The Coolidge League at the Luddy Schools is a regional debate league in North Carolina and the mid-Atlantic open to all high schoolers and middle schoolers. While it is a joint project of the Coolidge Foundation and the schools founded by Robert L. Luddy (the Thales Academies, Franklin Academy, and St. Thomas More Academy), tournaments are open to students in grades 6 through 12 from any school willing to travel to them.

Overview of the Tournament
Date: Saturday, September 6, 2025.
Times: A detailed schedule will be posted soon. Check in at 8:30 AM, the morning seminar begins at 8:45 AM, and awards conclude by 4:00 PM.
Location: Thales Academy Flowers Plantation, 65 SE Flowers Parkway, Clayton, North Carolina, 27527.
Eligibility: All students in grades 6 through 12.
Cost: Registration is free and includes lunch for debaters and judges.
Registration: Luddy schools' students: your coach will register you on Tabroom. Non-Luddy school teams please register using the below form. Registration closes Tuesday, September 2, at 11:59 PM.
Attire: Business professional.

Resolution and Research Brief
At this tournament students will debate both sides of "Resolved: The United States federal government should abolish its Department of Education." The Foundation is preparing a research brief on this topic to aid in your preparation, and it will be posted here soon. You are not limited to the arguments or evidence in the brief. In fact, you are welcome and encouraged to use the brief as a starting point and build upon it by doing your own additional research and case writing.

Tournament Overview
You will begin the day with a seminar on the debate topic. Then you and your partner will debate against other teams in multiple rounds throughout the day, getting a chance to argue both sides of the resolution. We ask that you find a partner in advance and register as a team. If you do not have a debate partner, you may register solo and we will attempt to pair you with another solo debater, but we cannot guarantee that there will be someone to match you with. Going maverick is allowed but discouraged.

All students grades 6 to 12 from any school are eligible to compete, including homeschool students and students from schools other than the ones named above.

Format and Style
Students will compete in the Coolidge 2v2 debate format. If you are new to debating in this league, we highly recommend reviewing our debate education resources that provideinformation about this particular format, style, and rules.

Divisions
The tournament will have three divisions: Middle School, High School Novice, and High School Open/Varsity. High school debaters with no experience or minimal experience may elect to participate in the novice division. (We define a novice as a high school debater who is in their first year of any speech and debate competition.) Students with experience debating in either the Coolidge Debate League or other leagues should participate in the Open/Varsity division. All 6th, 7th, and 8th graders must compete in the Middle School/Novice division since they are not eligible to earn Coolidge Cup qualification.

Judges
We need volunteer judges for our debate tournaments! We welcome citizen judges of all types, including parents, grandparents, teachers, coaches, and other members of the community. Experience with debating or judging is not necessary. If you are interested, please take a look at our information for judges. On the morning of the tournament, we will hold a brief judge training session, where we will give you all the guidance you need for the day and will answer all of your questions. To volunteer as a judge, register to judge.

Questions
If you have any questions about the tournament, the league, or about judging, please contact Coolidge Foundation Director of Speech and Debate, Jonathan Peele.