Support School Activity So Far Extremely Low

So far the reported activity from our Support Schools is extremely low, much lower than it was last year. Please take a careful look at the current 2010/11 Support School Tracking Form. Only two schools have done any site visits at all so far, out of ten schools.

Support School coaches:

If you’re not reporting site visits performed, please do so right away, and right after every site visit, to Forrest Sumlar, forrestsumlar@urbandebate.org, 312-427-0524, ext. 4.

If you’re not able to do site visits, please let me know and we’ll replace you as a Support School.

Otherwise, please begin working with your middle school coach to schedule a site visit next week, prior to MS T2 (December 11th) and another one the week after MS T2 and before winter break.

During these site visits, we encourage you to discuss preparation for tournaments, meeting activities, motivating students, team organization, basic debate concepts, speech burdens, use of evidence in debate, the Core Files, or anything else that you and your MS coach determine is an appropriate and productive agenda. The key is to have an agenda planned in advance. You are welcome to bring your debaters to work with their MS debaters, but this is not required. You should do no more than some basic modeling if you work at all directly with the MS debaters.

Remember that Support School coaches are paid $35/hour for their site visits, plus an hour for your transportation costs.

Let me know if you have any questions about this program. It will be essential to get the Support School program activated if we are going to have a successful CMSDL season. So we’re asking for everyone’s active involvement.

Thanks.