69th Annual Speech Contest

All District Contest registrations will begin at 4:00 p.m. and the contest briefing will begin at 4:30 p.m. Judges and speakers will then disperse to assigned classrooms for competition. Immediately following competition, a meal will be served. Awards, special recognition and final comments will conclude the contest.

2013 Speech Contest Dates

State Finals will be held on Saturday, December 14, 2013 at OSU, Classroom Building, Room 313. Registration will begin at 9:30 a.m. and the contest will begin at 10:00 a.m.

Divisions and Categories

Novice Division -- Students in grades 4, 5 and 6. Time Limit: 2-4 minutes. Novice speakers may only compete in the AFR/ OFU Category.

Junior Division -- Students in grades 7 and 8. Time Limit: 4-6 minutes. Intermediate Division -- Students in grades 9 and 10. Time Limit: 4-6 minutes.

Senior Division -- Students in grades 11 and 12. Time Limit: 4-6 minutes.

AFR/ OFU • Participants may speak on the history of American Farmers & Ranchers/Oklahoma Farmer’s Union, and it’s fight to support agriculture and rural families through legislation, cooperation and educational opportunities.

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS • Participants may choose any current subject that deals with their student organization. Topics such as leadership, leadership training, personal development and growth, goal setting and team work, community activities, competitions, etc. Organizations should be limited to 4-H, FFA, FCCLA, TSA, Boys Scouts and Girls Scouts.

NATURAL RESOURCES • Participants may choose any current subject that deals with topics such as soil, water, air, rural water, wildlife, forestry, aquaculture, conservation, recreation, recycling, energy, environmental issues, agronomy, etc.

AGRIBUSINESS • Participants may choose any current subject that deals with topics such as cooperatives, value-added, sales, service, entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, commodities, futures, advertising, international trade, rural economic development, politics, animal rights, etc.

AGRISCIENCE • Participants may choose any current subject that deals with topics such as biotechnology, biogenetics, bioengineering, mechanical engineering, farm safety, use of technology, research, embryo transfer, or any animal science related topic dealing with dairy, equine, poultry, sheep, swine, beef, specialty animals, etc.

Rules and Procedures

1. Contestants will be disqualified if their speech fails to clearly mention American Farmers & Rancher’s/Oklahoma Farmers Union.

2. At all District Contest, ALL students will enter the speaking room prior to the first speaker giving his/her speech and will depart the speaking room following the last speaker’s delivery of speech. This provides an opportunity for speakers to learn from each other and reflects a real world environment when doing public speaking.

3. All speeches given in the “Student Organizations Category” are limited to the listed organizations.

4. Participants shall enter within their District as depicted on the accompanying map. Transfers out of districts are not allowed. The districts align with the 5 Oklahoma FFA Districts.

5. Contestants shall enter in only one Division and Category.

6. Speeches will be judged by a panel of judges individually scoring each speaker. Each judge will rank in order all contestants, highest score to lowest score. Then collectively, judges will add ranking scores to select the Category winner, lowest total ranking points wins the category. However, any contestant receiving a first place vote from two judges automatically wins. Scoring and potential points will include, but not be limited to, the following: Stage Presence, Delivery, Content and General Effect.

7. In the event of a tie, judges will break ties in scoring by first collectively adding a contestant's total points; the contestant with the highest score wins the tie. Should the tie continue, judges will collectively add a contestant's total points in the "Delivery" portion of the score sheet, highest score wins the tie.

8. Copies of speeches are not required at District Contests but State Contest qualifiers will need to submit 3 copies of their speech to their division/category judges at the State Finals Contest, prior to speaking. This manuscript must be double-spaced and include a bibliography page. Failure to do so will be cause for disqualification.

9. At the discretion of the judges, the use of notes, charts and props could adversely affect scoring. Electronic devices are discouraged.

10. There is no maximum to the number of contestants from one school or chapter.

11. 1st and 2nd place District Contest winners advance to the State Finals Contest. The 3rd place winners will be alternates to the State Finals Contest.

12. SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS - Each speaker advancing to the State Finals Contest will be asked to present the pre-printed information card he/she received at their respective district contest at registration of the State Finals Contest. This card will have all of the student’s needed information for the AFR Education Office to complete the Scholarship Award process in a timely manner. This card will be included with the letter that each advancing speaker will receive along with their plaque at their district contest. If the student does not present this card at registration, the student will not be allowed to speak in the State Finals Contest. Additional cards will also be available at the State Contest site.

13. Questions will be asked to contestants at the State Finals. The maximum 5-minute question period will consist of one pre-determined question originating from the State AFR Office, followed by 5 minutes of questions determined by the State Finals panel of judges.

14. At the State Contest, students will enter the room individually and speak before the three judges.

15. Previous 1st Place Division winners in the AFR State Speech Contest Finals are ineligible, except in the "Tournament of Champions Division." This Division will only be available at the State Finals Contest.

16. The Tournament of Champions Division is for past division winners who still have eligibility remaining in their respective age division. This category will only be available to 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th graders who won their respective divisions the previous year. After a student competes in the Tournament of Champions, unless they are a 12th Grader, they would be eligible to enter the next age division the following year.

17. The Tournament of Champions will be an Extemporaneous category dealing with Farmers Union. The students will have 20 minutes to prepare and all materials will be provided. Two age divisions will be available: 1) 6th and 8th Graders, whose time limits will follow the Novice rules; and 2) 10th and 12th Graders, whose time limits will follow the Senior rules.

Time Limits

An official timekeeper will time all speeches. Judges will use time as criteria in scoring in the case of penalty points. Time penalty points are added to the contestant's placing score. Penalty points will be administered as follows:

Awards and Recognition

The first three participants placing in each Category and Division at District Contests will receive plaques. All contestants will receive a certificate of participation. The first three participants placing in each Category and Division at the State Finals Contest, excluding the Tournament of Champions Divisions, will receive plaques and Scholarships in the amounts listed below. The first place winner in each division of the Tournament of Champions will receive a plaque and a Scholarship Award

Cash scholarships will be awarded to the State Winners in the following manner:

For more information please contact: Nikki Slagell, Youth & Education Coordinator
(405)-218-5561 or by e-mail nslagell@afrmic.com