Tabulation

Before Proceeding to Elim Prep

Click on Speech Penalties and confirm that all penalties from Compliance have been applied correctly.

Requesting Clearance from Compliance (Tab Lead)

• Once all speech ballots are in, all speech penalties have been applied and reviewed, and all speech rounds have been approved, the Tab Lead should ask the Compliance Lead if speech is clear to proceed to elimination rounds.
• If Compliance does not grant clearance, the Tab Team may still review Elim Prep with the understanding that checks will need to be redone if any new compliance adjustments come through. However, the Tab Lead must not Create Elim Ballots until Compliance has given clearance and all checks have been completed.

Review Preliminary Ranks (Tab Team)

• Select Elim Prep from the left navigation.
• Confirm each event is advancing to the correct elimination round and recognizing the correct number of teams according to the 2026 Qualification System.

• A drop before Round 1 ballots are created may affect the number recognized
• A DNC in Round 1 or later that results in a drop will not affect the number recognized

• Review the preliminary ranks.

• Click on an event to view preliminary ranks for that event.
  • Teams will be listed in order of their preliminary rank from top to bottom.
  • The teams advancing to elimination rounds should have “YES” in the “ADV TO ELIMS” column to the right.

• Look for reasonableness in the values displayed.
  • The TOTAL VALUES for the top ranks are reasonable values for 3 rounds of competition.
  • Confirm that all penalties are reflected in the results. If there are any competitors with a DNC or 8-rank penalty above the break line, double-check that the penalty is being reflected in the student’s preliminary rank. Be sure no students with a preliminary DQ are above the break line.

• Verify rankings and tie-breaks
  • Total Rank Value. Each competitor in an event is ranked by adding all nine rank values from the preliminary rounds for that event. The competitor with the lowest total value will receive first seed and so on until all the competitors have been seeded into preliminary standings.  
  • Breaking Ties. If there is a tie in the Total Rank Values, the following methods will be used in this order to break the tie: 
    • Sum of Final Rank Value from Preliminary Rooms. The Final Rank is a competitor's ultimate standing in a room and is also given a Rank Value as described above. These three Final Rank Values from each of the preliminary rounds are added together and the competitor with the lowest sum of Final Rank Values is seeded higher. 
    • Judge’s Preference in Head-to-Head Competition. If the tied speakers were in the same room in any preliminary round, the tie-break is given to the competitor who won in head-to-head competition. If the competitors in question went head-to-head in more than one round, every affected round is factored individually. (For example, if Student A and Student B met in both Round 1 and Round 2, determine the winner of the head-to-head competition in round 1 and then determine the winner of the head-to-head competition in Round 2. If a competitor won both rounds, give that competitor the tie-break. If the competitors remain tied, proceed to the next tie-break.) 
    • Decimal Conversion. The competitor with the highest total sum of decimal conversion scores from preliminary judges’ rank values receives the higher seed. 
    • Coin Toss. When all of the above methods fail to resolve the tie, an electronic coin toss is used to determine the speaker who wins the tie break (once prelim rankings are approved and you Create Elim Ballots).
  • Verify Tie Breaks.  Follow the logic of each tie break to confirm ties are being broken correctly. To check judges’ preference in head-to-head competition, click the blue “H2H” to view that logic in more detail and to note which rooms and rounds need to be checked.

Create Elim Ballots 

• Once Speech preliminary ranks have been verified by the Tab Team and clearance has been given by the Compliance Lead, the Tab Lead may Create Elim Ballots.
  • This will schedule the first elimination round, generate ballots, and assign limited prep topics.
• Verify that competitors on the break announcement sheet are the ones above the break lines in Elim Prep and that no disqualified competitors are listed.

Prepare Announcement Sheets 

• Select Reports, followed by Announcement Sheet.
• Verify that competitors on the break announcement sheet match the results in Elim Prep and that no disqualified competitors are listed.
• For in-person tournaments:
  • Print a copy for the TD/RC and place in a folder or manilla envelope.
• For online tournaments:
  • Save as PDF and share electronically according to the TD/RC’s preferences.

Review Schedule and Topics (Tab Lead & Team Members)

• Check the schedule by selecting Scheduler.
  • Click on each set of initials with any number greater than 1 in parentheses to view that student’s schedule.
  • Confirm that each competitor:
    • Has no direct conflicts (more than one speech in the same speaking slot)
    • Has at least 2 empty speaking slots before an Extemporaneous speech (or 1 empty slot prior to first speaker in the room)
    • Ideally, has no back-to-back speeches. A single back-to-back with rooms relatively close together is not a problem. However, if there is a great distance between rooms, or if there are 3 or more speeches back-to-back, it is best to improve that competitor’s schedule if possible. 
  • Contact your Tab Support POC if a change in the schedule needs to be made.
  • If needed and directed by the TD/RC or Tab Support, the scheduler can be run again by selecting Re-Schedule Round.

• Check limited prep topic cards by selecting Reports.
  • Select [Event] Cards to view the topics assigned.
  • Read carefully through the cards to confirm that:
    • Cards have loaded correctly with 2 topic options per competitor
    • There are no misspellings or significant (i.e., affects readability or comprehension) grammatical errors
    • There are no repeat topics within the same room
  • Report any problems with topic cards to your Tab Support POC immediately.

Review & Release Ballots (Tab Lead)

• Once the schedule and limited prep topics have been reviewed and no problems have been found (or remain) select Ballots to review and then Release Ballots to Staff 1–1.5 hours before the round is scheduled to begin to allow the Ballot Admin Team to control ballot release.

Prepare Deliverables for In-Person Tournaments (Tab Lead & Team Members)

• Once the schedule and limited prep topics have been reviewed and no problems have been found (or remain), prepare deliverables by selecting Reports.
• Print the following reports:
  • Door Postings for each event (1 per room)
  • Wall Postings for each event (quantity TBD by TD/RC or Communications Lead)
  • Limited Prep Topic Cards (1 per room printed on Avery 5390)

• Prepare reports for Communications team:
  • Wall Postings
    • Create sets of Wall Postings by stacking 1 of each event’s Wall Postings in alphabetical order.
    • Cross-hatch each full set of Wall Postings.
  • Combine Door Postings with Limited Prep Cards (except Extemp Cards).
    • Door postings should be organized by building and/or floor (if applicable) and placed in numerical order of rooms.
    • For Door Postings of Apologetics and Impromptu, paperclip together in this order for each room:
      • Door Posting
      • Topic cards for that room (with outside perforated borders removed)
• Place organized Door Postings (with attached Limited Prep deliverables as applicable) into manilla envelopes by building, floor, or whatever the Communications Lead has requested, labeling envelopes accordingly. Using post-its to label can be helpful for recycling envelopes. 
• Place the prepared manilla envelopes and Wall Posting sets (face down) aside for the Communications Lead no later than 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the round.
• If needed, remind the Communications Lead to return manilla envelopes and paper clips for the next round.
• Prepare Extemp folder for Extemp Prep Lead.
  • The folder should include:
    • Extemp topic cards for all rooms (with outside perforated borders removed)
    • 3 Extemp Wall Postings (For large tournaments with additional Extemp Prep Team Members, the Extemp Prep Lead may request additional Wall Postings.)
  • Place the prepared Extemp folder aside for the Extemp Prep Lead no later than 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the round.

Prepare Speaker Times Report for In-Person Tournaments (Tab Lead & Team Members)

• Once the round start time has been set by the Ballot Admin team, the Tab Lead should print the Speaker Times report immediately.
• Under Report, select Speaker Times Report.
• Confirm that the report reflects the correct scheduled start time and print the same number as was requested for that round’s Wall Postings (including Wall Postings in the Extemp Prep folder if applicable).
• The Extemp page does not need to be printed in rounds in which Extemp does not take place.
• Deliver all printed Speaker Times reports (for Communications and Extemp Prep if applicable) to the Communications Lead.

What should I look for when preparing for Speech Elim rounds?

• Be sure all preliminary penalties have been applied and verified.
• Confirm the correct number of speakers in each event are advancing to elimination rounds per the 2026 Qualification System.
• Follow the logic of all tie breaks to verify accurate rankings.
• Check for reasonableness in preliminary ranks, particularly for teams with a significant penalty.
• Receive clearance from the Compliance Lead before you Create Elim Ballots.
• Verify that the speakers on the announcement sheet include all students advancing and none who are not advancing.
• Check the scheduler for no direct conflicts, sufficient time for Extemp prep, and no far or excessive back-to-backs.
• Review limited prep topics for potential errors or repeat topics within a room.
• Confirm the correct number of judges are needed on ballots for the first elimination round.
• Be sure to release ballots to the Ballot Admin team on time (at least 1 hour prior to the scheduled start of the round).
• Verify and prepare Announcement Sheets for the TD/RC.
• Prepare the proper reports and limited prep topic cards and have ready for the Communications Lead (and Extemp Prep Lead if applicable) no later than 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the round.
• Print Speaker Times as soon as the round’s start time is set.