14.1.0        FORENSIC COMMITTEE - The State Forensic Committee will be comprised of school administrators and forensic educators. Members will be nominated by each WIAA District and approved by the WIAA Executive Board. The WIAA Executive Board will appoint the chairperson of the Committee. The president of the Washington State Forensics Association will be an ex-officio member.

                   14.1.1                 The school administrators may be superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals or assistant principals. Terms shall be for three (3) years, to begin on September 1. At the expiration of the term, the district that has been represented by a forensic educator will nominate a school administrator and vice versa.

                   14.1.2                 The Forensic Committee recommends changes in rules and acts upon items submitted by the Forensic Activity District.

                   14.1.3                 The WSFA Executive Board is an advisory body to the Forensic Committee.

                   14.1.4                 A Forensic Committee report may be made to the Representative Assembly.

14.2.0        SEASON LIMITATION - Debate competition shall begin November 1 and end with the State Debate Tournament.

                   14.2.1                 Special Regulations

                                                Practice Outings                Competition Season               Competition limit

                                                After October 15                   *Week 17 to                               2 Practice Outings

                                                                                                  Debate Tournament               20 Competitive Outings

                                                                                                 *Standardized calendar week, Appendix 6

14.3.0        SCHOOL LIMITATION - Participation within each WIAA District or in practice competition within the specific season shall be at the discretion of each District Forensic Committee.

                   14.3.1                 Middle level school students are excluded from consideration for state tournament competition.

                   14.3.2                 Each school may participate in two (2) practice debate outings and twenty (20) competitive outings (individual district league competition) in one regular academic season, with such limitation not to include the state tournament.

                   14.3.3                 Practice debate outings shall begin after October 15 and may be scheduled for each half of the season.

                   14.3.4                 A practice outing is one in which no records are kept, no decisions are made, and consists of no more than three (3) rounds.

                   14.3.5                 A school may not exceed twenty (20) competitive outings per academic season.  However, schools wishing to attend a competition between March 31 and June 1 may petition the WIAA Executive Board.

                   14.3.6                 School, league and/or district outings for competition shall not start any round after 9:00 p.m., nor shall sponsors of Invitational Forensics Tournaments within Washington start any round after 9:00 p.m.

14.4.0        DIRECTORS MEMBERS OF FACULTY - No school group or individual contestant shall be eligible to represent a school in a contest or meet unless the director/coach is at least a part-time employee of the school district in which they teach and the holder of a valid certificate to teach in the State of Washington.

14.5.0        SPECIAL CERTIFICATES FOR TEACHERS - When regularly certificated teachers are unavailable, school officials may apply to the State Board of Education for special certification for teachers of specialized subjects. The issuance of consultant special certificates is limited to (a) person highly qualified and experienced in field of knowledge taught in the common schools, (b) instructional functions other than regular teaching, or (c) persons who are identified as possessing competencies in specified fields and who are assigned instructional responsibility for intramural/interscholastic activities which are part of the district-approved program. Such certificates are issued to individuals who are screened by local school district or educational service district superintendents using criteria approved by the State Board of Education and Superintendent of Public Instruction. The certificate is valid for two (2) years only for the activity specified [WAC 180-80-250(2)].

14.6.0        SUPERVISION OF GROUPS/CONTESTANTS - During the activity, all contestants/groups shall be under the supervision of a school district staff member as defined above in these Rules and Regulations.  Schools may meet this requirement by having both principals and coaches of the participating school fill out the WSFA/WIAA form to have the director/coach of one school, as outlined in 14.4.0, supervise the other participating school’s group/contestants at that particular tournament.

14.7.0        COMMUNICATION WITH WIAA - The presidents of the Washington Forensics Association and other appropriate professional organizations shall submit to the Executive Director a roster of state officers, state committees and district officers upon their election or selection to office.

14.8.0        COMMUNICATION WITH FORENSIC ORGANIZATIONS - The Executive Director will submit the list of committee members and WIAA District committee members to the president of the appropriate state professional organization.

14.9.0        WIAA DISTRICT ORGANIZATION - The schools of the state participating in Forensics will be divided into Activity Districts by WIAA (Article 5).

                   14.9.1                 WIAA Districts may be subdivided or joined with contiguous WIAA Districts on approval of WIAA District Boards and the WIAA Executive Board.

14.10.0      THE WIAA DISTRICT COMMITTEE - Each WIAA District shall appoint a Forensic Committee. Committee members shall include: the district debate manager, the district's State Forensic Committee member, the state officer of the Forensics Association if they reside in the district, as well as others selected by the WIAA District.

                   14.10.1               Duties of the District Committee - The committee shall promote interest and participation in forensic activities by member schools, determine district forensic activities, promote interest in clinics, schedule league and district events, and determine the method of entry into state tournaments.

14.11.0      DISTRICT DEBATE MANAGER - The manager shall be responsible for conducting district-wide activities according to the policies of the District Forensic Committee and the WIAA District.

                   14.11.1               After October 15, the WIAA office will inform the district manager of the schools which are participating in Forensic activities.

                   14.11.2               The manager and committee plan the activities so that each registered school has an equal opportunity to qualify for state tournament competition.

                   14.11.3               By January 10 of each school year, the district manager shall file with the WIAA office a list of all the active participating schools within the WIAA District (school must have a minimum of six (6) interscholastic debaters to be an active participating school).  Schools eligible for district competition and state tournaments are the schools named on the WIAA list submitted to districts as soon as possible after October 15.

                   14.11.4               The district manager will inform the Executive Director about the dates of the WIAA district forensic events.

                   14.11.5               The WIAA Executive Board shall notify each district manager of the number of state tournament entries.

                   14.11.6               At least three (3) weeks prior to the State Debate Tournament and State Individual Events Tournament, the district manager shall certify to the Executive Board of the Washington State Forensics Association those schools which have qualified for state tournament competition, plus the name of an alternate school(s). The Executive Board of the WSFA shall submit the names of these schools to the tournament officials (at the sponsoring university, college or member school, which shall mail tournament information to competing schools.) If a team or individual is unable to compete, the district manager should be notified and they in turn should notify the WIAA District office. The Association office will grant this place to the WIAA District with the highest partial allocation, and notify the district manager involved and the state tournament manager.

14.12.0      INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENTS - An invitational tournament is defined as a tournament that includes schools from more than one WIAA District, is held at an accredited school, college or university, and presents awards to winning contestants.  (See Article 11)

                   14.12.1               The State Forensic Committee upon the recommendation of the Washington State Forensics Association may recommend invitational Forensic Tournaments. The WIAA Executive Board grants final approval.

                   14.12.2               Each tournament shall agree to use two high school debate coaches in an advisory capacity. 

                   14.12.3               The debate question to be used at each tournament shall be the official question adopted by the Washington State Forensics Association.  The tournament director shall make no revisions or interpretation of the official debate question.

                   14.12.4               Each Tournament Manager shall agree to abide by the recommendations of the WSFA regarding time limits and patterns for Debate.

                   14.12.5               Schools outside the 50-mile radius of the school sponsoring an invitational tournament need furnish only one judge unless a school commutes to the tournament.

                   14.12.6               No member school shall participate in an unapproved invitational tournament.

                   14.12.7               Only member schools of the WIAA shall participate in approved invitational tournaments. Member schools of neighboring state association may be invited.

                   14.12.8               Non-school sponsors of invitational forensic tournaments within the state shall complete an application form before being granted approval to conduct the tournaments. Such application must be submitted to the WIAA office at least sixty (60) calendar days (not including July or August) before the event.

14.13.0      STATE TOURNAMENTS - A State Debate Tournament and a State Individual Events Tournament are held under the auspices of the WIAA Forensic Committee.

                   14.13.1              See State Forensics Tournament Regulations.

                   14.13.2               Tournament site sand date are selected and announced each year.

                   14.13.3               The Forensic Committee shall, at its first meeting or the school year, adopt regulations for the conduct of the state tournament, and the WIAA Executive Board must approve the rules.

                   14.13.4               Allocations to the state tournament are made in accordance with the Opstad formula in Article 4.11.0 and 4.12.0 and shall be determined on a two (2) year basis to coincide with the classification cycle.

                   14.13.5               The WIAA Forensic Committee shall oversee the state tournament, but the primary operation of the tournament shall be the responsibility of the WSFA and of the speech department of the college sponsoring the tournament. The WSFA Executive Board must approve all rules and arrangements for the state tournament.