The Texas Forensic Association (TFA) is an organization that provides and regulates competition in speech and debate (forensics) for Texas high school students. The association authorizes forensics competitions nearly every weekend in Texas for the duration of the forensics season, which lasts from early August until the end of February, with the State competition typically in the first or second week of March.
The Texas Forensic Association states that its goals are:
to foster cooperation between the worlds of speech and theatre
to show the importance of speech and theatre education to the public
to create a forum to collaborate and solve common problems in the speech and theatre fields
to forward the standards of the speech and theatre activities
to promote cooperation and friendship among students and teachers in the organization[1]
Regions
TFA divides Texas into five regions for administrative purposes; there are no regional championship tournaments or limit on number of schools or students to qualify to the state tournament from each region. The regions are divided by area code, and there is a region representative from each region to coordinate the region's activities with the state association.
Region 1 covers the Texas panhandle, area code 806. The Region 1 representative is Ryan Lovell of Tascosa High School.
Region 2 covers Northeast Texas, including the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. The area codes included are 214, 254, 469, 682, 817, 903, 940, and 972. The Region 2 representative is Rhonda Smith of Plano West Senior High School.
Region 3 covers South Texas, including the San Antonio and Austin metro areas. The area codes included are 210, 361, 512, 830, and 956. The Region 3 representative is Davy Holmes of Dripping Springs High School.
Region 4 covers East Texas. It is the smallest region and mainly encompasses the Houston metro area. The area codes included are 281, 409, 713, 832, 936, and 979. The Region 4 representative is Brian Darby of Clear Creek High School.
Region 5 covers West Texas, area code 915, 432, and part of 325. It is the largest geographical region, spanning close to 550 miles across. The Region 5 representative is Yolanda Silva of Franklin High School.[2][3]
Events offered
State qualifying events
Policy Debate (Cross-Examination, CX, Policy): Debate between two teams of two students on a question of policy, which remains the same for the competitive season
Lincoln-Douglas Debate (LD, Value Debate): Debate between two students on a question of values or morality, which changes every two months
Public Forum Debate (PF, Ted Turner Debate, Puff, PoFo): Debate between two teams of two students in which each team accepts or rejects a position
Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking (Domestic Extemp, DX): A 7-minute extemporaneous speech on a domestic current events topic
Original Oratory (Oratory, OO): A 10-minute memorized speech on a topic of the student's choosing
Informative Speaking (Informative, INFO, INF): A 10-minute memorized speech on a topic of the students choosing with the help of non-electric visual aids
Humorous Interpretation (Humorous, Humor, HI): A 10-minute memorized humorous presentation of a published work
Dramatic Interpretation (Dramatic, DI): A 10-minute memorized dramatic presentation of a published work
Duet Acting (Duet, DA): A 10-minute scene from a published work, presented by a team of two students
Duo Interpretation (Duo): A 10-minute memorized presentation of a published work, presented by a team of two students
Congressional Debate (Congress, Student Congress): A mock congress session where students make speeches and motions on a set of given legislation[4]
World Schools Debate (WS, WSD): A style of debate popular in Australia and Asia, where teams of 3-5 debate upon a set of given motions, which center around principled value and practicality
Non-qualifying events
These events are held during the TFA State Consolation Rounds.
In addition to the events that can qualify a student to the State Tournament, some tournaments also offer:
Prose Interpretation: A 7-minute non-memorized presentation of a published piece of prose
Poetry Interpretation: A 7-minute non-memorized presentation of a published piece of poetry
Impromptu Speaking: A 5-minute impromptu speech on one of three topics, usually including pop culture references/ more lighthearted options that the other speaking events.
State Tournament
The competitive season culminates in the TFA State Tournament, a three-day event held at a different Texas school each year. Competition in all qualifying events is offered, and non-qualifying events are offered as consolation events for students who did not advance in the event they qualified in.
The 2023 TFA State Tournament was held in March at the Marriott Westchase hotel in Houston, Texas (Region 4).
The 2024 TFA State Tournament was held in March, again at the Marriott Westchase hotel in Houston, Texas (Region 4).
The 2025 TFA State Tournament was held in March at Jordan High School in Houston, Texas (Region 4).
Points system
To qualify for State in a certain event, a student must accumulate twelve state points in the event. Points are awarded based on the number of entries in the tournament.
Cross Examination Debate, Lincoln-Douglas Debate, and Public Forum Debate
10-15 entries: Semis gets 2 points, 2nd Place gets 4, and 1st Place gets 6
16-50 entries: Quarters gets 2, Semis gets 4, 2nd Place gets 6, and 1st Place gets 8
51-75 entries: Octos gets 2, Quarters gets 3, Semis gets 6, and 1st/2nd Place gets 8
76 + entries: Double-Octos gets 1, Octos gets 2, Quarters gets 4, Semis gets 6, and 1st/2nd Place gets 8
Individual Events (including Duo/Duet)
10-24 entries: 1st Place gets 6, 2nd Place gets 4, 3rd Place gets 3, 4th Place gets 2, 5th/6th Place gets 1 point
25-50 entries: 1st Place gets 8, 2nd Place gets 6, 3rd Place gets 4, 4th Place gets 3, 5th Place gets 2, 6th Place gets 1 point
51-75 entries: 1st/2nd Place gets 8, 3rd/4th Place gets 6, 5th Place gets 4, 6th Place gets 3, 7th Place gets 2, 8th Place gets 1 point
76 + entries: 1st/2nd Place gets 8, 3rd/4th Place gets 6, 5th Place gets 4, 6th Place gets 3, 7th/8th Place gets 2, any and all semifinalists get 1 point
Congressional Debate
10-25 entries: 1st Place gets 6, 2nd Place gets 4, 3rd Place gets 3, 4th Place get 2, and 5th/6th Place gets 1
26-50 entries: 1st Place gets 8, 2nd Place gets 6, 3rd/4th Place gets 4, 5th-8th Place gets 2
51-75 entries: 1st/2nd Place gets 8, 2nd/3rd Place gets 6, 5th-8th Place gets 3, 9th-16th gets 2
76 + entries: 1st/2nd Place gets 8, 2nd/3rd Place gets 6, 5th-8th Place gets 4, 9th-16th gets 2, all semi-finalists get 1
Public Forum Debate: Garg/Narayanan, Plano Senior High School[74]
Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking: Lavanya Sunder, Lamar High School[75]
Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking: Shikha Garg, Plano Senior High School[76]
Original Oratory: Michael McBride, Plano Senior High School[77]
Humorous Interpretation: Tommy Waas, Klein High School[78]
Dramatic Interpretation: Keegan Latham, Plano Senior High School[79]
Duet Acting: Rutherford/Tope, Plano Senior High School[80]
Duo Interpretation: Flores/Martinez, Grand Prairie High School.[81]
Scholarship
The TFA awards a scholarship of $500 or $1,000 to two male and two female students each year at the state tournament. Any state-qualified senior may apply with a recommendation from his or her coach. The awards are given based on an equally weighted consideration of achievements, financial need, and academics.[82]
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