Sign up with a parent
Thanks for considering this. A middle school gets a speech and debate team when someone at that school decides it should have one, and a parent asking on behalf of their own child is the request that is hardest to turn down.
A parent fills out the form on this page. It takes about ten minutes and covers everything in one go, so there is nothing else to sign afterward. Read what the role involves first, since some of it is worth talking about together.
What the two of you would do
The goal is a short meeting between Mike and someone at the school with the authority to bring the program there, usually a principal or an assistant principal. Mike runs that meeting and answers the questions about budget, staffing, and space. You are both welcome to join it.
The parent makes the ask. A request from a parent at the school carries weight that an email from us does not. That is the whole reason this works.
The student is the reason. A parent saying their child came home wanting this is a different conversation from a parent forwarding a flyer. What the student writes on this form is where that starts.
Before either of you contacts anyone. We set up a call with both of you. On that call we work out how to approach the school, cover the two events so you can talk about them accurately, and give you materials written to get a decision-maker interested.
When it is done. Once the meeting happens, your part is finished and the student has earned the Founding Student Ambassador title, a signed certificate, and a line for a resume or an application. We hope you keep going, and families who stay involved help the new coach recruit students and turn up at a first practice or an early meet.
What we ask of you
The goal is a short meeting between Mike and someone at the school with the authority to bring the program there, usually a principal or an assistant principal. Mike runs that meeting and answers the questions about budget, staffing, and space. You are both welcome to join it.
The parent makes the ask. A request from a parent at the school carries weight that an email from us does not. That is the whole reason this works.
The student is the reason. A parent saying their child came home wanting this is a different conversation from a parent forwarding a flyer. What the student writes on this form is where that starts.
Before either of you contacts anyone. We set up a call with both of you. On that call we work out how to approach the school, cover the two events so you can talk about them accurately, and give you materials written to get a decision-maker interested.
You do not have to explain the events. The league runs Original Oratory and World Schools Debate, and we cover both on the call so you can answer if it comes up. If a school asks about running something else, that question goes to Mike.
Tell us what happens. Whether it goes well or nowhere, we want to know.
When it is done. Once the meeting happens, your part is finished and the student has earned the Founding Student Ambassador title, a signed certificate, and a line for a resume or an application.