CR Leadership Committee Candidacy Statements
Competition and Rules Leadership Committee Election Overview
In 2026, candidates in the following regions are eligible to run for election:
-
- Texas Region (all TX)
- Southeast Region (FL, GA, KY, NC, SC, VA)
- Mountain/Southwest Region (AZ, CO, HI, NM, NV, UT)
- Southern Midwest Region (AL, AR, LA, MO, MS, OK, TN)
Candidacy statements submitted by individuals seeking election to three-year terms beginning in 2026 are available below. Candidates for each region are listed in alphabetical order by last name.
Meet the Candidates (8 total)
Brian Alford, Reginald (Reggie) Chapman, Branson Cobb, Heather Huffman, Ryan Lovell, Rory McKenzie, Demarcus Powell, Jimmy Smith
Candidates
I am excited to submit my candidacy for the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. Speech and debate has been part of my life since 1993 when I competed in UIL Policy Debate and Extemporaneous Speaking as a high school student. While my program was not affiliated with the NSDA at the time, the activity shaped who I am and ultimately led me to a career in education and coaching.
I stayed involved in the activity throughout college by judging tournaments across Central Texas, and in 2012 I began teaching and coaching speech and debate. From the start, I knew this was where I belonged. Since then, I have worked to give back to the activity through service and leadership. I previously served as chair of the Texas Forensic Association Congress Committee and parliamentarian. I am currently in my third term as TFA treasurer. I also serve on the UIL Lincoln-Douglas Topic Selection Committee and the UIL Congressional Debate Committee, where we regularly review rules, procedures, and student experience to ensure our contests remain fair and educational.
I am a two-diamond coach and have served on the Yellow Rose District Committee for the past six years. I have also worked in the Congressional Debate tab room at Nationals, which has given me a strong appreciation for the behind the scenes work that keeps national competition running smoothly. Across all of these roles, a major part of my work has been listening to students and coaches, gathering feedback, and helping translate organizational decisions back to local communities.
This year, I was honored to be named Secondary Educator of the Year by the Texas Speech Communication Association. That recognition reflects my commitment to student voice, access, and the belief that speech and debate should serve a wide range of learners and program models.
As a member of one of the most geographically large and diverse NSDA districts, I bring a perspective shaped by regional differences and varied school contexts. I believe that perspective is valuable to the committee’s work, especially when evaluating programs, policies, and how well the NSDA serves all students. I would be grateful for the opportunity to continue serving this activity at the national level.
I would like to declare my candidacy for one of the open positions on the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. I am interested in filling the Texas opening. Throughout my time in this activity, I have always been committed to serving this community with honesty, positive energy and a perspective formed by my roots, my experiences and the love that I have for speech and debate.
Growing up as a young Black man from Southern Mississippi, and now coaching in Texas, I believe that I offer a unique and distinct voice that reflects both pride in who I am as a person and the ability to communicate comfortably across many different communities. Representation matters—especially when we are creating, writing, and discussing rules that shape who feels welcome, who feels heard, and how we can issue equity among all who are competing. The National Speech & Debate Association’s commitment to fairness and equity is truly what sets them apart from other organizations and activities. I want to be a part of helping ensure that those values are reflected, not only in policy but also in practice.
I have served in leadership positions on the National Individual Events Tournament of Champions Executive Committee and the Texas Forensic Association Executive Committee, so I truly understand that the work of creating rules and governance is not always something that’s easy. It takes someone who is willing to listen, have honest conversations, and have the courage to really make the tough decisions. For the last two years, I have had the distinct privilege of being mentored by Dave Huston, and his guidance has truly sharpened my ability to push when necessary while also appreciating the nuance in differing viewpoints. I’m not afraid of pushback. In fact, I welcome it when it leads to better, fairer outcomes.
Today, we are in need of leaders. Leaders who will speak clearly and fearlessly for what many are afraid to call equity and diversity. I am not ashamed to be that leader: authentic, energetic, and unafraid to center the perspectives of those too often left on the margins. If elected, I will work collaboratively with fellow coaches to ensure our rules reflect practical fairness, cultural competence, and respect for all competitors.
Thank you for considering my candidacy. I would be honored to represent Texas and to serve the NSDA community with integrity and purpose.
I am honored to seek the position of Texas region representative on the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. My candidacy is driven by an unwavering commitment to ensuring that speech and debate remains a fair, equitable, accessible, and genuinely educational activity for every student across Texas and our nation.
Throughout my involvement in this activity, I have witnessed firsthand how speech and debate transforms students’ lives by developing critical thinking, effective communication, and civic engagement. However, I have also observed persistent barriers that prevent some students from fully participating. Whether due to geographic isolation, economic constraints, or limited access to experienced coaching, too many talented students never get the opportunity to benefit from competitive speech and debate. As a member of this committee, I would work tirelessly to identify and dismantle these barriers, ensuring that our activity reflects and serves the diverse communities across Texas.
Equally important is my recognition that we stand at a pivotal moment in our activity’s history. Technology and human interaction are evolving at an unprecedented pace, fundamentally reshaping how students research, prepare, communicate, and compete. Artificial intelligence, online debate platforms, and digital resources present both extraordinary opportunities and significant challenges. We must thoughtfully adapt our rules and competition structures to address these realities while preserving the core educational values that make speech and debate meaningful.
This means establishing clear, forward-thinking guidelines around emerging technologies that maintain academic integrity without stifling innovation. It means ensuring that our judging paradigms and competition formats reflect contemporary communication contexts while still demanding genuine student effort, critical analysis, and authentic argumentation. Most importantly, it means preparing our students not just to compete successfully today, but to become ethical, informed communicators in an increasingly complex world.
I bring to this committee a balanced perspective that honors our activity’s rich traditions while embracing necessary evolution. I am committed to soliciting input from diverse stakeholders—students, coaches, parents, and administrators—to ensure our decisions reflect the needs of our entire community. I believe that through collaborative leadership and principled adaptation, we can strengthen speech and debate for the next generation while staying true to its educational mission.
My name is Heather Huffman, and I have served as a coach and program director at both the middle school and high school levels for the past 28 years. During that time, I have witnessed remarkable growth and meaningful change within the NSDA, from the expansion of competitive opportunities to the ongoing refinement of rules designed to support fairness, access, and educational value. I would be honored to contribute more directly to the organization’s continued success by serving on the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee (CRLC).
Throughout my career, I have worked closely with students, coaches, judges, and administrators across a wide range of competitive environments. This has given me a practical, on-the-ground understanding of how rules and procedures function not just in theory, but in classrooms, practice rooms, and tournament rounds. I am deeply committed to evaluating official competition rules with care, consistency, and an appreciation for their real-world impact on students at different developmental stages.
I believe I would be a particularly strong candidate because I bring a distinct middle school perspective to the committee while remaining actively involved at the high school level. Middle school competitors often experience NSDA rules for the first time, and the clarity, accessibility, and intent of those rules play a critical role in shaping their long-term engagement with speech and debate. At the same time, my continued work with high school students allows me to understand how early competitive foundations translate into advanced performance and leadership.
I value thoughtful feedback from students and coaches and have spent decades listening to their questions, concerns, and insights. I approach rules evaluation not as a purely procedural task, but as an opportunity to strengthen the educational mission of the NSDA while preserving competitive integrity. I am collaborative by nature, open to diverse viewpoints, and deeply invested in ensuring that NSDA competitions remain rigorous, inclusive, and student-centered.
It would be a privilege to serve the organization that has shaped so much of my professional life, and to help guide its rules and programs with care, experience, and respect for the community we serve.
Fellow Coaches and Educators,
I am honored to announce my candidacy for the National Speech & Debate Association Competition and Rules Leadership Committee to represent the great state of Texas. As we navigate an evolving landscape in speech and debate, the rules that govern our activity must be clear, equitable, and educationally sound. I believe my extensive leadership experience across Texas’s diverse competitive circuits uniquely qualifies me to serve you in this capacity.
As a member of the UIL Congressional Debate Committee, I have helped to refine and interpret rules in Congressional Debate to more adequately meet the needs of the competition and to ensure competitive equity across the state and across programs of various sizes. Serving on the UIL Regional Advisory Committee for many years has also given me the opportunity to interpret and enforce various rules, and then to advocate for changes that would improve competition.
As the former President of the Texas Speech Communication Association, I gained valuable insight into the two key aspects that I think will guide my advocacy for educators in our state: 1. I was exposed to competing goals of various interest groups and learned how to advocate for bylaw changes that would improve the membership experience of all of our members. 2. In preparing the program of panels for Convention, as well as in working with the Bylaws Committee, I gained insights into the importance of ensuring that programming and rules both worked to enhance pedagogical excellence in our members.
Finally, as President-elect of the Texas Forensic Association, I am currently working with coaches from across the state in the process of structural changes to our bylaws that will re-envision how we conduct the state tournament for years to come. This requires listening to stakeholders from across the state and giving voice to the concerns of our coaches.
If elected, I promise to be a vocal advocate for Texas, ensuring our state’s unique needs are heard while working collaboratively to strengthen the High School Unified Manual for all students nationwide. I ask for your vote to help build a more consistent and fair future for the NSDA.
Thank you for your support.
For the past 17 years, I have been actively coaching as a classroom teacher in Texas. I have served in leadership positions in my regional area (serving as a district chair as well), in the state (President of TSCA as well as an officer in TFA), and in the NSDA (Chair of the Year, tab room chair). I believe that as educators, we have to be facilitating the maximization of knowledge for our students. I am a coach who believes firmly, it’s about education first and results are secondary (maybe even tertiary). I would love to be a member of the CRLC because I’d like to be among those who are pushing our activity forward. As we deal with challenges to equity, growth of technology, and enhacement of the skills we teach, our rules have to have the ability to adapt.
I am seeking election to the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee to serve as a national voice for students, coaches, and programs—particularly those in Texas and other large, diverse participation regions.
I have been continuously involved in speech and debate since 2010, first as a student and now as a coach and educator. I currently serve as Head Speech & Debate Coach at Grapevine High School in Texas, where I coach multiple formats including Lincoln-Douglas, Policy, Public Forum, Congress, and speech/interp events. This breadth of experience has given me a practical understanding of how NSDA rules, event structures, and tournament procedures function across different competitive environments.
I have contributed to NSDA governance and programming at both the national and district level. I served on the Lincoln-Douglas Topic Wording Committee in 2025, worked as a checker for the 2020 NSDA Online National Tournament, and participated in the NSDA’s Lincoln-Douglas Focus Group in 2020. I also currently serve on the NSDA Lone Star District Committee, where I help support district operations and student qualification processes including tabulation of Debate and Congress.
In addition, I have hosted or assisted in hosting dozens of tournaments at the local, state, and national-circuit level. As a tournament director and Tabroom staff member, I routinely interpret and apply competition rules and event procedures to resolve disputes and ensure competitive fairness. This operational experience has given me a ground-level understanding of how rules function in tournament settings—and where greater clarity or consistency can improve the experience for students and coaches.
My professional life is rooted in public service and education. As a high-school teacher and coach, I work daily with first-generation competitors, novice programs, and students from schools with limited resources. This experience has shaped my belief that competition rules and event procedures should prioritize clarity, fairness, and accessibility especially for new students and emerging programs all without sacrificing rigor or excellence.
I also bring a long-term perspective to this work. As someone still in my 30s, I plan to have a long future in speech and debate and remain deeply invested in the health, accessibility, and sustainability of the activity.
The mission of the NSDA aligns closely with my own commitment to student development and educational equity. If elected to the CRLC, I would bring a collaborative, detail-oriented approach grounded in real tournament operations, classroom experience, and long-standing service to the activity.
I respectfully ask for your support and your vote to serve as a practical, student-centered voice for our community on the CRLC.
I would like to serve on the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee because I believe thoughtful, fair, and consistently applied rules are the foundation of a strong speech and debate program. After spending four decades in the classroom and countless hours coaching, judging, and mentoring students, I understand how rules shape not only competition, but educational integrity, equity, and student growth.
As a six-diamond coach and Hall of Fame member, I have seen speech and debate evolve across generations of students, formats, and competitive expectations. These honors reflect more than competitive success; they represent a sustained commitment to ethical coaching, student-centered learning, and respect for the spirit of competition. Serving on the Rules Committee would allow me to bring that long-term perspective to decisions that affect coaches, judges, and students at every level.
My 40 years of teaching speech and debate have given me firsthand insight into how rules are interpreted in real classrooms and tournaments—not just how they appear on paper. I have worked with novice students learning the basics, experienced competitors pushing the limits of performance, and new coaches trying to navigate complex regulations. This experience allows me to anticipate unintended consequences of rule changes and advocate for clarity, consistency, and accessibility.
I am particularly interested in ensuring that rules promote fairness while still encouraging innovation and educational value. The Rules Committee plays a crucial role in balancing tradition with progress, and I believe my background positions me well to contribute meaningfully to that balance. I value open dialogue, evidence-based decision-making, and listening to diverse perspectives within the speech and debate community.
Serving on the Rules Committee would be an opportunity to give back to an activity that has shaped my professional life and positively impacted thousands of students. I approach this role with respect for the responsibility it carries and a commitment to upholding the highest standards of educational excellence. My goal is to help create rules that are clear, fair, and reflective of the core mission of speech and debate: developing confident communicators, critical thinkers, and ethical competitors.
Meet the Candidates (6 total)
Melissa Ligh, Bo Lint, Jeffrey Miller, Richard (RJ) Pellicciotta, Keith Pittman, Michael Robinson.
Candidates
I am an exceptional candidate for a leadership position within the National Speech & Debate Association because my career has been built on empowering student voice, fostering inclusive excellence, and advancing communication as a transformative life skill. As a veteran educator, speech and debate coach, and nationally certified teacher, I have dedicated my professional life to developing confident, ethical, and articulate leaders.
For over two decades, I have worked at the intersection of education, performance, and leadership. As a speech and debate coach, I mentor students not only in competition but in character, resilience, and advocacy. I believe that speech and debate is more than an activity—it is a training ground for civic engagement, critical thinking, and social responsibility. My students consistently grow into confident communicators who learn to think deeply, speak boldly, and lead authentically.
My leadership philosophy is rooted in access, equity, and innovation. I serve a diverse student population and work intentionally to ensure that every student—regardless of background—has access to high-quality speech and debate opportunities. I have built programs that uplift underrepresented voices, cultivate student leadership, and create inclusive team cultures where every student feels seen, heard, and valued.
In addition to coaching, I am a nationally board-certified educator, instructional leader, and educational researcher. I regularly present at state and national conferences on communication, leadership, and student engagement. My work focuses on integrating performance-based learning, ethical communication, and emerging technologies into competitive speech and debate spaces. I am currently contributing to national conversations on AI, equity, and education—ensuring that future generations of communicators are prepared for a rapidly evolving world.
I bring a visionary mindset and a servant-leader heart. I believe leadership is not about position, but about impact. Whether I am coaching a novice competitor, mentoring a student officer, or training fellow educators, my goal is always the same: to develop leaders who use their voices to uplift others and create positive change.
The National Speech & Debate Association has shaped generations of leaders, and I am committed to helping guide its future. With my experience, passion, and unwavering belief in student potential, I would be honored to serve in a leadership role that strengthens the organization’s mission and expands its national impact.
My name is Bo Lint and I’d be honored to represent the Southeast Region (FL, GA, KY, NC, SC, VA) on the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. If elected, I would bring a wealth of experience and unique perspective to the CRLC.
My involvement in speech and debate started in 2006 when I joined my high school’s team. Speech and debate defined my high school experience, taught me how to use my voice to advocate for myself and others, and inspired me to become an educator. Since 2018, I have directed the program at American Heritage Schools, Palm Beach Campus with the goal of giving as many students as possible the opportunity to experience the transformative power of speech and debate. The program has grown from 30 students to over 250 in grades 6-12, now includes an enrichment program for elementary students, and actively competes at the local, state, and national levels. I am most proud of how the students engage with and give back to our local community—hosting tournaments, volunteering to judge, creating programs to mentor youth in underrepresented communities, and raising money for charitable causes, totaling over 900 hours of speech and debate-related community service last year alone.
Additionally, I have served in various leadership roles at the local and state level. Currently, I am a member of the Florida Oceanfront District Committee and serve as Vice President of Debate for the Palm Beach Catholic Forensic League. Previously, I served as Vice President of Middle Schools for the Florida Forensic League and as President of the Palm Beach Middle School Forensic League. In these roles, I have tabulated tournaments, mentored new coaches, rewritten bylaws, promoted diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice initiatives, among other contributions. I believe service is the core of building sustainable organizations and I’m fortunate to have had these opportunities to give back to the activity that has given me so much.
I would bring a unique perspective to the CRLC as someone who has taught, coached, and served in leadership roles at both the middle school and high school levels. As the NSDA continues to expand speech and debate programming, and tackles new challenges like the use of technology/generative AI, it’s important to have diverse perspectives and experiences in the conversation. I look forward to the opportunity to serve on the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee.
I am honored to be nominated for the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. Beyond teaching a full speech and debate curriculum to students in grades 7–12, my service to the debate community has consistently focused on governance, competitive integrity, and ensuring that competitive structures serve students equitably across regions, formats, and experience levels.
At the state level, I have served on the executive committee or in other leadership roles within my state association since 2008. During that time, I helped guide our league’s transition out of our high school sports association—an undertaking that required a comprehensive overhaul of our constitution and bylaws. I served as a primary contributor to those rewrites in both 2012 and 2024. Additionally, I served as State Tournament Director for 10 years, including responsibility for overseeing petition processes and enforcing constitutional and bylaw provisions in high-stakes competitive settings. More recently, I have continued this governance work as a member of the National Debate Coaches Association Executive Board, where we are currently revising organizational bylaws.
My service to the National Speech & Debate Association includes long-term involvement at both the district and national levels. I have served on my local District Committee since 2011 and nationally as Middle School National Tournament Chair more than five times. In that role, I oversaw the administration of competition and facilitated every division of the tournament. I have also served on the Public Forum Wording Committee for over 10 years, contributing to topic development with an emphasis on clarity, balance, and educational value.
Across these roles, I have developed a strong commitment to bylaw interpretation and policy writing, informed by consistent engagement with student, coach, and league feedback. My professional work requires balancing clarity and consistency with flexibility, while honoring institutional history and evolving program needs.
I am eager to contribute to the CRLC by evaluating rules, programs, and initiatives with an eye toward educational merit, equity, competitive integrity, and long-term sustainability, while effectively interpreting NSDA values to local and regional communities.
I bring more than 30 years of experience as a coach, judge, and member of the speech and debate community, and I am fortunate to work direct a program that actively supports and encourages student participation across the full range of speech and debate events. While my primary background and competitive focus has been in debate—particularly Lincoln-Douglas, which I competed in as a high school student—I came up in a program that embraced the full gauntlet of events, and over the course of my career I have had the opportunity to both judge and coach every current main event contested at the NSDA National Tournament. That breadth of experience has given me a deep appreciation for the distinct educational value of each event and for the ways in which competition rules and norms can either expand or constrain student access. As a member of the NSDA community for more than three decades, I believe the organization has done a remarkable job steadily broadening participation through the thoughtful addition of new events and the careful evolution of guidelines governing established ones, and I would view that mission—expanding meaningful opportunities for as many students as possible—as my north star in any work on the Competition Rules Leadership Committee. This is especially true on the debate side, where practices and conventions have profound downstream effects on accessibility. I believe it is vital that the NSDA continue to preserve the unique character of the various debate formats, as maintaining a wide variety of structures that emphasize different skills is, in my view, the best way to ensure broad and inclusive participation. As a national organization, the NSDA must also serve an exceptionally wide range of programs, from locally focused teams to those deeply engaged on the national circuit, and from more traditional approaches to rapidly evolving competitive styles. Because I run a program committed to supporting students in whichever competitive paths best match their interests and abilities, and because of my prior service on both the Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum Wording Committees, I believe I am particularly well suited to contribute thoughtfully, pragmatically, and with institutional humility to the work of this committee.
My name is Keith Pittman and I am in my 32nd year as head coach of the Asheville High speech and debate team, where I have qualified students to NSDA Nationals 30 of those years. Before becoming a head coach, I served for three years as an assistant coach for the high school where I competed as a student. I believe my 35 years of coaching while also serving many of those years, including now, in the radio broadcasting industry make me uniquely qualified to evaluate the rules and policies of the NSDA. My experience has allowed me to see the value of speech and debate and effective communication skills from both the educational and real-world standpoints.
While I’ve been both an educator and worked in the private sector during various times of my coaching career, I have always remained a strong leader, always ready for a new challenge.
For the last 13 years, I have served as the chair of the Carolina West NSDA District Committee. Prior to that, I served six years as a member of the District Committee and as the district’s Clerk of Congress. I also served for 14 years as the chair of the Tarheel Forensic League, North Carolina’s state league after several years as a committee member. And I continue to serve that league as Vice Chair. I’m a five-time state coach of the year, a six-time district coach of the year, and a member of the state Hall of Fame. I serve on the CFL of Charlotte board of directors. I’ve been part of the NSDA tab staff at Nationals for the last 16 years. I am on the tab staff for most local tournaments in North and South Carolina and several national tournaments including Harvard and Yale. Finally, I currently serve as the national tab chair for Congressional Debate at the NCFL Grand National Tournament, a role I have had for the last four years.
Coaches who know me would likely tell you that I am known for my leadership especially in the areas of discernment, consensus building, and peacemaking but also for my undying commitment to this activity. I believe wholeheartedly in the power of speech and debate and its power to transform lives. And I try to always do what’s best for the whole, leaving personal interests aside. Let me put that commitment to work for you.
My name is Michael Robinson and this is my 20th year as a educator and speech and debate coach. My first six years were at Calloway County High School. Then in 2012, I moved to my alma mater to coach at Murray High School. As a coach, I have rebuilt two programs back into thriving teams with students who were once again competitive at state and national tournaments. Behind the scenes, I have enjoyed using my voice to help provide opportunities for students. For years, I was elected to serve on the board of directors for the Kentucky High School Speech League for much of my career—as secretary, vice chair, and chair. I have also been elected to serve on the board for the Kentucky Educational Speech and Drama Association. For many years, I have also been elected to serve as a member of the District Committee for the Kentucky National Speech & Debate Association. Over the years, I have also been very active at national tournaments—often serving as event chair and helping coordinate competitions for students at Nationals. When people build a resume, they usually keep track of the dates and the specific events as they all transpire. For me, that’s not what is important. I enjoy providing opportunities for our students and working behind the scenes to ensure our competitions are efficient, fair, and memorable. Speech and debate is my passion, and I would be honored to serve as a part of the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee.
Meet the Candidates (6 total)
Mike Bausch, Marco Dominguez, Nick Leonardi, Stephanie Owen, William Torres, Rachel Wilczewski.
Candidates
I am running for the NSDA Competition and Rules Committee because I care about improving the rules and structures that promote both the educational value and competitive integrity of speech and debate.
I am a classroom teacher and two-diamond coach who runs a full-service program and works directly with students across multiple events and competitive levels. I have seen firsthand how rules are interpreted, where they succeed, and where they unintentionally create barriers to access, equity, or educational value. I have coached novices navigating their first tournament, nationally competitive debaters pushing the limits of the activity, and students who simply want a space to find their voice. All of them deserve a competitive system that is fair, transparent, and rooted in strong pedagogical values.
I have 20 years of experience competing and coaching in multiple states and at the collegiate level, which has given me a broad perspective on the practices that best enhance both competition and education. This background allows me to understand the differing needs of various competition communities within speech and debate, and how to thoughtfully balance rule changes so that multiple constituencies are well served.
I bring to this role a collaborative mindset and an openness to new ideas. I am willing to engage in difficult conversations and have deep respect for diverse perspectives across events and regions. I believe rules should evolve thoughtfully, balancing tradition with necessary adaptation, as our activity grows and changes. My goal is to carefully consider new policies that improve competitive practices so that the NSDA can continue to serve as a model for state speech and debate organizations across the country.
If elected, I will advocate for transparent decision-making, seek community input, and work to ensure that competition policies always put students first. Speech and debate has shaped who I am as both an educator and a person. Serving on this committee would be a meaningful way to give back to an activity that has given so much to me and my students.
Thank you for your consideration.
Marco Dominguez started as a Speech and Debate Division 1 representative in Arizona in 2017 and transitioned to an NSDA Arizona District Committee representative, a position he still holds now. He is a two-time Arizona Speech and Debate coach of the year (2018 and 2024), an Arizona state championship winning coach (2024), a National Federation of State High School Assocations Outstanding Educator of the Year (2022), and has been featured in the National Speech & Debate Association’s Rostrum magazine and on NPR for articles highlighting the benefits of speech and debate. He is a one-diamond coach (2022) and will be a two-diamond coach in 2027. He is also part of the speech committee for the Tournament of Champions at the University of Kentucky and on the supplemental event staff for the National Speech & Debate Tournament. If you ever attend a tournament in Arizona, you will see him always willing to help by supporting judges, competitors, and other coaches. He values the integrity of each event and promotes the benefits of speech and debate in improving students. He will do his best to make informed decisions that will secure speech and debate as an elite academic activity if he is chosen for the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee.
My name is Nick Leonardi, and I am running to be a member of the CRLC. I am a two-diamond coach who has been coaching for just over 10 years. I am the head coach at a smaller school (population of about 300 students) and have worked hard building up my program from scratch to today being one of the largest programs in our state. In that time, I’ve had experience in coaching almost all events offered under the NSDA banner.
I’ve served our local coaches organization as both a representative as well as the state treasurer for two terms, and recently ran for and was privileged to be elected to our District Committee. I have been the tournament director at a local invitational that I run annually and have been part of the tab room staff at many tournaments. I also ran student concessions at Nationals when it was in Phoenix back in 2023, and am looking forward to being part of the committee that is helping run Nationals again here in 2027.
I am running for the CLRC because I want to use my experiences to help better serve the wider speech and debate community. I’ve learned a lot about student recruitment and retention in building up my team, and I have developed resources which I share with any newer programs in our state to help get them off the ground. I believe the benefits that come from speech and debate are enormous for all of our students, and I think the more resources the NSDA provides to coaches, the more effective we will be. I am also a firm supporter of DEI principles, as representation absolutely matters. I’m a very proactive person, and if given this opportunity to serve, I will use it to help spread the benefits of speech and debate to as many schools and students as possible. Thank you for your consideration!
I have been coaching speech and debate for 18 years, and I competed in speech and debate for three years while in high school. During my 18 years of coaching, I have been on the CHSAA state tournament committee for 10 years, and I have served as a Colorado Grande District Committee member for nine years. During that time I have served as a judge, run the judge table at tournaments, been a member of tab and tab chair, I have served on grievance committees, and this year I am the CHSAA state tournament director and the district chair for Colorado Grande. I choose to be involved in speech and debate because I see the wonderful opportunities this activity brings to students. However, those opportunities become weaker when rules and expectations are not upheld. I want to make sure that all students have equal opportunities to succeed, and that is why I am running for a position on the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. I have a full understanding of the events, and I am able to bring new ideas to the table while still listening to others with respect and understanding. If chosen, I will do my best to represent the coaches and students of the Mountain/Southwest Region and ensure that their thoughts and concerns are heard and considered.
I am seeking election to the National Speech & Debate Association Competition and Rules Leadership Committee because of my more than 20 years of involvement in speech and debate as a coach and advocate. Over that time, I have seen firsthand how thoughtful rules, responsive leadership, and clear communication can elevate competitive experiences and ensure they remain educational, fair, and student-centered. A core focus of my work has always been listening to stakeholders. I value assessing student, coach, and school needs through direct outreach, structured surveys, and careful review of feedback. These perspectives are essential for evaluating whether NSDA policies and programs are meeting their intended goals and for identifying areas where adaptation is necessary.
I am particularly interested in contributing to the evaluation of NSDA products, services, and programs related to middle and high school speech competition, recognition, and instructional resources. Strong programs should both reflect best practices in education and remain flexible enough to serve schools with differing resources, schedules, and community expectations. Clear, consistent contest rules are equally important. I believe rules and procedures should protect competitive integrity while supporting learning, transparency, and student growth.
One emerging area where I hope to contribute meaningfully is the development of thoughtful guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence in speech and debate. AI tools present both opportunities and challenges, and the NSDA has an important role in helping the community navigate their ethical, educational, and competitive implications. Any guidance should balance innovation with fairness, emphasize skill development, and maintain trust in competitive outcomes.
In evaluating student-centric offerings, I prioritize educational merit, alignment with NSDA values, and a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. I am also committed to assessing the NSDA’s ability to support diverse approaches to speech and debate programming across regions and in collaboration with other national organizations.
Finally, I see this committee as a vital link between the NSDA and local communities. I take seriously the responsibility to interpret NSDA decisions clearly and constructively, helping stakeholders understand not only what policies are adopted, but how they serve students and the broader mission of speech and debate education.
I am excited to express my interest in serving as the competition and Rules Leadership Committee Representative for Hawaii with the National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA). With over 36 years of experience in speech and debate education, I bring a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities within the forensics landscape, positioning me to effectively contribute to NSDA’s mission of fostering excellence in these programs.
My experience as the former President of the Oregon High School Speech League (OHSSL-CA) has equipped me with the skills necessary to manage large educational organizations and implement initiatives that enhance student engagement. I believe that collaboration and communication among educators are crucial for creating a supportive environment that advances our shared goals.
In my roles as Director of Forensics at various high schools, including Parker School in Hawaii, I have focused on building inclusive programs that foster student growth. I understand the importance of mentorship and community in driving participation, and I am committed to creating an environment where every student feels valued and empowered to excel.
My extensive experience coordinating local, regional, and state speech tournaments has honed my logistical and stakeholder management skills. I am adept at navigating the complexities of organizing events and ensuring that they align with the needs of both students and educators. This capability will be essential in addressing the specific challenges faced by the NSDA and its member schools in Hawaii.
Additionally, my involvement with the Oregon State Standards and Assessment Panel has given me insights into state-level educational priorities. This knowledge will be invaluable in ensuring that NSDA programs align with broader educational goals, thus enhancing their relevance and effectiveness.
I am passionate about fostering a culture of excellence in speech and debate, and I believe that my experience and strategic vision can help strengthen the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. I look forward to collaborating with fellow educators and stakeholders to elevate the speech and debate experience for students. Thank you for considering my application.
Meet the Candidates (8 total)
Jordan Berry, Donald Broussard, Scott Johnstone, Greg Malis, Jeff Robbins, Kathy Tobin, Tyler Unsell, Bryan Whyte.
Candidates
I’d be honored to serve as a member of the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee. After a decade in this activity, I feel like I have enough experience to serve beyond the scope of our state/district, the Mockingbird District of Alabama. Having coached pretty much every event, I feel like I can bring focus toward event-specific issues while balancing a broad perspective toward holistic considerations that come before the committee.
I also hope to continue the standard of clear and effective collaboration and communication that my colleagues and mentors in Alabama have fostered within our community. This supportive and inclusive environment has allowed me ample opportunity to take in multiple opinions and perspectives from a host of school/program types, coaching philosophies, and other diverse features.
I approach leadership with a long-term view of our activity. I am interested not only in resolving immediate concerns but also in helping establish frameworks that promote fairness and sustainability over time. I welcome this chance to contribute to the committee’s work and to support decision-making that strengthens the activity for all participants.
Donald Broussard is an exceptional candidate for the Competition and Rules Committee because he possesses a rare combination of multi-state regulatory experience, comprehensive competitive mastery across all debate formats, and a proven track record of diverse program development.
First, a member of a rules committee must understand the technical intricacies of every event. Mr. Broussard’s background demonstrates deep coaching expertise in the full spectrum of forensic categories, including Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum, Policy, and Big Questions Debate, as well as all speech and interpretation events. His recent success coaching the 2023 and 2024 NSDA Big Questions national champions proves he is not only familiar with current rules but has mastered them at the highest competitive level.
Second, Mr. Broussard brings a unique perspective on how rules are applied across vastly different competitive environments. His career spans over two decades and multiple states, including Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Massachusetts. He has successfully navigated the specific district and state regulations of each region, consistently qualifying students for state and national championships (NSDA and CFL) in every location. Furthermore, his work as a World Schools Consultant for Team Alabama and Team Morocco indicates an ability to interpret and apply international standards, broadening the committee’s perspective on global forensic trends.
Finally, his experience founding speech and debate teams at multiple urban and Title I schools, such as Forest Hill High School and Walter L. Cohen High School, is vital for a committee dedicated to equity in competition. He understands the logistical and rule-based hurdles facing under-resourced programs, having coached the first Title 1 school in Mississippi to a top-three ranking. This background ensures he can advocate for rules that maintain competitive integrity while fostering accessibility.
Mr. Broussard’s extensive history of building programs from the ground up, combined with his recent National Championship success, positions him as an ideal steward for the activity’s standards and regulations.
My passion for speech and debate is rooted in the belief that empowering students to find their voices is the most transformative work an educator can perform. Throughout my career, I have dedicated myself to fostering environments where students can develop the critical thinking and communication skills necessary for success in the 21st century.
With over 25 years of experience in the field, I have served as the Director of Forensics at Ascension Episcopal School (2024-present), Southside High School (2017–2024), and St. Thomas More Catholic High School (1998–2017). My commitment to excellence has been recognized through various honors, including being named the 2015 Educator of the Year and receiving the Louisiana High School Speech League Coach of the Year award in both 2003 and 2024. Furthermore, I have been honored with the NFL Three-Diamond Coaching Award and the 2023 Distinguished Service Award. Over the decades, I have successfully qualified more than 50 students for the NSDA National Tournament and over 125 students for the Catholic Forensic League National Tournament.
My leadership experience extends beyond the classroom and into the governance of our community. I have served on the Louisiana High School Speech League Executive Council since 2001, including eight years as President. Additionally, I have been a member of the NSDA District Committee since 2013 and the Catholic Forensic League District Committee since 2004. These roles have sharpened my skills in policy implementation and strategic planning. My experience as a Technology Coach for my district allows me to offer a modern perspective on how technology can enhance event procedures.
I am eager to apply this experience to the Rules and Revision Committee to help establish clear, fair policies governing competition rules and event procedures. My vision for the NSDA involves collaborating with the Board of Directors and the Executive Director to ensure that our programming remains the gold standard for interscholastic speech and debate. I aim to provide insights that balance traditional rigor with the evolving needs of contemporary classrooms.
I am deeply committed to the mission of the National Speech & Debate Association. I look forward to the opportunity to give back to the organization that has shaped my professional life and to ensure its continued success for the next generation of communicators.
I have served the NSDA and speech and debate in a variety of capacities over three decades as a coach at the high school or middle school level. I have been a District Chair for approximately 15 years in two different districts, including the last 10 in Louisiana. I am actively involved in drafting and evaluating competition rules at the local level as a long-time member of Louisiana Speech League’s Executive Council and as the State Tournament Director for the past 15 years. I am a Tournament Official at the National Tournament, having been in the tab room at Nationals most every year since 1997, including the last 16 years as chair of the Extemporaneous Debate Committee, the largest event at the National Tournament. For the last two years, I have been one of the few non-NSDA employees or non-NSDA Board Members asked to serve as a “Tournament Office Manager” or “Building Lead” at one of the sites as the National Tournament. Additionally, for the last five years, I have been one of four coaches the NSDA has asked to serve as a member of the District Support Team, where chairs were given my contact information to consult during their district tournament if they had a Tabroom question or a rules question.
One of the greatest challenges new coaches and students have is learning the ins and outs of our wide range of events. My experience as a tournament administrator and committee member has given me ample experience to consider existing and new language from the lens of whether the proposal best serves those who most need clarity and consistency. I pride myself in my level of care and attention to detail when evaluating and writing language that govern our events and organizations. Not only have my colleagues in Louisiana entrusted me with that responsibility, but colleagues in other states have consulted me on written rules for their state associations or have invited me to serve on a tournament staff at their district touramment, state tournament, or regional/national invitational. I am confident that I can ably serve as a member of the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee.
I am seeking to represent the Southern Midwest Region on the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee because I care deeply about two things that must always coexist in our activity: equity of access and rigor of standards. One without the other weakens both.
My experience in speech and debate spans coaching, tournament administration, and long-term league leadership. I have built programs, trained judges, resolved protests, written procedures, and run events where the realities of facilities, budgets, staffing, and regional variation are not theoretical—they determine whether students can compete at all. That perspective has taught me that rules are only as good as their clarity, consistency, and real-world usability.
The Southern Midwest Region reflects the full range of our activity: large and small programs, urban and rural schools, teams with national-circuit resources, and teams fighting simply to remain viable. A fair competition framework must acknowledge that diversity without lowering expectations. Equity does not mean diluting standards; it means designing rules that do not advantage only those with money, institutional knowledge, or geographic access.
If elected, I would prioritize three principles in the committee’s work.
Equity: Policies should expand meaningful participation, not quietly exclude schools through cost, complexity, or opaque procedures. Access to competition should be based on preparation and performance, not structural privilege.
Standards: Competitive rules must be clear, consistent, and defensible. Students, judges, and coaches deserve a system where outcomes are driven by argument quality, interpretation, and execution—not by ambiguity or uneven enforcement.
Rigor: Speech and debate is at its best when it is demanding. Rules should protect depth of analysis, educational value, and competitive integrity, even when that requires difficult conversations about format, adjudication, or long-standing practice.
I am not interested in change for its own sake. I am interested in examining whether our policies still serve students as the activity evolves—and in revising them when they no longer do. I bring a regional perspective grounded in both high-level competition and the realities of administration, along with a willingness to ask hard questions about how our rules shape who can compete and how excellence is measured.
I would be honored to contribute to a framework that is fair, rigorous, and worthy of the students we serve.
I feel that over the last few years, we have kept changing the rules so that those who follow them can keep up with the coaches and students who do not. I would like to help make this an activity where everyone knows they have the opportunity to meet their goals in the competition because we have an even playing field. I feel that clear rules are very important, not to restrict competition but to help students and coaches know the expectations of their events so that they can thrive.
I am now closer to retirement and would love to leave a lasting impact on the activity that I love so much. I could do this by providing an outside perspective on the national circuit and on where our activity has been and where I see it going.
My name is Tyler Unsell and I have been a debate teacher and coach for more than 20 years. I could spend time talking about our individual success as a school, but more than individual success as I move into the last act of my professional career, I am more worried about the longivity of our organization and activity. As generative AI becomes more present in our classrooms, we need to adapt as well. The world is certainly more complex than when I started, but with the right rules and regulations, we can still fight to make sure our activity rewards creativity while still creating space for everyone to belong.
I am seeking election to the NSDA Competition and Rules Leadership Committee because I care deeply about the role that fair, well-designed rules play in sustaining speech and debate as both a competitive activity and an educational experience. My interest in this work is shaped through service at multiple levels of our activity. I have served for 10 years on the Missouri State High School Activities Association Advisory Committee and for 16 years as a member of an NSDA District Committee. In addition, I have worked on the tabulation staff for both the NSDA and NCFL national tournaments. These roles have given me a practical understanding of how rules function not just on paper, but in real tournament settings—where clarity, consistency, and enforceability matter.
I believe the Competition and Rules Leadership Committee has a responsibility to ensure that rules support competitive equity while remaining accessible to programs of varying sizes and resources. From my experience, even well-intentioned policies can create unintended barriers if their implementation is not carefully considered.
I value collaborative, deliberative decision-making. I am especially committed to listening to the perspectives of students, coaches, judges, and tournament administrators, and to weighing historical precedent alongside evolving competitive realities. Change should be thoughtful and evidence-based, but tradition alone should not prevent necessary improvement. Serving on this committee would be an opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way to an activity that has shaped countless students’ academic and personal growth. I would bring experience, fairness, and a steady, pragmatic approach to the work, with the goal of helping NSDA competition remain rigorous, inclusive, and educationally sound.
I would be honored to serve and to support the continued strength and integrity of NSDA competition.
Important Deadlines
- CR Leadership Committee candidacy applications and nominations were due January 23, 2026.
- Online balloting will occur April 1-22, 2026. One advisor per active NSDA school will be eligible to vote.
- Results will be announced April 30, 2026.
- Watch for more information on our website and in future coach newsletters.