hour period.  While we have worked with the Orrington staff to 
speed the valet process, an event this size can sometimes create quite a 
clog at the start and end of tournament prelim days.  Accordingly, you may 
consider some nearby alternatives.

After 5 p.m. on Friday, March 5, and on Saturday and Sunday, you can park 
in the ?F? lot behind the Hardy House at 1809 and 1815 Chicago Avenue.
To reach this lot, from the front of the Hotel Orrington, drive one block 
north (the only way you can drive on Orrnington Avenue) to Clark 
Street.  Head east (take a right) on Clark Street and proceed one block to 
the intersection of Clark Street and Chicago Avenue.  Continue straight 
through the traffic light at that intersection and take an immediate left 
into the alley way just beyond the intersection.  This leads you directly 
to two adjacent ?F? or faculty parking lots.  You will get ticketed in 
these lots if you do not move your vehicle by 8:30 a.m.; the no permit 
tickets are $40 each.

             Another option is a lot operated by the City of Evanston.  It 
is relatively cheap; $5 for twelve hours or more.  Consider this option if 
snow is forecast.  Unlike the aforementioned Northwestern lot, the City lot 
is covered, so you may save yourself some time on any morning when 
inclement weather looms.  To reach the City lot, from the front of the 
Hotel Orrington, drive one block north (the only way you can drive on 
Orrnington Avenue) to Clark Street.  Head east (take a right) on Clark 
Street and proceed one block to the intersection of Clark Street and 
Chicago Avenue.  Continue straight through the traffic light at that 
intersection.  This city lot is on your right just beyond the intersection.

Entry Deadlines, Limitations, and Procedures:  This year, entries are 
accepted at the now famous ?Bruschke? web page, available at 
<http://www.debateresults.com/>www.debateresults.com.  Use of the web page 
offers a number of advantages for the community.  Principally, it permits 
data on a variety of issues of community wide interest to be available to 
all.  The page is easy to use, particularly if you have entered other 
tournaments through that venue.  Please complete your entry no later than 
Tuesday, March 1.

Entry Fees:  Fees for the tournament will be $40 per team and $40 per 
person attending the tournament.  This covers a variety of meals, including 
a continental breakfast on each of Saturday and Sunday, lunch on each of 
Saturday and Sunday.  It also contributes to the cost of appropriate team 
and speaker awards, room and building clean-up as required by the 
University, a reception for coaches and judges, and supplies required for 
tournament administration.

Should you need to drop a participant, please do so no later than Noon 
Central Standard Time on Wednesday, March 2, 2005.  Drops are official ONLY 
if confirmed at the official tournament web site, the same URL where you 
enter.  Should you need to drop one or more participants after the 
aforementioned deadline, a drop fee of $40 per person will be assessed.  We 
do understand that drops are typically beyond your control.  They happen 
because of illness, poor traveling conditions, and other causes.  However, 
we are required by our caterers to provide a guarantee number for meals no 
later than the scheduled drop deadline.  Accordingly, after that point, we 
must pay for your meals no matter if you are present or not.  We will make 
a full financial disclosure at the conclusion of the tournament.

Judge Requirements:  Schools are required to provide four rounds of 
preliminary judging for each team entered.  Each judge is required to be 
available to hear the first elimination round.  Per community practice, 
each judge is expected to be available one round beyond the elimination of 
the team with whom they are associated.  A limited number of hired judges 
are available at $25 per round.  Early notice of your need to hire a judge 
is appreciated.

Each judge will be REQUIRED to declare ONE AND ONLY ONE WINNER and ONE AND 
ONLY ONE LOSER in each debate to which they are assigned by the tab 
room.  Compliance with this rule requires each judge to complete an 
official judge ballot as designated by the tab room.  Completion of the 
ballot requires the judge to clearly designate affirmative or negative to 
signify a winning team.  Judges will also be required to confirm their 
choice by indicating the school with which the designated winner is 
affiliated.  The side (affirmative or negative) and school affiliation must 
match the assignments made by the tab room.  Judges will also be required 
to assign speaker points and speaker ranks to each participant in the 
debate.  Speaker points are accepted in increments of 0.5 from a minimum of 
0 to a maximum of 30.  Speaker ranks are accepted in whole numbers only 
from 1 to 4.   Judges are also required to render a decision in accordance 
with the aforementioned criteria no more than 165 minutes beyond the 
designated start time of any debate that they are assigned by the tab room 
to adjudicate.

If you or one of your judges is unable or unwilling to fulfill these 
requirements, please submit an alternative judge prior to the start of the 
tournament.  If, during the course of the tournament, any judge 
representing your school refuses to comply with these requirements, teams 
affiliated with your school will be removed from the competition by the tab 
room.

Judges are expected to disqualify themselves from hearing any team or 
school with which they may have a personal or professional conflict.  Such 
conflicts include, but are not limited to:  former college or high school 
debate colleagues, former students, students from schools with which you 
have been associated in the last two to four years, and students from a 
school you plan to associate with next year.  We urge judges to maintain a 
high standard of integrity on this question.  Conflicts may be entered in 
the ?comments? section of the judge entry section at 
<http://www.debateresults.com/>www.debateresults.com.  Conflicts can also 
be submitted to Scott Deatherage at 
<mailto:nudebate at northwestern.edu>nudebate at northwestern.edu.  The tab room 
reserves the right to restrict a judge?s eligible team field based upon our 
understanding of your past institutional affiliation.

Topic:  Students are required to debate the topic selected for the 2004-05 
season by a vote of the Cross Examination Debate Association 
membership.  The precise wording of this year?s topic is Resolved: that the 
United States Federal Government should establish an energy policy 
requiring a substantial reduction in the total non-governmental consumption 
of fossil fuels in the United States.  Topicality is a voting issue at both 
the Owen L. Coon Memorial Debates at Northwestern University and at the 
National Debate Tournament.

Tournament Procedures:  Brackets will be broken in both preliminary and 
elimination debates to prevent teams from the same school from 
meeting.  Side equalization will be employed in both preliminary and 
elimination rounds.  Details on the procedure for elimination round side 
equalization will be provided at the tournament.  Said procedures are the 
same as those employed in previous Owen L. Coon tournaments.  Hybrid teams 
are permitted.  Prior to the tournament, maverick entries are NOT 
accepted.  Once the tournament begins, maverick debaters may or may not be 
permitted to continue.  The tournament director will evaluate maverick 
situations on a case-by-case basis.  The tournament employs the now 
traditional 9-3-6 format with ten minutes of preparation time allocated to 
each team.  The first four rounds are preset.  Round five is high-high; six 
through eight are high-low.  We continue to employ a mutual judge 
preference (MJP) placement system.  Eight preliminary rounds are scheduled, 
followed by an appropriate number of elimination rounds, typically 
five.  Northwestern teams may compete in the tournament.  If so, they are 
eligible to receive speaker awards and to compete in elimination 
rounds.  We will enter via the web page and declare our participation 
publicly.  Northwestern teams will be required to complete a judge 
preference sheet; judge assignments for Northwestern teams will be assigned 
by the computer and changed only by the option of an external tab room 
manager.  We subscribe to CEDA?s policy against Sexual Harassment and 
Discrimination, and the Statement of Ethical Principles, found in Bylawys 
IV and V of the CEDA Constitution.  The tournament is CEDA Sanctioned.

We do hope that you can join us in February.  Our students and staff look 
forward to providing a quality experience for all participants.  Best.

Scott Deatherage
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL.  USA
lsd041 at northwestern.edu


Scott Deatherage
Director of Debate
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois 
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