Team Information
2022-2023 Board Members
- President: Akshaya Ravi
- Vice Presidents: JJ Gilbert
- Communications Coordinator: Lauren Applegate
- Fundraising Coordinator: Sam Posner
- Membership Coordinator: Clara Duckworth
- Publicity Coordinator: Christopher Gagliardi
Coaching
During a coaching session, you have the opportunity to work one-on-one or in small groups with a coach or a returning member (a peer coach). You deliver your material, or a section of it, and we help you with ideas for making it even better – finding the appropriate volume, character voices, staging, using gestures and facial expression, making eye contact with your listeners, etc. It is up to you to arrange your coaching sessions, please talk to a coach to make an appointment. We encourage you to get coaching a few times with a new piece and before attending tournaments.
Sarah, Joyce, and Amanda are the coaches of Natick Speech & Debate. They are all alums of the program and great resources for all things speech related! They work outside the school system, so coaching sessions generally happen on weeknights. Please reach out to them. They love speech & debate and will do whatever they can to help you love speech & debate too!
Sarah, Joyce, and Amanda are the coaches of Natick Speech & Debate. They are all alums of the program and great resources for all things speech related! They work outside the school system, so coaching sessions generally happen on weeknights. Please reach out to them. They love speech & debate and will do whatever they can to help you love speech & debate too!
Tournament Overview & Attire
TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW
Tournaments are held a few times a month from October through early April. Most are just Saturday, although a few require multiple day commitments. We encourage members to attend as many tournaments as they are able, with a minimum expectation of three per school year. A typical virtual tournament day begins with an online team meeting around 8:00 AM. The length of the tournament varies greatly, depending on the format of the day’s events, but most will wrap up around 8:00 PM.
TOURNAMENT ATTIRE
The overall guideline to keep in mind when selecting tournament attire is that you want to be remembered for your presentation, not your outfit. We compete in professional attire. The kind of clothing you'd wear to a job interview or an important business meeting where you want to make a good impression. All clothing should be clean, neat, ironed, and professional. Suits, dresses, dress pants or skirts, blouses, shells, sweaters, or button down shirts are all generally acceptable. Ties, belts, and dress socks/stockings are great. Dress shoes should also be worn. It is advisable to avoid bright patterns, large jewelry, skirts or dresses that are shorter than knee length, heavy makeup, and bright nail polish. Feel free to contact any of the coaches or board members with questions.
Tournaments are held a few times a month from October through early April. Most are just Saturday, although a few require multiple day commitments. We encourage members to attend as many tournaments as they are able, with a minimum expectation of three per school year. A typical virtual tournament day begins with an online team meeting around 8:00 AM. The length of the tournament varies greatly, depending on the format of the day’s events, but most will wrap up around 8:00 PM.
TOURNAMENT ATTIRE
The overall guideline to keep in mind when selecting tournament attire is that you want to be remembered for your presentation, not your outfit. We compete in professional attire. The kind of clothing you'd wear to a job interview or an important business meeting where you want to make a good impression. All clothing should be clean, neat, ironed, and professional. Suits, dresses, dress pants or skirts, blouses, shells, sweaters, or button down shirts are all generally acceptable. Ties, belts, and dress socks/stockings are great. Dress shoes should also be worn. It is advisable to avoid bright patterns, large jewelry, skirts or dresses that are shorter than knee length, heavy makeup, and bright nail polish. Feel free to contact any of the coaches or board members with questions.
Forms & Fees
2022-2023 FORMS
The Natick Speech & Debate Team charges $90 annual membership dues to participate and help cover tournament fees and other team expenses for the year. Checks can be made out to "Natick Speech & Debate Team" and given to Amanda during a Wednesday night meeting. We ask all members to do their best to pay their dues by 11/2/22. If you have any questions about team dues please talk to one of the coaches.
- 2022-2023 Contact Form (Due by 9/28/22 or within 2 weeks of joining the team)
- Mandatory Team Forms (Due by 9/28/22 or before your first tournament)
The Natick Speech & Debate Team charges $90 annual membership dues to participate and help cover tournament fees and other team expenses for the year. Checks can be made out to "Natick Speech & Debate Team" and given to Amanda during a Wednesday night meeting. We ask all members to do their best to pay their dues by 11/2/22. If you have any questions about team dues please talk to one of the coaches.
Leagues
Natick Speech & Debate competes at a number of tournaments each year. Each tournament has different rules and most are governed by one of three leagues. Be sure you know the event rules for the league you are competing in, as they can be different. We will mention this at meetings, but here are the links to the individual league sites, which will help you learn more.
- Massachusetts Speech & Debate League (MSDL) - The MSDL is our local league, and governs the majority of tournaments we attend.
- National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL)
- National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA)