Mundt on Movies: No Friend of Free Expression

SDSU historian John Miller called in to Dakota Midday's conversation with Chuck Raasch about the Dust Bowl yesterday with an interesting story about Karl E. Mundt. Miller recalled that Mundt devoted his first floor speech in the U.S. House of Representatives to decrying a movie, The Plow that Broke the Plains. Mundt felt the movie cast South Dakota in a bad light. He said in 1939 that the Dust Bowl was over, South Dakota was green again, and the film was an inaccurate insult to our state. He worked to get the film pulled from distribution and trumpeted his success in suppressing the film as a big reason to re-elect him in 1940. The public didn't see the film again until 1961.

Now the documentary did include some inaccuracies and apparent skullduggery (or is that skull-movery?). But to bury a film and celebrate that censorship as a victory makes me queasy. Combine denying history with Mundt's Red-hunting and "loyal support" of Joe McCarthy, and you get a picture of a South Dakota politician who'd have fit right into today's media climate... on Fox News.

Senator Mundt also went ape twenty years later over North by Northwest, perceiving some insult in the climactic chase scene on Mount Rushmore and argued the film should be "recalled and corrrected."

I’ve said good things about Madison icon Karl E. Mundt. He’s one of Madison High School’s most prominent alumni and an important part of South Dakota history. He was a good speech teacher and debate coach and helped start the National Forensic League, which is near and dear to my heart. But his support of censorship as a politician call into question his commitment to the First Amendment.

Of course, thank to the Internet, now we can all watch The Plow that Broke the Plains. Here's to you, Senator.

Madison High School Wimps Out, Kills Mundt Tradition

Hmm... maybe when my little one is ready to join the debate team, she can open-enroll in Harrisburg.

Elisa Sand reports what I've known since November, 2008: the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament is dead.

I knew Mundt was lost when I met with Madison High School principal Sharon Knowlton and superintendent Vince Schaefer in November, 2008 to discuss the school district's announcement that it would no longer host the tournament. Superintendent Schaefer seemed to be open to learning about the details of the tournament and considering ways to keep the tournament at the high school, but principal Knowlton appeared to be wearing the pants on the issue. Principal Knowlton made clear that she was fully invested in what I imagine was her overwhelmed debate coach's line that running a debate tournament is just too hard, a burden and not an honor.

Now yes, Dakota State University (my current employer) agreed to take on full hosting duties. Yes, DSU was willing to make every effort, even work around finals and graduation, to keep the Mundt Tournament in Madison. But when the high school wimped out, that was the end of Mundt. I knew this for three reasons:

1. Coaches around the state see debate tournaments as ways to support the host teams. The host team doesn't have to travel. A big tournament helps build the team and raise funds through concessions. It gives the host kids a rare chance at home field advantage. Even though traveling to Madison was inconvenient, teams still came, because they wanted to support the Madison debate team. When the Madison debate coach and principal declared the Mundt tournament was overwhelming and not worth MHS's effort, other teams who regularly do the work of hosting tournaments felt snubbed, even insulted.
   
2. Teams were thus more than happy to turn to a school that is willing to host: Harrisburg. Our Class A rivals are building a debate team from scratch. Harrisburg recognizes that hosting a tournament brings prestige and excitement to the debate team and the school as a whole. Harrisburg leaped at the opportunity, and coaches around the state were more than happy to take their kids to a high school that values debate.
3. Against Harrisburg, DSU never stood a chance. Coaches around the state have been to DSU, and they know DSU does not have the space to conveniently house the sprawling Mundt tournament. Construction at the Science Center this year would have made hosting all the more challenging. Besides, DSU has no debate team or speech major. Why travel to Madison when traveling to Harrisburg will support an active and growing Class A debate team?

The "don't blame us!" spin continues in Wednesday's paper. Principal Knowlton says it was just too hard to host the tournament and schedule classes the same day. Of course, if losing a day of class was such a major issue, Madison Central would have scheduled class for this Friday now that the tournament is gone. They didn't; Friday is still a day off.

But not for me. I'll be judging... in Harrisburg.

I love judging so much that I won't notice my disappointment at the contest. I derive immense excitement from being around such smart and eager kids who will give up a Friday to make speeches and arguments in front of a judge. I love the chance to give kids pointers on delivery and logic. I enjoy dropping a few dollars in the bucket at the concession stand to help the local arts boosters.

But for years, I've gotten to enjoy doing those things in the halls of Madison High School on Valentine's Day weekend. Way back when, I won a trophy for speaking in Doc Miller's classroom. In the 1990s, I helped run the Mundt tournament, playing wingman to three different coaches before getting to run the big show myself, with the invaluable help of my dutiful debate team and lots of spreadsheets. I've come back to the contest as a coach or judge eight of the tournament's nine last years.

Now I lose that experience. I don't get to peruse the Bulldog memorabilia between rounds. I don't get to make the quick ten-minute drive home to my wife and daughter after the final round. I don't get to welcome all my friends in the debate world to Madison and point them toward the Dairy Queen or China Moon. I don't get to make the Madville Mundtster Award an ongoing tradition. I don't get to honor Senator Mundt or talk Mundt lore with coaches and debaters.

I lose... Senator Mundt loses... Madison loses a great tradition, because Madison High School, my alma mater, decides that after 42 successful tournaments, hosting Mundt is just too hard.

No excuses allowed: our public high school made a bad decision. Our public servants have killed a great debate tradition.

MHS Punts Mundt, Keeps Day Off

The Madison Central School Board will be busy tonight... unlike the school district itself on the day of the 2010 Mundt Debate Tournament. As I peruse the agenda, I notice the 2009-2010 calendar included in the student handbook being submitted for board approval. It includes February 12, opening day of Mundt, among the days off.

Now hang on: MHS principal Sharon Knowlton told us that the school took the day off to accommodate the tournament, a move she made, as she told me, because a student in a wheelchair had trouble getting on the bus because of all the Mundt traffic in the afternoon. But with the tournament moved to DSU, the high school-middle school complex, the best site in town for a debate tournament, will stand empty on that Friday afternoon.

But hey, far be it from me to complain. With the day off, at least all the teachers from school district will be available for the Mundt judge pool!

DSU Takes Over Mundt Debate Tournament

It's official: MHS wimps out, DSU picks up slack. Hot off the press, straight from DSU's Media Relations office:

For immediate release:
March 23, 2009

Mundt Debate Tourney to Continue

The annual Mundt Debate tournament held in Madison during February each year will continue. Dakota State University, Madison Public Schools, and the Mundt Foundation will work together to continue the tournament. Dakota State and the Mundt Foundation with provide the organizational and financial arrangements for the tournament as well as space on the campus. The Madison Public Schools will also provide space.

The annual debate tournament, named after former DSU professor and United States Senator Karl Mundt, brings over 400 high school students to Madison each year for the competition. The organizational structure for both the Mundt Oral Interp Tournament and the Mundt Debate Tournament will now be managed by DSU and the Mundt Foundation.

Hmm... funny that DSU, which doesn't even have a debate team, doesn't find running two speech tournaments overwhelming.

MHS Gymnastics Coach: $5064. MHS Debate Coach: $5127

As Madison High School celebrates the astounding, unparalleled achievement of its gymnastics team's 15^th straight State championship, I find myself wondering: how much is a good coach worth? Perhaps the Madison Central School Board will wonder the same thing as it takes up contract negotiations at Monday night's meeting.

An oddity of the Madison Central salary structure: Madison pays its nationally recognized gymnastics coach less than its debate coach. The numbers:

	MHS Gymnastics	MHS Debate
Head Coach Pay	$5064	$5127
Asst. Coach Pay	$5028	$2439
Practice Schedule	every school day(?), Nov–Feb (~50–60 sessions?)	Mondays, one hour after school, Oct–Apr (~25 sessions?)
2008–2009 Contest Schedule	15 contests total—10 travel days, 6 home contests	11 contests total—13 travel days (coach and asst. coach occasionally alternate), 2 days for home contest.
Events Coached	4 (out of 4 available in SDHSAA gymnastics)	1 (out of 9 available during debate season and 6 offered at State Debate Tournament)
Major Achievement This Year	15th straight state championship	reducing workload by ending Madison High School's long-standing status as host of the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament, Bulldog Debate's only home contest.

Those numbers (most taken directly from the Madison Central website) are all open to interpretation and clarification. However, even this devoté of debate can recognize that Madison Central's gymnastics coach deserves a substantial raise. At the very least, cost savings from eliminating the Mundt Tournament should be transferred to the gymnastics column of the budget, in recognition of the gymnastics program's sustained effort and success.

For the Sake of Argument: Overheard at Mundt Debate

...and what about that Mundt curse?

At this weekend's Mundt Debate Tournament at Madison HS, I judged dramatic interp, oratory, Lincoln-Douglas, and policy. Here's a sampling of interesting things I heard:

• One interper offered a stage rendition of Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart," complete with really creepy ventriloquized heartbeat sound. Neat trick!
• An orator said she visited her grandparents in China last year. She was trying to concentrate on listening to their arguments about Communism, but she was distracted by all the fireworks, which apparently have only recently been re-legalized in the country of their birth. Freedom marches on... ;-)
• The champion extemper won Mundt by explaining that China's stimulus program is all about energy and infrastructure, with a focus on connecting the outlying poverty-bound rural areas that haven't shared in the country's explosive economic growth. Brilliant speech!
  
• One young man based his argument against an international court on Robert Bork's contention that "international law" is an illegitimate construct used by the leftist American intelligentsia "to attack the morality of its own government and society." He won my ballot (take that, Sibby!).
• In response to an alternative energy plan that sought to strengthen the American economy and lessen the chance of international chaos and nuclear war, two young women argued that the harms of nuclear war are greatly exaggerated. These same two young women also argued that the affirmative plan would be a disaster because it would cause electric rates to rise 4%.
• Madison's Rod Goeman dropped in to judge some Public Forum debate. Word in the tab room is that he couldn't say enough about how much fun he had judging... and how smart the kids he heard were!
  

Friday night at Mundt: future Marine Matthew Wollman and debate maven Jacqueline Adams, both MHS seniors, stand ready (o.k., sit ready) to address any emergency at the tournament tab table. Backing them up: John Wayne and his Winchester (gotta love a public school that permits displays of firearms—the spirit of the West still lives!). And hey—there's Brett Kearin back by the library desk running the show!

And then there is the dark side of Mundt Debate Tournament: the Mundt Curse. Whispered in the halls, even Googled
Friday night by a nervous Sioux Falls debater (or so says my SiteMeter), the Mundt Curse says that if you win at Mundt, you won't qualify for Nationals. Now I'm not fully clear on the folklore here: I'm not sure if the curse extends to all events or just Policy debate. I would welcome perspectives in the comment section here.

But let's look at a couple recent tournaments:

• 2006 Mundt Policy Champs Emily Van Gerpen and Hannah Alsgaard of Yankton (I judged that final!) qualified for Nationals.
• 2006 Mundt Lincoln-Douglas Champ Shana Conklin of Aberdeen Central qualified for Nats.
• 2007 Mundt Policy Champs Josh Oppenheimer and Kyle Powers of Sioux Falls Lincoln qualified for Nats.
• 2007 Mundt L-D Champ Alicia Enterman of Vermillion did not qualify for Nats.

No curse there, it appears. In ancient history, I won humor at Mundt in 1989 and qualified for Nats a couple weeks later. But I welcome deeper analysis of the tab sheets by my fellow South Dakota forensics folklorists.

Update 11:36 CST: Oh yeah, and that overwhelmed custodial staff who are "already tapped out with cleaning and locking up the high school and middle school Friday night"? They didn't sound overwhelmed to me. As a matter of fact, while the debates raged, MHS custodians had time to hit the gym and shoot some hoops. See? Hosting a debate tournament can be fun for everyone.

Mundt Debate Results: Aberdeen Central, Vermillion Win Sweeps

The 42^nd Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament brought 16 schools to Madison Friday and Saturday for a big weekend of speech competition. Aberdeen Central won the Class AA team trophy, earning 235 sweeps points over surging Huron's 203. In Class A, Vermillion emerged victorious from a 160–160 tie with Milbank, thanks to placing one more Tanager competitor in final rounds than the Bulldogs.

Sioux Falls Lincoln fielded five event winners, followed by Huron with three. We've recognized the Madville Mundtster award winner and fellow four-year Mundt competitors; now here's a list of the 2009 event winners:

Debate:

• Varsity Policy Debate: James Kerr & Matthew Aadland, Brookings
• Novice Policy: Alan-Mark Ivanov & Alexia Schumacher, Sioux Falls Lincoln
  
• Varsity Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Jesse Goodwin, Sioux Falls Washington
• Novice Lincoln-Douglas: Christine Marotteck, Huron
• Varsity Public Forum Debate: Alexzandra Neville & Olivia Hollan, Aberdeen Central
• Novice Public Forum: Alissa McAloon & Nicole McAloon, Huron

Extemp/Oratory/Interp:

• Foreign Extemp: Jiwen Li, Vermillion
  
• Domestic Extemp: Luke Cumbee, Huron
  
• Novice Extemp: Gus Campbell, Aberdeen
• Varsity Oratory: Maggie Lawler, Sioux Falls O'Gorman
  
• Novice Oratory: Agnes Kabambi, Sioux Falls Lincoln
  
• Humor: Pete Heidepriem, Sioux Falls Lincoln
• Drama: Adrielle Munger, Sioux Falls Lincoln
• Duo: Chris Wilkins & Ryan Wilkins, Sioux Falls Lincoln

Congratulations to all of our Mundt award winners, and thanks to all of our competitors, coaches, and judges for coming to Madison for another magnificent Mundt!

Aberdeen's Holkesvik Wins 2009 Madville Mundtster Award

Congratulations to Aberdeen senior Michael Holkesvik, the winner of the first annual Madville Mundtster award!Holkesvik (shown here with proud Aberdeen Central forensics coach Colleen Meisenheimer) has come to Madison to compete at the Mundt Debate Tournament all four years of his high school career. Holkesvik and his partner Colter Heirigs qualified for finals and placed second in Varsity Policy debate. I personally had the pleasure of judging Holkesvik's oration on the impending end of the world in a preliminary Oratory round.

Holkesvik was the top Madville Mundtster, with 146 career points at the Mundt Tournament. In all, 19 seniors from around eastern South Dakota came to Madison for their fourth Mundt. They are listed below, with their National Forensic League point totals from each year. Congratulations to all, and thanks for coming to Madison to make the Mundt another great competitive experience! (More Mundt results coming up... but it's my family supper time!)

Four-Year Madville Mundtsters: 2009
School	Name	2006	2007	2008	2009	Total
Aberdeen	Alex Friedrichsen	35	27	32	13	107
Aberdeen	Michael Holkesvik	38	32	33	40	146
Aberdeen	Shawn Schnabel	37	25	35	33	130
Aberdeen	Lauren Werth	40	25	32	31	128
Brookings	Matt Aadland	41	28	9	43	127
Brookings	Keith Campbell	19	29	26	26	100
Brookings	Amie Hirschoff	23	25	8	27	83
Brookings	Jimmy Kerr	37	25	8	42	118
Brookings	Chantel Taylor	28	21	18	24	91
Brookings	Dorian Walker	28	18	28	32	106
Huron	Luke Cumbee	21	27	31	42	121
Huron	Matt McGirr	24	25	32	47	131
Madison	Meagan Abraham	15	15	18	24	72
Madison	Jacqueline Adams	15	15	18	24	72
Milbank	Scott Athey	15	22	26	36	99
Milbank	Daniel Tuchscherer	28	19	39	25	111
SF Lincoln	Pete Heidepriem	28	15	22	26	91
SF Roosevelt	Jessica Herbert	25	26	27	34	112
SF Washington	Jesse Goodwin	30	33	38	36	143
Criteria:
1: Competed at Mundt all four years of high school career, 2006-2009
2: Points = NFL points earned in actual rounds of competition, including finals

42nd Mundt Debate Tournament in Madison; Local Blog Sponsors New Award

The 42^nd Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament takes place here in Madison this weekend. A former student of mine, Brett Kearin, is running the tournament. I'll be there judging both days and enjoying a couple dozen vigorous speeches by some of the smartest students in South Dakota.

If you have some time, drop by the high school and enjoy this celebration of brains and the First Amendment. It might be your last chance to do so here in Madison: I've heard nothing to suggest that Madison High School has changed its mind about bailing out of its long-standing support for the Mundt Tournament. If Madison High School abandons its annual honoring of its most famous graduate, we may have a hard time finding the space to hold a contest worthy of the last regular season debate contest in South Dakota.

But I'm not giving up. The Madison High School debate team and administration, along with the community at large, can find a way to preserve this august educational event. I'm so confident we can find a way to keep the Mundt Tournament alive that I'm shaking out the tips jar (there it is, over in the left sidebar, just waiting for your contribution!) to sponsor a new award, the Madville Mundtster award, to celebrate student career achievement at the Mundt Tournament. Here's my description of the award from the tournament program:

Madison has a long tradition of participation in and support for speech activities in South Dakota. Madison High School is Charter Member #62 of the National Forensic League and has maintained that membership without interruption for 82 years.

That forensic tradition extends even further back to Karl Mundt's career as an outstanding Madison High School debater in the 1910s. Mundt followed up that auspicious beginning with service to speech activities spanning six decades as a teacher, a coach, and a co-founder and president of the National Forensic League. Since the Senator's death, the Karl E. Mundt Foundation has continued his legacy, supporting this tournament, the Mundt/Dakota Invitational in October, and the National Student Congress, among other worthy projects.

The forensic tradition of Madison and Mundt has always stood for free speech, vigorous public debate, and civic engagement. To honor that tradition, the Madville Times has established the Madville Mundtster Award. This award goes to the graduating senior who, in four years of competition at the Mundt Tournament, has earned more NFL points here in Madison than any other Mundt competitor.

The Madville Times welcomes all Mundtsters -- interpers, orators, extempers, and debaters -- to Madison and congratulates you all on your forensic efforts and achievements. May you all continue to embody the Mundt tradition by serving your communities with your talents of speech and intellect.

Cory Allen Heidelberger
Madison HS Debate, 1989
Editor in Chief, Madville Times

See you at Mundt this weekend... and next year!

Free Speech in Iran: Bloggin' for a Floggin'

An Iranian court has dished out eight and a half years of prison time and 124 lashes to four bloggers charged with, among other things, "spreading lies" and "propaganda against the regime."

Boy, and I thought getting chewed out by the high school principal was rough!

No fear of free speech in Madison: the Mundt Debate Tournament is coming up Friday and Saturday at MHS! Kids will be making all sorts of speeches analyzing, advocating, and eviscerating alternative energy plans, the stimulus package, the International Criminal Court, and other hardcore policy matters. Come watch! If you'd like to help (judge rounds, bring chow for the hospitality room, straighten desks, you name it!), contact coach Renee Nills or principal Sharon Knowlton at MHS.

MHS Custodians Overwhelmed by Mundt?

The Madison Central School Board agenda for its Monday, December 8 meeting includes a couple of custodial personnel actions. Long-time grounds and maintenance chief Dennis McCracken has submitted his resignation, effective this coming New Year's Day. The board will also take up a request to hire Riki Hansen to replace custodian Herman Winter.

No word yet on whether Herman and Dennis are leaving due to feeling "tapped out with cleaning and locking up the high school and middle school" during the Mundt debate tournament. Of course, when I worked with Dennis during Mundt, he never seemed the type to shy away from hard work. But for those of you applying for Dennis's job, remember: if high school principal Sharon Knowlton asks you whether you think cleaning up after a debate tournament would be an "overwhelming" task that's just "too big" for Madison High School, the answer she wants to hear is yes.

Mundt Debate: Think Bigger, Not Smaller

Madison Central Superintendent Vince Schaefer and Madison High School Principal Sharon Knowlton extended me the courtesy of taking an hour from their busy schedules to discuss my concerns and the district's plans for the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament. During that meeting, Principal Knowlton asked we needed to be having all this public discussion (i.e., my blog posts and your occasionally stern comments, dear readers) about a school matter that the district can handle "behind the scenes."

Well, she didn't really ask so much as rhetorically scold. That's o.k.—I know how hard it can be to switch from chewing out backtalking teenagers to having a genuine exchange of ideas with a fellow adult.

In case Mrs. Knowlton actually wanted an answer to her question, I would note that "behind the scenes" is exactly the wrong way to conduct public affairs. Folks in Madison and around the state get the feeling that their local and state governments are just good old boys' clubs that make their decisions behind closed doors to avoid public input and scrutiny. That impression weakens public confidence in their public institutions, which can translate into a lack of support, which can translate into a lack of funding (how of us want to hand more tax dollars to an entity we don't trust?).

Open government and open discussion of public policy build public confidence. When we discuss matters of public concern like keeping the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament in Madison, we should not seek to hide or narrow the discussion. We should seek input from as many perspectives as practical, so we can make decisions based on a variety of views about the value and practical challenges of hosting a debate tournament.

In that spirit, I reprint below my letter to the editor of the Madison Daily Leader, published Friday, November 21, on page 3. I also reprint because MDL doesn't have an instant comment section, and your comments are as important to public discourse as my conversation-starters.

To the Editor, Madison Daily Leader:

The Friday, November 14 Madison Daily Leader story on Madison High School's desire to scale down its support of the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament carried a number of statements that are, at the very least, open to debate, if not counterfactual. I have already discussed those statements online and in person with the Madison Central administration.

My greater concern, and the greater point missed in MDL's coverage of Mundt (as we debate veterans fondly call the tournament) is a practical one: If we downsize the tournament, which the school district appears to consider desirable and necessary, even if DSU helps, we will likely lose the tournament to Harrisburg or some other town. Coaches want their kids to have as many chances to compete as possible. Scaling down Mundt is like telling basketball teams that they can only bring their starters, no bench or JV, or that because our gym is a little small, we're only playing four-on-four.

Teams won't come to Madison for a smaller Mundt. They'll go to a tournament and a town that can find the resources and the ambition to host a full tournament.

The Mundt Debate Tournament is a great Madison institution:

• The contest honors Senator Mundt, one of numerous distinguished graduate of MHS and the Bulldog Debate Team.
• Mundt brings busloads of business to our restaurants and motels on an otherwise cold and quiet February weekend.
• Mundt showcases our high school and the DSU campus.
• Mundt helps build the Bulldog Debate Team and recruit new members, as it spotlights debate in our community, gives kids a home contest that Mom and Dad can easily come watch, and offers a team-building exercise as the students help run the tournament.
• It's an exciting competition, the last regular-season debate tournament, and a great learning experience for hundreds of kids from all over South Dakota.

Principal Sharon Knowlton has said running the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament is "overwhelming." If the school needs help running Mundt, my hand is up. I could set Mundt up and run it from my computer... from my couch, if I had to. Mundt certainly requires effort, but it does an overwhelming amount of good for our community.

Madison has a long tradition of excellence in speech activities, going back to Senator Mundt himself and the school's charter membership since the 1920s in the National Forensic League. A key part of that tradition is Madison's successful hosting of the Mundt Debate Tournament for 41 years.

If we say Mundt is too big, that we can't handle the contest without downsizing it, we will lose that tradition. Instead of asking how we can Mundt smaller, we should be asking what we could do to bring more kids to Mundt, to give more kids more educational opportunities.

We ought to do it, and we can do it. Let's keep Mundt in Madison!

[Cory Allen Heidelberger, Madison Daily Leader, 2008.11.21, p. 3.]

Can Madison High School host Mundt? Do we say we're too small to do big things? Or do we look beyond our limitations and find the spirit to be bigger and better?

As always, your public comments are welcome.

Defamatory, Malicious Misinfo... oh, wait, nope: Documents

Indulge me as I sweat the small stuff:

At a meeting yesterday at Madison High School, Principal Sharon Knowlton had some fun throwing around words like "defamatory," "malicious," and "misinformation" to describe what I do on the Madville Times. (Those might be harsher words than Principal Stapert used the last time I got called to the principal's office. ;-) ).

Among the "misinformation" is my statement that Madison Central doesn't cancel classes for the Mundt Debate Tournament but simply does an early release, shortening classes and letting kids out early after lunch. For most of the history of the tournament, that was how the school district accommodated the contest without losing a day of school, which is how most schools handle tournaments.

Mrs. Knowlton insisted that my shoddy journalism missed the fact that Madison has cancelled classes for the entire Friday of Mundt for a long time, and that that willingness to cancel classes demonstrates even more the school's commitment to making the tournament work.

Now this is a small point. And heck, sometimes when I've been at Mundt coaching my own kids and judging, I've been too busy to pay attention to whether classes were in session or not. I do get things wrong.

Let's review the most recent contest dates to which Mrs. Knowlton seemed to refer:

• February 10, 2006: Madison High School listed as dismissing at 1:50 p.m. for curriculum and staff development.
  
• February 9, 2007: Madison High School listed as dismissing at 12:30 p.m. for curriculum and staff development.
• February 8, 2008: Madison High School listed as dismissing at 12:30 p.m. for curriculum and staff development.

Of course, that's just what the MHS website says. I could be wrong... and that's why the comment line is open. Clarifications are welcome (and a lot more convenient than having me call the school and take up Charla's time every time I want to write a blog post, wouldn't you think, Sharon?).

By the way, there's a big South Dakota debate tournament honoring another great South Dakota Senator, the 17th Annual George McGovern Forensics Tournament at Mitchell High School Friday and Saturday. And check out their schedule: they manage to host a full tournament without even an early release.

As the Vulcan proverb goes, there are always possibilities.

------------
One thing I know for sure, the Mundt Tournament is going to be looking for volunteers to help run the 2009 contest (February 13–14, when everyone else does indeed get the day off school!). If you're interested, give the school a call: Superintendent Vince Schaefer is at 256-7700; HS Principal Sharon Knowlton is at 256-7706.

Facilities Strained? Build a New Mundt Debate Building!

(To Anon 11/17 6:29: No anti-sports talk? Agreed! So let's try a comparison....)

I'm feeling generous: let's ignore fact-checking and entertain Principal Sharon Knowlton's contention that Madison High School lacks the facilities to host a full Mundt Debate Tournament.

An eager reader reminds me that the last time we heard someone say that the Madison Central School District lacked the facilities to properly host big contests, we got a campaign for a new $10-million gym.

Voters turned that proposal down, leaving us with a gym that is arguably too small. Yet the school has not moved to eliminate home basketball games or scale games down to four-on-four. Even with a great strain on our facilities, we find a way to soldier on and maintain educational competitive opportunities for our students and their rivals from around the state.

A $10-million Mundt Memorial Debate Building is probably a little much (although maybe I should send a memo to the Mundt Foundation). I'd settle for seeing the debaters getting their dedicated research and practice space back. But all we really need is to find the can-do spirit that Mundt (the Tournament and the Senator) deserves. Let's keep that tournament going!

Fact Check: Errors in Friday's MDL on Mundt Debate

As discussion continues over the fate of the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament, let's take a moment to address some errors contained in Friday's front-page Madison Daily Leader article on Madison High School's desire to end its support of the contest:

1. [reporter Elisa Sand] "But since its inception, the tournament has continued to grow...."

I have competed at, judged at, or helped direct Mundt for 15 of the last 20 years. I have not seen any constant upward trend in entry numbers. Entry numbers have ranged between 400 to 450 over the past five years.

2. [MHS principal Sharon Knowlton]: "...there are very few places that can handle it at the size it presently is. It's too big."

It hasn't been too big for the last 41 years. One town smaller than Madison thinks it can host. Harrisburg looks at hosting not as a strain, but an "excellent opportunity."

3. [Sand citing Knowlton]: "...the district makes a point not to schedule classes that particular day."

On the Friday of the tournament, the district has usually scheduled an early release so that classrooms will be available for competition by 2 p.m. Classes are scheduled, just shorter. The day still counts as a full school day.

4. [Sand]: "While the elementary school facility technically is available, Knowlton said that using the facility would put more of a strain on the maintenance staff that is already tapped out with cleaning and locking up the high school and middle school Friday night."

Doesn't the elementary have its own custodial staff? And how tapped out are they from cleaning up after hosting eight home basketball games?

5. [Sand]: "While talk is beginning to circulate that Madison wasn't planning to host the tournament after the 2009 event, and there's speculation that support is no longer there for the tournament, Knowlton said that couldn't be furthest from the truth."

If "that" refers to both preceding dependent clauses, the statement is incorrect. That "talk" beginning to circulate has come from Coach Renee Nills herself, who notified South Dakota debate coaches that 2009 is the last year MHS is hosting Mundt. Coach Renee Nills has said in e-mails to me that "Yes, the Mundt will no longer be hosted by MHS," and "Our building (MHS) would not continue to be used as a site for the Mundt." Note that three paragraphs later in the Friday MDL article, DSU President Doug Knowlton says [Sand's words] "representatives from MHS have approached the Mundt Foundation about discontinuing their support."

6. [Sand]: "Before securing a seat as U.S. Representative for South Dakota in 1938, Mundt was already president of the National Forensics League, a position he held for 25 years."

Mundt was elected the second President of the National Forensic League during the 1932–33 school year. He served in that position for 40 years, right through his entire career in Washington, until his resignation during the 1971–72 school year.

Now those are just the factual errors. Note also that Principal Knowlton appears to have missed a main argument from the original blog post on Mundt: If we want to keep Mundt in Madison, we can't downsize it. Coaches want their kids to have as many chances to compete as possible. Scaling down Mundt is like telling basketball teams that they can only bring their starters, no bench or JV. Teams won't come to Madison for a smaller Mundt. They'll go to a tournament and a town that can find the resources to host a full tournament.

If I missed any errors (or made any of my own), the comment line is open! Fire away... and let's keep Mundt in Madison!

Mundt Tournament in Peril: Harrisburg Willing to Do What Madison Won't

Elisa Sand gives the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament big coverage in tonight's Madison Daily Leader. Readers will recall my coverage Sunday, which explained that after four decades of honoring Madison HS alumnus Senator Mundt by hosting the final regular season South Dakota high school debate contest, the Madison Central School District apparently wants out.

I'll fact-check later—for now, read Sand's coverage... and note that while Madison appears to be full of "No We Can't," Class A rival Harrisburg, which has had a debate program for just two years, appears to have the Obama spirit—"Yes We Can!"—to take this proud tradition from Madison. School spirit, anyone?

Madison May Lose Karl Mundt Debate Tournament, Proud Tradition

I was involved in several arguments yesterday. Permit me to summarize a few of them:

• Developing wind power on Indian reservations is key to fighting global warming and water shortages, but how can we do it without massive improvements in our electrical grid?
• We can't increase the use of solar power, because demand for silver and silicon is already too high, and we'd need enormous quantities of silicon to build superconducting transmission systems to efficiently carry electricity from desert solar farms.
• A big shift to alternative energy will drive down oil prices and wreck the Russian economy, and that's a recipe for another Russian civil war and loose nukes.

Funny thing is, I wasn't doing the arguing. All of these heady contentions, rigorously backed with evidence from dozens of sources, came from teenagers, high school students, giving up the first of many Saturdays this year to participate in a debate tournament.

The Sioux Falls Roosevelt Rough Rider Debate Invitational is the traditional opening of the high school debate season in South Dakota. Hundreds of South Dakota students will argue their way through ten more regular season weekend contests, the last of which is the Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament hosted right here in Madison. Mundt, as we veterans of the contest call it, traditionally draws every debate team in the state to Madison High School and the DSU campus on the chilly second weekend of February. Mundt is the last contest for novice and junior varsity debaters. Some schools treat Mundt as the unofficial state championship for the novice debaters. The varsity debaters relish Mundt as their last chance to sharpen their cases and scout out the competition before the big National-qualifying and State tournaments that follow.

Mundt is a big deal, not only for debaters and coaches, but for the Karl E. Mundt Foundation, based here in Madison. Most readers will recognize Senator Mundt as a five-term Congressman and four-term Senator for South Dakota. But before his service to South Dakota in Washington, Karl Mundt was Madison High School debater. He went on to (among other things) coach debate here at Eastern Normal (now DSU). Karl Mundt the educator helped start the National Forensic League, the national honor society for speech activities, and served as NFL President for 40 years.

To honor Senator Mundt's contributions to speech and education in South Dakota, the Mundt Foundation sponsors the Mundt Debate Tournament. Madison High School has proudly hosted Mundt for four decades, with assistance from DSU.

But now Madison High School wants to withdraw from that proud tradition. Madison High School debate coach Renee Nills recently sent an e-mail to South Dakota's debate coaches announcing that this will be the last year that Madison High School opens its doors to the hundreds of students who compete at Mundt each year.

I've been proudly involved with Mundt for most of the last twenty years. I won a Mundt trophy in humor my senior year (after a final round in Doc Miller's classroom). I helped coaches Ken Larson, Trudi Nelson, and Erik Johnson run Mundt for several years before running it myself for two seasons. I brought Montrose debaters to compete at Mundt for five seasons. If I'm in town in February, I'm at Mundt.

Mundt is a proud Madison tradition, a proud Madison High School tradition. It's a feather in our community cap to play host to teams from the biggest schools in the state—Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Aberdeen, etc.—for their last regular season contest. It's a great way for Madison High School and the Bulldog debate team to honor one of our most famous and successful alumni.

Why on earth would Madison High School not want to host this prestigious event?

Whatever the reasons, if Madison High School withdraws its support for this event, Mundt may end. There is discussion about DSU taking over the tournament to keep Mundt in Madison. However, having directed the Mundt Debate Tournament at MHS as well as the Mundt/Dakota Invitational Interp Contest at DSU, I worry that DSU may not have sufficient facilities to host the debate contest. The Mundt Debate Tournament uses nearly 60 rooms on Friday afternoon and over 80 rooms at MHS and DSU Friday evening and Saturday. For DSU's October interp contest, we can just barely find 60 contest spaces on campus... and that's only on Saturday, after classes are done and the campus has mostly cleared out.

Without support from MHS, DSU could host some sort of debate contest in February, but it would likely be a scaled-down version of Mundt. And at the end of the season, coaches don't want a scaled-down tournament. Coaches want all of their kids to have the chance to compete and learn at the last invitational contest of the season. If they can't get that opportunity in Madison, they'll take their teams elsewhere. The Mundt Tournament will collapse, and Madison and the Mundt Foundation will lose out.

When I wasn't being bombarded with great arguments and oratory from kids at Rough Rider yesterday, I chatted with a couple coaches about Mundt. One coach told me that when he got Coach Nills's e-mail, he went straight to his administration and asked if they'd be interested in hosting. The response: Absolutely. Show off the school, bring folks to town—"We'd be proud to."

We'd be proud to. That's exactly the response Madison High School should be giving. We should be proud to honor Senator Mundt, a favorite son, by hosting a grand debate tournament. Senator Mundt would be proud to see South Dakota's best and brightest young people coming to Madison every year to display the brilliant rhetorical skills that Mundt himself learned and taught right here in our community.

The Karl E. Mundt Debate Tournament belongs in Madison, at Madison High School. It is a fitting tribute to a favorite son. Friends of Senator Mundt, alumni of MHS and Bulldog Debate, parents, businesses, and community boosters should work together to keep this proud tradition in Madison.

[photos courtesy Mundt Archives, Karl E. Mundt Foundation]