Judge Philosophies
Alec Hubbard - Truman
n/a
Amy Ramirez - MoState
Amy Bopp - MAFA
n/a
Andrew Lynch - MAFA
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Andrew Hart - MoState
https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml?judge_person_id=35837
Andrew DeShon - MAFA
n/a
Andrew Bary - MAFA
n/a
Aubrey Weber - Simpson
n/a
Austin Sopko - Truman
https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml?judge_person_id=296640
Becca Godsey - MAFA
n/a
Brian Lain - UNT
Brian Kaylor - MAFA
n/a
Caprice Applequist - MAFA
n/a
Cassity Morlan - UCMO
n/a
Colin Quinn - UNT
Colin Quinn
University of North Texas
Framing how I should evaluate things is the most important thing to do. When that doesn't happen I have to intervene more and rely more on my predispositions rather than the arguments made.
Topicality: I like T debates. I think that for the neg to win a T debate there needs to be a well established competing interpretations framework and a good limits or ground argument. Affs need to have a reasonability argument paired with a decent we meet or counter-interpretation.
Counterplans: The neg needs to establish competition and a clear net benefit. I think i'm generally aff biased although they need to focus on what they can win (Most theory arguments are reasons to reject the argument except conditionality bad, I think most condition/consult-esque counterplans are legitimate but not competitive, etc).
Disadvantages: Impact calculus should be a priority. I do not think that there's always a risk of anything and can be persuaded that there's zero risk.
Kritiks: Impact framing arguments are the most important thing to win. They filter how I evaluate the rest of the debate in terms of deciding what is important to win and what isn't. I think that negatives need to make definite choices in the 2NR in terms of how to frame the K and what to focus on otherwise the aff is in a strategic place. Link/Impact scenarios that are specific to the plan make the debate much harder for the aff.
Affs: I think that framework is useful and can be won but I am sympathetic to affs that are topical without maybe defending a resolutional agent. I think a winning framework argument should be centered around a method that encourages the best discussion about the topic rather than just the government. When negs lose framework debates they fail to win links to the aff c/i or role of the ballot arguments. Topical version arguments are useful but negs need to remember to explain the reason they solve the affs offense; "you can still talk about x" often doesn't cut it. I think that affs that don't defend a plan need to focus on framing the ballot because that's how I will filter all of their arguments. I think that it is difficult for aff's to win framework debates without a we meet or counter-interp that can frame any other offense you have in the debate.
I may not know the very specific part of the topic/argument you are going for so make sure it's explained. I'm pretty visible in terms of reactions to certain arguments and it will be obvious if i'm confused as to what is going on.
Don't cheat.
Craig Hennigan - Truman
TL/DR - I'm fine on the K. Need in round abuse for T. I'm fine with speed. K Alts that do something more than naval-gazing is preferred. Avoid running away from arguments.
I debated high school policy in the early 90âs and then college policy in 1994. I also competed in NFA-LD for 4 or 5 years, I don't recall, I know my last season was 1999? I then coached at Utica High School and West Bloomfield High school in Michigan for their policy programs for an additional 8 years. I coached for 5 years at Wayne State University. Now I am the Assistant Director of Forensics at Truman State University in my 5th year running the debate part of the program.
Dropped arguments can carry a lot of weight with me if you make an issue of them early. This being said, I have been more truth over tech lately. Some arguments are so bad I'm inclined to do work against it. If its cold conceded I will go with it, but if its a truly bad interpretation/argument, it won't take a lot to mitigate risk of it happening. I have responded well to sensible 'gut check' arguments before.
I enjoy debaters who can keep my flow neat. You need to have clear tags on your cards. I REQUIRE a differentiation in how you say the tag/citation and the evidence. If it blends together, I do not do well flowing your argument.
With regard to specific arguments â I will vote seldom on theory arguments that do not show significant in-round abuse. Potential abuse is a non-starter for me, and time skew to me is a legit strategy unless itâs really really bad. My threshold for theory then is pretty high if you cannot show a decent abuse story. Showing an abuse story should come well before the last rebuttal. If it is dropped though, I will most likely drop the argument before the team. Reminders in round about my disposition toward theory is persuasive such as "You don't want to pull the trigger on condo bad," or "I know you don't care for theory, here is why this is a uniquely bad situation where I don't get X link and why that is critical to this debate." Intrinsic and severance perms I think are bad if you can show why they are intrinsic or severance. Again, I'd drop argument before team.
I donât like round bullys. If you run an obscure K philosophy don't expect everyone in the room to know who/what it is saying. It is the duty of those that want to run the K to be a âgoodâ person who wants to enhance the education of all present. I have voted for a lot of K's though so it's not like I'm opposed to them. K alternatives should be able to be explained well in the cross-x. I will have a preference for K alts that actually "do" something. The influence of my ballot on the discourse of the world at large is default minimal, on the debate community default is probably even less than minimal. Repeating jargon of the card is a poor strategy, if you can explain what the world looks like post alternative, that's awesome. I have found clarity to be a premium need in LD debate since there is much less time to develop a K. Failing to explain what the K does in the 1AC/NC then revealing it in the 1AR/NR is bad. If the K alt mutates into something else in the NR, this is a pretty compelling reason to vote Aff. (Or in the opposite of the person running the K for that matter).
Never run from a debate. I'll respect someone that goes all-in for the heg good/heg bad argument and gets into a debate more than someone who attempts to be incredibly tricksy in case/plan writing or C-X in order to avoid potential arguments. Ideal C-X would be:
"Does your case increase spending?"
"Damn right, what you gon' do about it? Catch me outside."
I will vote on T. Again, there should be an in-round abuse story to garner a ballot for T. This naturally would reinforce the previous statement under theory that says potential abuse is a non-starter for me. Developing T as an impact based argument rather than a rules based argument is more persuasive. As potential abuse is not typically a voter for me and I'll strike down speaker points toward RVI's based on bad theory. Regarding K's of T, there are better ways to garner offense, like say... your case.
Anything that you intend to win on I need to have more than 15 seconds spent on it. I won't vote for a blip that isn't properly impacted. Rebuttals should consist of focusing on the arguments that will win you the round. It should reflect some heavy lifting and doing some real work on the part of the debater. It should not be a laundry list of answers without a comparative analysis of why one argument is clearly superior and a round winner. Kevin Ambrose said during one of my decisions that the ability to encapsulate the round in the last 15-20 seconds of your speech is a lost art. I agree.
Performance: Give me a reason to vote. And make sure to adequately respond to your opponents arguments with the performance. I do not see that many of those rounds in the first place. If you win a framework debate, you're more than halfway there to a win. I think there are lots of ways that framework can be run that isn't inherently exclusive to debate styles. However I think there are framework arguments that are exclusive too, which isn't very cool. The main issues that I voted on in those rounds were dropped arguments. If a team running an alternative style aff/K is able to show that the other team is dropping arguments then that is just as valid as the traditional style making claims that arguments are dropped and should be weighed accordingly. I am seldom compelled that my ballot changes anything outside the debate community or outside the room. If you have specific evidence to why it does, then I have voted on those arguments (Think Giroux type evidence on pedagogy). Most of the time though, the idea that my ballot changes anything places too much importance on me. I'm just a poor debate coach. However if there's things in the room that are going on that can be remedied by my ballot, I'm definitely listening.
Speaker Points -
Upon entering the LD community, I was informed that my previous speaker point distribution was akin to Santa Claus on a meth binge. It has now been revised.
Floor- 25 - you might have said something offensive about the other team or my family. I may have had to think about whether or not to stop the round. You didn't complete a speech and conceded. You were racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic and unapologetic. Or you didn't complete speeches.
26-26.5 - You made me feel like a qualified judge. (There were noticable and glaring flaws in your strategy. You went for Condo Bad without a unique reason why I should vote and there was only 1 K and 1 CP in the round. You have problems with fundamentals of making arguments)
26.5-27 - I had to think and do work, but also had to send you a message that I'm not a good judge. (You made some tactical errors that I noticed perhaps went for the wrong NR, or you asked a bunch of questions in C-X that never came up in the speech. Or you lacked confidence, you looked like you were behind. You dropped a lot on the flow.)
27-27.5 - Meh. Middle of the road.
28 - You made me pay attention to my flowing. At one point I was hoping you would not go for the PIC because I had no idea what was happening on that flow. (Odds are you made the correct strategic decisions, outcarded your opponents or did not drop round-winning arguments and tooks advantage of your opponents dropped arguments. You should get a low speaker award)
28.5-29.5 - I would give you a cigarette after the round if asked if I still smoked. (You have noticed a double turn or a speech act by your opponent that is a round winner. You also have reminded me of items in my paradigm for why you are going for the items that you are. You should be top 10 to top 5 speaker.)
29.5-30 - Would you like to do my oral defense for me? (I could not find a flaw in your performance to incredibly minor flaws that there is little way to realize that they even happened)
Small note: If you're totally outmatching your opponent, you're going to earn speaker points not by smashing your opponent, but rather through making debate a welcoming and educational experience for everyone.
Card Clipping addendum:
Don't cheat. I typically ask to be included on email chains so that I can try to follow along at certain points of the speech to ensure that there isn't card clipping, however if you bring it up I in round I will also listen. You probably ought to record the part with clipping if I don't bring it up myself. Also, if I catch clipping (and if I catch it, it's blatant) then that's it, round over, other team doesn't have to bring it up if I noticed it.
David Bailey - SBU
Deano Pape - Simpson
n/a
Dustin Greenwalt - PSU
https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml?search_first=&search_last=greenwalt
Dylan Rothermel - Truman
Eduardo Magalhaes - Simpson
n/a
Elissa Sartwell - MAFA
n/a
Eric Morris - MoState
Eric Morris, DoF - Missouri State â 29th Year Judging
++++ NFA-LD Version ++++
You can see NDT version, which is different, here: https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml?judge_person_id=6383
I primarily judge in NDTCEDA (which I enjoy), but operate under different assumptions when judging in NFA-LD (if you want to read my NDT CEDA philosophy to understand how I think, it can be found here: https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml?judge_account_id=6383).
I like NFA-LD because it is more novice-friendly, and most of the community prefers DA-case debate. I don't dislike CP's (or K's that refute the plan) outside of the novice division, but direct refutation is refreshing to me.
I tend to prioritize probability (strength of link and internal link) when two impacts have a large magnitude. Uniqueness is rarely 100% either direction (although it can be).
Explicitly non-topical affs or K's which refuse the topic entirely have a huge presumption to overcome.
I have a presumption for NFA-LD rules, but you need to apply the specific rule. There is often room for counter-interpretations (including mine). Use them to help you refute arguments instead of making a bunch of independent voters. Thus, stock issues may be a place for debate more than "voting" issues - since negative often minimizes them instead of completely refuting them.
I like that NFA-LD is not as fast as NDT (for access reasons), but the line of "how much is too much" is hard for me to judge. I want debaters to negotiate this before the round - the round should be no faster than the preferences of either participant (including others judges on a panel).
Although I lean negative on many T questions relative to the NDT community, I'm not a hardliner on effects T. I think the literature base is relevant to how much is "too much" on extra T. I think T arguments should be grounded in clear definitions/interpretations, and I lean aff when there is uncertainty about the violation. I think spec arguments are best handled as CX questions, and generally have a strong presumption against theory voting issues - reject the argument not the is my leaning.
If you share evidence via email chain (the best method), my gmail is ermocito. Given quick decision times, I prefer to get a copy of all speeches in real time (even if by flash drive) so I can double check things during prep time and CX.
I will flow closely but often my RFD for the opponent could be reversed with better application of your argument to theirs, or better readings of their evidence to support your argument. Those things are excellent debating.
Gina Jensen - Webster
n/a
Glenn Prince - MAFA
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Jason Roach - Webster
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Jennifer Bary - MAFA
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Jennifer Tufts - MAFA
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Jessica Champion - MAFA
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Jessica Kershner - MAFA
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Joe Moore - MAFA
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John Carney - Truman
John Boyer - Lafayette
n/a
John Parker - MAFA
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Jordan Compton - SBU
I competed in NPDA and IDPA for four years. I've coached NPDA, IPDA, and PF for 10+ years.
I'm a communication guy. That will never change. I'm much more of an IE coach/judge than a debate coach/judge but I should be able to follow along with most anything.
I loathe speed. See the line above. I'm a communication guy.
I try to be a flow judge as much as possible. It's your job to tell me where to flow your argument. If you organize for me and tell me what to do, I'm going to do it and I'll probably like you more for doing that.
I will not do the work for you. You need to explain your argument super clearly. And like I said above, you need to tell me where to put that argument on the flow.
If you give me a criterion that's what I'm going to use to help guide my decision. If you give me a criterion and then fail to use it throughout the debate, you're probably going to lose. (If you say we're doing CBA and then don't give me any costs/benefits, what's the point of the CBA criterion?)
NPDA/LD
Not a huge fan of Ks but I'll listen. Remember everything I said above about being clear and organized. That goes triple here.
I like case debate.
I'll listen to a good CP.
I'll vote on T if abuse is articulated well.
In Parli, I will not flow any argument from a partner who speaks when it's not their turn to speak. I kind of hate when this happens.
I'm happy to answer specific questions before a round, but I probably won't go into great detail. My usual response when asked what I like to hear in debate is, "Don't suck."
Jordan Cofer - MAFA
n/a
Joshua Stegall - MoState
Juliana Ness - Webster
n/a
Kari Nichols - MAFA
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Kensey Dressler - MAFA
n/a
Kevin Minch - Truman
Kristen Stout - Crowder
I judge the debate that is in front of me. What format of debate I'm judging determines what should/shouldn't happen in that debate. Complete (but old) philosophy on tabroom.
Lora Cohn - Park
n/a
Louis Petit - UNT
Margaret Michels - PSU
I competed in policy debate many years ago
and this is my second- year coaching and judging Lincoln Douglas debate. As an argumentation instructor, I value the
quality of evidence and so will examine it in the roundbest say what you claim
it says. I also want to hear warranted
arguments, not labels i.e. just saying education on topicality is not a
sufficient argumentative claim. I will
vote on stock issues so long as the debater justifies doing so.
I, to the best of my ability, adopt the
perspective of tabula rasa and will listen to any argument presented in the
debate EXCEPT I still retain common sense.
If you tell me the sky is green with orange polka dots, I wont buy it.
As mentioned, any types of arguments (Ks,
counter plans, topicality, etc.) are accepted and can win you the debate, if you
convince me why your position is best. I expect to hear an explanation for why you
have won the debate in your final rebuttal.
Or in other words, I dislike having to pull out and weigh the arguments
on my own.
I agree
with the spirit of the LD rules. If
invoked by debaters, they become part of the debate. I believe speed should not be used as a tool.
I get annoyed when a debater talks very rapidly and then has time remaining in
the speech. I also frown upon a debater
who attempts to spread out the opposition and then concedes many arguments in
the rebuttal. In addition, speed can
disadvantage the inclusion of international students. I do not mean to suggest by this comment that I
per se dislike speed. I will listen and
flow and let you know if I cant follow you.
Be smart, be civil, have fun.
Marisa Mayo - UCMO
n/a
Meg Burns - MAFA
n/a
Megan Todd - MoState
Mikayla Throne - SBU
Nate McHargue - MAFA
n/a
Nikki Freeman - UCMO
n/a
Noelle Batchelder - MoState
Parker Hopkins - MoState
https://www.tabroom.com/index/paradigm.mhtml
Sarah Muir - Truman
Scott Jensen - Webster
n/a
Sean Atkins - MoState
n/a
Shane Brewer - IC
n/a
Shaun Sletten - MoState
Shawna Merrill - IC
My competitive background is mainly in parli, but I judged LD throughout the 17/18 season and am currently head coach of a program competing in NFA-LD.
Debate is ultimately a communication endeavor, and as such, it should be civil and accessible. I’m not a fan of speed. I can handle a moderate amount especially as I follow along with your docs (I want to be included on speechdrop, email chains, etc.), but at the point that you’re gasping for air, I’m over it. Using speed as a strategy to spread your opponent out of the round is not okay for me.
I’m not a big T person. While I prefer proven in-round abuse to vote on T, I will vote for competing interpretations if it’s done well. Basically, if you run T, you’d better mean it. Don’t use it as a time sink.
I will vote on Ks if they address the topic/refute the plan. I enjoy a good critical argument, but don’t assume I’m familiar with all of your literature.
My favorite types of rounds are ones that engage in direct clash and cover the flow. Attend to the link stories and connect the dots as to how we get to your impacts. I’ll vote on just about any argument as long as it’s clearly explained and defended.
Bottom line: don’t try to get too fancy. Run arguments you understand and do what you’re comfortable with.
Steven Gill (Online) - Simpson
n/a
Sydney Crank - UCMO
n/a
Taylor Corlee - MoState
Terri Magalhaes - Simpson
n/a
Tiana Brownen - MAFA
n/a
Tom Serfass - Webster
n/a
Will Wheeler - SBU
Zachary McGee - MAFA
n/a