Isidore Newman Invitational Forensics Tournament
New Orleans, Louisiana
 December 9-10, 2011

You and your students are cordially invited to attend the 33rd Newman Invitational.  We will provide a unique and diverse competitive experience.  In the most recent past, we have been able to attract schools from about five different states on average each year.  We feel that the tournament will continue to grow, as we are still recovering (like most everything else in the area) from the effects of Hurricane Katrina.  Over the last six months, we have received pledges from schools in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New York, and Texas.  Assuming that these pledges turn into entries, it should be a strong field in many different events 

The Newman Invitational has a proud history of serving the forensics community. When Daryl Fisher started this tournament, his goal was to attract the finest quality of competition, largely from Southern states.  He remained dedicated to this cause for 18 years until he retired in 1996.  Daryl was chiefly reponsible for putting Newman's forensics team and this tournament on the "forensics map."  Greg Malis took over the tournament's direction in 1996 and watched it reach over 80 schools from about 15 states, prior to his move to Glenbrook North High School in 2002.  From 2002-2004, Enslen Lamberth Crowe continued to host this tournament, prior to her return to her home state of Alabama, and it remained one of the premier forensics events in the region.  Then, everything changed due to Hurricane Katrina.

The storm forced the cancellation of the 2005 tournament.  In 2006, Phyllis Bolger, a member of the Newman faculty, who had not been actively involved in forensics for twenty years, thought it was important to resurrect the tournament.  For the last five years, under the direction of Ms. Bolger and Molly Pittman, a small tournament has been held with gratitude towards the schools in New Orleans as well as the ones who traveled long distances.  The tournament has shown signs of a comeback.

This past winter, Newman lured us to return to New Orleans.  We are thrilled to be back "home" and wish to share our hospitality with you.  We invite you to join us in the Crescent City this December.

We offer the following events: 

• Policy Debate - we have received commitments from enough schools that this event should have sufficient entries to warrant its inclusion
  
• Congressional Debate- TOC qualifier
  
• Lincoln-Douglas Debate - TOC qualifier
  
• Public Forum Debate - TOC qualifier
  
• Extemporaneous Speaking
• Original Oratory
• Declamation Speaking (9th and 10th graders only) 
• Oral Interpretation of Literature (aka Prose/Poetry Reading)
  
• Dramatic Interpretation
• Humorous Interpretation
  
• Duo Interpretation
  
• Duet Acting
  

 If you have any questions about the tournament, please do not hesitate to ask.

Thank you,

Greg Malis, Director of Forensics
Alma Nicholson, Associate Director of Forensics
Newman School, New Orleans
gregmalis@newmanschool.org