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Hope Rawlson Does it Again – 2020-21 LD Guidebook is HERE!

This summer the Lasting Impact Team and myself have been working hard on the 2020-2021 NCFCA Lincoln Douglas Debate Guidebook!

Through this process, I have discovered the difficulty level of this resolution – it isn’t an easy one. We want you to be as prepared as possible; we want you to reach your fullest potential.

The Guidebook is to do precisely as the name implies – guide you through the year. If you have never stepped foot in a round or if you are a seasoned pro looking to dominate your senior year, this book is for you.

For beginners, it contains thorough explanations and illustrations of each element of an LD case. Additionally, multiple cases are provided that can be used as-is or made into one’s own.

For advanced debaters, we have made sure that over 90% of the evidence found is from highly credible sources, that the briefs cover every major example you need to know about, and that inside contains everything you need to jumpstart your year.

Young or old, teacher or competitor, this Guidebook is for you.

You won’t be disappointed! Get it HERE.

Want to know more about the author… Here is what Hope had to say when we asked her a few questions…

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Exercising Discernment Through Biblical Extemporaneous By : Eric Meinerding

​I have known Eric Meinerding for quite a few years. I knew him as a growing competitor, I was at his house when he received a full ride scholarship into college, I’ve seen him grow spiritually, mentally, and physically. I’ve seen him now, graduate college and choose ministry, even though he very clearly could have gone straight to law school. I have seen him mentor and coach hundreds of students and I am so blessed to have him a part of the Lasting Impact! Team (after all he was one of the original Online Apologetics crew back in 2014). I am thrilled he wants to take lead on this Current Events Class/ Extemp Club!! Read his heart on what this fall class/club will look like…

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Add Fun to Virtual/Online Club – 11 Virtual Games Club Leaders Should Try

It's a whole new world!! Is the thought of running your speech and debate club online getting you down? Heather Neumann, Founder of Lasting Impact!, has created a whole list of virtual games, activities, and fun, regardless of what online platform you are using (these could all be done in person too). Check out these great ideas on how to engage, interact, and connect with your students online this year. Remember, although club may look different from years past, students still want the opportunity to get together, express themselves, and grow through the art of communication! These game are easy and fun! Let me know what you think, and remember- You Got This!

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Lasting Impact: Remembering Who We Are

Heather and I have been at this Lasting Impact! effort for almost four years now.  Perhaps you knew us before and have been with us for the whole journey.  Perhaps you are new to the Lasting Impact! family.  Either way, we want to take a moment this year to welcome you and to remind you of who we are.

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Introducing – Lasting Impact! Fall Circuit sponsored by: DFW Speech and Debate

As we launch into this 2020-21 unprecedented season of speech and debate, we are excited to see leagues and coaching organizations adapt.

Champions intuitively understand a foundational truth: mastery requires practice. In the face of last year’s canceled spring season, Lasting Impact! piloted an online tournament platform with a heart for providing a quality online tournament experience. The resulting tournament exceeded expectations. This got us thinking: why not provide a fall practice experience with the same level of quality? After all, we are not trying to replace in person tournaments, yet the art of communication needs to continue to grow and develop.

After lengthy brainstorming and planning, we’re incredibly excited to announce the Inaugural Lasting Impact Fall Circuit, hosted by Lasting Impact! and sponsored by DFW Speech and Debate. The Fall Circuit will provide lincoln value and team policy debate options for STOA and NCFCA students. It includes weekly rounds starting September 28th. After the six preliminary rounds finish, we will host a one-day outrounds experience November 7 (with awesome prizes). The entire experience will run on a seamless online platform. This will give students, parents, coaches, and clubs all the opportunity to check out a virtual tournament!

Registration opens at noon today!! Click this link to register! For the next two weeks, we will discount the registration price of $49.99. Without required affiliations, travel costs, and other associated costs of competing in person, this online fall experience provides high-level practice for preliminary and elimination rounds at a fraction of the cost. You won’t want to miss it. We’re excited!

The resolutions will be…

TP Stoa

Resolved: “The USFG should considerably decrease its military commitments.”

LD Stoa

Resolved: “Economic stability is more important than economic growth.”

LD NCFCA

Resolved: “In democratic elections, the public’s right to know ought to be valued above a candidate’s right to privacy.”

TP NCFCA

Resolved: “The European Union should substantially reform its immigration policy.”

We look forward to meeting with you, and experiencing debate in a wonderful new way! No affiliation necessary to compete.

Check out the Impact Tournament site at www.impacttournaments.com

We are excited to be uniting with DFW Speech and Debate. We are excited for the opportunities to still offer high quality competition and ways for our youth to grow. We are excited for what the Lord has in store. The question is – are you??

Apologetics As Worship by Joey Ooi

My Bible never felt heavier than the time I held it under one arm with my Apol box, checking my name off the door posting for the first time. I begged as many competitors to go into my room before me, delaying what I thought was the inevitable fate for being called out for a lack of content, lack of understanding, and a shipload of heresy.

Along with Impromptu, I was forced into Apologetics. Impromptu wasn’t hard for me – no wrong answers meant no fear about topics. But Apologetics- I didn’t like Apol. at all. Specifically, I didn’t like feeling inadequate. No matter how much I prepared because I always knew that there was something I was missing. Above all, I was terrified that I would say something wrong about Scripture and God.

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Imagination by: Denise Montgomery

Denise Montgomery has a passion for literature, speech and debate, and English. Which is why she created Creativity for English and Beyond – one of the CLASSES offered through Lasting Impact! this fall. Did you know Lasting Impact! offers over 20 different opportunities to connect through classes and clubs? Check them all out in the SHOP. I hope you hear Denise’s heart in this article…

Being creative can be duck soup if we allow ourselves to be free. Ah, and therein is placed the stumbling block: free.

Imagine this: you wake up and see the day through a child’s eyes, experiencing everything of the day in the miraculously free way a child can. Wow! Sign me up for that day of days gone by…

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The NCFCA TP Sourcebook is Ready!

Now that the Lasting Impact! TP Sourcebook is released, we, the four authors behind it, are answering a few questions about the sourcebook in order to provide you with the context of how this sourcebook came to be, and what we hope you gain from it…

Buy the TP NCFCA Sourcebook HERE. Or keep reading…

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Meet Your TP 2020-21 Sourcebook Team

We are excited to announce the upcoming release of Lasting Impact’s Team Policy Sourcebook! It will include a total of 6 full cases, each case including a 1AC, negative brief, and affirmative backup. These cases will cover a broad range of EU immigration subjects likely to be discussed throughout the year such as asylum procedures, search and rescue assistance, integration, humane treatment of migrants, and more. Not only will the Sourcebook include these full 6 cases, each averaging around 52 pages of evidence, but it will also include three full general briefs covering economic, security, and human rights issues surrounding the resolution. With these briefs, competitors can gain a better grasp of the topic and face unusual cases without being left empty-handed.

Finally, the sourcebook will contain one broad document outlining the major areas of this year’s topic, general tips for debating EU policy, and an overview of how the rest of the book is put together.

We are confident that this resource will help students new to Policy Debate, as well as seasoned competitors. Laid out in an easily digested format, with strategy notes and explanations on each case and brief, this resource is sure to give novices a better grasp of the topic, along with a developed collection of cases and evidence in their arsenal.

We are also excited for the opportunity this resource gives advanced debaters to broaden their scope of knowledge about the resolution, the workings of the EU, and common arguments that will appear throughout the season. From brand-new to seasoned debaters, this Sourcebook is highly versatile and perfect for any experience level.

Who are part of the Lasting Impact! Team, who spent their summer researching to give you an awesome product to prepare you for a fantastic season?

Sarah Fox
Sarah is entering her third and final year in the NCFCA, having competed in Team Policy, platform, interp, and all the limited preps, and qualifying to Nationals both years. In her first year of competition, Sarah won two tournaments in TP and one in apologetics. In her second year, she and her TP partner Eli Mayfield won each qualifier they competed in and placed second at the Anderson National Mixer, earning 13th place nationwide in at-large points before the season was canceled. Sarah has also enjoyed competing in speech events, securing 22 top-ten finishes in two years, taking each of her speeches to finals this past season, and earning a 2020 Regional Championship Ironman award. Apart from the Christ-centered community and friendships in the NCFCA, her favorite parts of competition are TP debate, public policy research, and apologetics.

Logan Hickman
Logan is entering his third and final year of Team Policy Debate. He qualified to Regionals every year and broke at each tournament he attended last year, winning one of them. Logan loves limited prep speaking and qualified to Regionals in impromptu, but Team Policy debate is his favorite event. One of his favorite parts of competing in Team Policy is researching real-world issues and being forced to think about things in a logical, tangible, persuasive way. He credits his ability to articulate his position in a persuasive manner, his research skills, and some of his logical deduction ability to his time in the NCFCA. Along with his partner, Anna Macklem, he compiled over 200 pages worth of evidence and research during the abbreviated previous tournament season. Logan will be a student leader for his club this upcoming season.

Anna Macklem
Qualifying to Regionals both years she competed, Anna is heading into her third year of Team Policy debate. Along with her partner, Logan Hickman, she broke in every tournament she competed at this year. A student leader at her club, Anna’s favorite event is TP, though she’s also competed in extemp, impromptu, and informative. She spent an average of 20 hours a week researching debate during the previous season, which translated to winning a tournament before the season was cancelled. She and two other students also wrote, developed, and taught a TP summer camp this year.

Eli Mayfield
Eli has competed in both speech and debate for three years, qualifying to the Regional Championship all three years, and to the National Championship the last two. His first two years of debate were in LD, which helped him build the skills of cross-examination and quick thinking. During his third year of debate in TP, Eli and his partner Sarah Fox won both Regional Qualifiers they attended, as well as placing 2nd at the Anderson National Mixer. He and Sarah were the 13th team nationally in at-large point totals at the termination of the season. In speech, Eli especially enjoyed apologetics, extemporaneous, and any platform category. His persuasive speech placed 14th at the 2019 National Championship. Eli will be attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this fall to pursue a career as a Nurse Practitioner or a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist.

The Lasting Impact! TP Source Book will be released Aug. 3. Check out the SHOP for all of the amazing Lasting Impact! products, online classes, clubs, and coaching.

Storytelling: The Beginning Speaker’s Greatest Weapon by: Anna Fox

I was the first of my siblings to enter the daunting world of public speaking. For me, it happened as it has happened to many others: my mother informed me that I would be doing Speech and Debate, and no amount of terror and pleading on my part could convince her otherwise. Of course, like so many before me, I soon fell in love with the activity and the deep friendships that were ripe to be formed in this environment.
I joined in mid-December, and in January headed off to the first tournament armed with a Lincoln-Douglas case and an After-Dinner Speech. As a beginner speaker thrown into the deep end, I was forced to learn quickly how to stop my knees from shaking, and how to think on the fly. Nowhere was this more evident than in the category of impromptu. Over a year, I learned how to go from fifth-and-below in impromptu to winning a tournament.

The secret? Stories.

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