SCJFL 2025–2026 Middle School Speech Tournament Invitation

Greetings! For the 2025–2026 season, the Southern California Junior Forensics League is pleased to announce six regular-season middle school speech tournaments. Three tournaments will be held in person, and three will be held online. This document shall serve as the invitation for all six tournaments. All times are Pacific.

Tournament Dates and Events

A list of each tournament, including its date, format, and available events, can be found here.

The following events will be offered at each regular-season middle school speech tournament:

Assigned Platform
Declamation
Dramatic Interpretation
Duo Interpretation
Extemporaneous Speaking
Humorous Interpretation
Impromptu Speaking
Informative Speaking
Persuasive Speaking
Poetry Interpretation
Prose Interpretation
SPAR
Storytelling

Additional events may be offered at designated tournaments, as shown on the tournament schedule linked above.

In-Person Tournament Location

Regular-season in-person tournaments will be held at:

Jefferson Middle School
1372 East Las Tunas Drive

San Gabriel, CA 91776

Additional information regarding parking, tournament headquarters, room locations, and campus procedures will be posted on the applicable ForensicsTournament.net tournament page.

Tournament Schedule

4:15–5:30 PM: Round 1

5:45–6:45 PM: Round 2

7:00–8:00 PM: Round 3

8:30–9:30 PM: Final Round, where required

Eligibility

Team Eligibility: Participation in SCJFL tournaments is limited to schools, after-school programs, and homeschool programs that have joined the SCJFL, paid all applicable league fees, and remain in good standing with the league. Teams must also satisfy the membership and eligibility requirements established in the SCJFL Charter and By-Laws.

In-person tournaments are held in Southern California. Online tournaments are open to eligible teams from any geographic location, provided the team joins the SCJFL, pays all applicable league and tournament fees, and complies with SCJFL rules.

Judge Eligibility: Judges assigned to middle school events must be in tenth grade or above.

Competitor Eligibility: Middle school competitors must be enrolled in grades 6–8 or be at a comparable academic level consistent with the spirit of middle school competition.  

Multiple Entry: Competitors may enter no more than two events at each tournament. Competitors entered in Extemporaneous Speaking may not enter a second event. Triple entry is not permitted. Competitors entered in two events are responsible for notifying both judges and proceeding promptly between their assigned rooms.  

Registration

Competitors must be registered through ForensicsTournament.net.

Registration will open at 6:00 PM Pacific thirty (30) days before each tournament. Registration will close at 8:00 PM Pacific three (3) days before the tournament. Entry fees will be frozen when registration closes.

Judging Requirement

One judge covers up to five (5) speech event entries.

All judges are obligated to remain available for every round, including the final round, unless dismissed by tournament staff. The tournament reserves the right to deny entry to schools that do not provide at least half of their required judges. The tournament will make every reasonable effort to avoid denying entry for this reason.

All judges must submit their ballots electronically. Each judge must have a laptop or tablet with a reliable Internet connection. Judges participating in an online tournament must also have a functioning camera and microphone.

Judge training is the responsibility of the school entering the judge. Judges must also attend any judge-training session provided by the Tournament Host at the beginning of the tournament.

Every ballot must include the required rankings and sufficient substantive feedback. Oral comments are not a substitute for a completed written ballot. Judges who submit blank or substantially incomplete eBallots may be charged a missed-ballot fee. Ballot sufficiency shall be determined by the Tournament Director and/or Ombudsman.

Judges may not disqualify competitors. If a judge believes that a rule violation has occurred, the judge should evaluate the round as though no violation occurred and report the matter to tournament staff.

Finals

A final round will be held when required under the SCJFL bylaws. Events conducted in a single preliminary section may conclude without a separate final round. The Tournament Director will determine the appropriate break based on the number of competitors who participate.

Entry Fees

Individual Events: $20 per entry
Duo Interpretation: $30 per entry

Schools will be charged $30 for each uncovered speech event entry.

Changes or drops made after registration closes will be charged a $25 nuisance fee for each change.

A student who drops from the tournament will be charged a $25 no-show fee if the coach notifies tournament staff before the student’s first missed round. A student who drops or fails to appear without prior notice will be charged a $35 no-show fee.

Judge changes made after registration closes will be charged a $50 judge nuisance fee. Judge drops made after 12:01 AM on the Friday before the tournament will be charged a $150 judge no-show fee, in addition to any uncovered-entry fees created by the drop.

A judge who fails to accept an assigned ballot will be charged a $25 missed-ballot fee for the first offense. The second and each subsequent offense will result in a $50 fee.

Judges can avoid being marked as having missed a ballot by immediately reporting to the judge table or, for online tournaments, contacting the standby room. Email or electronic ballot notifications may occasionally be delayed. A judge who contacts tournament staff can receive the ballot assignment directly.

Tournament-delay fees ranging from $20 to $100 may be assessed based on the severity of a delay caused by a school, competitor, coach, or judge.

Teams, coaches, and judges are responsible for reviewing all applicable fines and penalties included in the SCJFL bylaws.

Fee sheets will be finalized during the week of the tournament. Once fees are finalized, payment instructions will be available through the tournament’s ForensicsTournament.net page.

Quick Fee Reference

Fees may be cumulative. For example, a judge dropped after 12:01 AM on Friday may generate both the $150 judge-drop fee and additional uncovered-entry fees.

Recording

Competitors, judges, coaches, parents, and spectators may not record any tournament performance or round without prior authorization from the SCJFL President. Teams are responsible for informing their parents and spectators of this prohibition.

Rules

All tournament rules are contained in the SCJFL Charter and By-Laws, available at SCJFL.org.

Tournament Director

Robert Cannon
Southern California Junior Forensics League

Appendix: Judge Pre-Round Preamble

All SCJFL judges must read the official Judge Pre-Round Preamble aloud before each round, making only those adjustments necessary for the specific event, including time signals, online procedures, and Internet-use rules.

“Hello everyone, and welcome.

My name is [Judge Name], and I will be your judge for this round of [Event Name]. I have read the rules for this event and will follow them as I make my decision. Before we begin, I need to share a few reminders:

[If online] Please keep your video cameras turned on during the round.

[If online] Keep your microphones muted unless it is your turn to speak.

According to the rules for this event, Internet use is/is not allowed. If I am uncertain, I will contact the tab room before we proceed.

For time signals, in this event [the judge should state whether time signals are being used and, if so, explain what the signals are].

If you have any questions about the rules or about how the round will run, please ask me now.

If there is something you need to check with the tab room, please do so before we begin.

Once everyone is ready, we will start the round.”