[adpowell]

Hello all!

The NPDA is looking to hold a development conference and would like to start soliciting items for discussion! Feel free to use this forum to talk through issues you’d like to see raised at the development conference, share ideas, and get feedback. The purpose of the development conference is to talk through big picture issues, solidify what NPDA debate is and should become, and what changes the activity can make to encourage growth and participation. The hope is that we would discuss these bigger thoughts to then produce bylaw proposals for the Fall Business Meeting that aim to bring some of the changes discussed to fruition. In addition, be on the lookout for a survey to determine what time of year is most preferable so we can get something scheduled! Happy NPDA to all!

[brentnicholson]

I’m really excited to get to work on this. I think there’s a few primary areas for us to emphasize when we try to determine what NPDA is or will be.

1. Curricular focus. We need to figure out what we teach, why, and how. Having that in writing is going to help sell what we are to outsiders, solidify our core, and give us something to build around.
2. Novice focus. We don’t have novice debaters for the most part. Most tournaments don’t offer novice divisions and the ones that do don’t make. Most teams can’t field true novices because of that. We need students to do the activity if we want the activity to grow and one easy pathway is by increasing team sizes by including more students.
3. Student-run focus. We have a few excellent student-run teams and could be an activity designed to support them more fully. I’m no expert in the needs of student-run programs, but I think a subcommittee of our conference should focus on what these teams need and how we can meet those needs as an organization.
4. Service/professional focus. The NPDA circuit has an abundance of excellent coaches and educators and we need to tap those resources more effectively and get people doing professional debate work, whether that is service, publishing, or any other thing that raises the quality of our work as a collective. This is going to make our institutions more supportive, make our CVs better, and help us draw attention and resources that let us grow. One of the easiest ways for us to win programs to NPDA is to send good coaches out into the world with good CVs to get hired at new institutions.
5. Collaborative focus. This group is broadly willing to work together and we’re going to need to do that to make this work. While we compete in rounds, I think we need to structure this circuit around a collaborative, cooperative mindset that should be ingrained in the NPDA learning process. I would like to see more scrimmages, sharing of or interacting with each other’s social media, co-writing, file sharing, or anything else that can make this format more communal and less siloed by institution.

[ChiefKCKCCDebate]

Looking forward to seeing you all in Georgia. As I sit here in my office while we compete in Tournament #4 of a 14 weekend stretch with no weekends off 😳what better time than to think about the summer. There has been talk in various forums and places about a Summer Development Conference. I can certainly speak to this at NPDA if there is a desire, but consider this an official offer to host one this summer in Kansas City in person, or Online, or Hybrid. I would also happily spearhead this if people prefer another location. Brent has posted some great thoughts in the forums on the NPDA webpage and I will cross post there as well. But in addition to offering to host, here are some topics I think worthwhile.

Format Idea: We are a small enough community. I think we do our best thinking when we are all together. Instead of every topic being a break out session in small groups, I think we would be best served being together. Hash out the big stuff. Maybe then if work groups/breakouts are needed we could do that. fwiw

Topic Ideas:
1. Tournament logistics—Invites, Procedures, Timeliness of Posting for travel purposes and budget planning, in person vs virtual, format (swings, singles, multi events). Best practices for a Tournament Operating Procedure (Tabbing), judge placement, constraints, etc.

2. Awards—An inventory of the awards in Parli debate. Recognition of past coaches/debaters/programs. Do we need more awards? Model other organizations to increase visibility and PR? National and Regional Awards. Encourage a Regional or Conference model for competition and/or awards.

3. Recruitment/Retention—3 pronged approach to retention. How do we ensure program retention? How do we ensure Director retention? How do we ensure debater retention (upward and onward but also Novices) and transition to coaching? 2 pronged approach to recruitment. Best practices for recruiting on campus. Opportunities to recruit in new programs. Do we invite other programs with other specialties and make the tent bigger? Scalability of what we do. Curriculum mapping and assessment.

4. Judge training and mentorship—What are the best processes judges engage in to arrive at a decision? In many ways debate is the most nuanced of all activities/sports, but has the lowest entry barriers for judges with the least amount of training. This Inherent Harm can have Significant Impacts, but with the right Planning we can reverse the Squo to attain mutually beneficial Advantages. Should we want to take on this Topic. See what I did there?

5. Website—What standard information should be readily available? What does the membership need?

6. Historical Archive–past winners, awards, historic documents, photographs, possibly an oral history project.

7. Take a look at the most recent Policy Debate Development Conference and discuss as a community what things can we learn, and what pitfalls can we avoid?

8. A professional publication post conference that can be shared with Administrators as part of the ongoing efforts in number 3 above.

Just some musings.

I am sure there are plenty of other topic ideas worth considering.

Safe travels to Macon everyone!

[Author]

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