2024 State Tournament Registration

Please read the following information carefully before clicking the link at the bottom of the page to register for the state tournament, being held May 16-17, 2024, at Ashland University. Gather all of the needed information ahead of time, and be sure that you have a commitment from the school for a preferred method of payment. You may pay online with a credit card or request an invoice. Only team coaches, not parents, may register students for the tournament.

After you submit your registration, you will not be able to change it. Contact your regional director to make any needed changes to contestant or judge names. Changes to residence hall and meal registrations should be directed to info@powerofthepen.org

Teams must register by April 20, 2024. There are no exceptions to this deadline. Payment must be received by Power of the Pen by May 5, 2024. You will register the following:

• Contestants and judges
• Meal packages for those NOT staying in the residence halls 
• Meal tickets are pre-order only, they are not available for purchase at the State Tournament; please plan accordingly. There will be two lunch timeslots, please attend the timeslot that you are assigned. 

• The names of individuals staying in the residence halls and whether the individual will stay in a single, double, or triple room
• Beds in the residence halls are Twin XL, and most, if not all, are bunkbeds. This applies to all residents staying in the Ashland residence halls (students, parents, chaperones, etc.)
• An emergency contact name and mobile number for every individual staying in the residence halls
• The number of runners you plan to bring. Please list any runners staying in the residence halls in your state 2024 registration. Additional runners' names, as well as ALL runners' agreements, will be collected on a Google Form on the State 2024 page of the website. On this registration, remember to order lunches for runners not staying in the residence halls, if needed. Be sure to sign up your runners early. When the maximum number of runners is reached, the sign-up form will be closed and the runners cannot come to the tournament.

Writers
Register only students who have qualified for the state tournament.

Cost per writer: $95

Judges
The school is required to bring one qualified judge for every three state qualifiers at each grade level. This means that a school with 4 7th grade state qualifiers and 4 8th grade state qualifiers must provide four judges.

The school must provide at least one qualified judge per grade level and at least 50% of the total number of required judges before resorting to a missing judge fee.

Please be prepared to enter an email address and mobile number for every judge.

Fee per missing judge: $75

If you have questions about contestant or judge registration, contact your regional director or info@powerofthepen.org.

Thursday, May 16, Arrivals

Teams may check in for the residence halls and pick up meal tickets in the John C. Myers Convocation Center from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday. Remember to sign up for a room for everyone who plans to stay in the residence halls, including runners.

• Rooms are $110 per person for single occupancy, $85 per person for double occupancy, or $70 triple occupancy. An adult cannot room with a child unless the adult is the parent or guardian of that child. All students must have an adult chaperone in the residence halls. The adult chaperone is responsible for students’ safety and behavior. If the residence halls sell out, teams will need to contact local hotels for lodging.
• Please register the number of individuals who will stay in single rooms and the number of individuals who will stay in double rooms. Do not register for a specific number of rooms.
• Linens are not provided in the residence halls; everyone must bring their own pillows, sheets and towels. Beds are Twin XL, and most, if not all, are bunkbeds for all residents. There is no air conditioning in the residence halls; guests are welcome to bring fans.
• Thursday dinner, Friday breakfast and Friday lunch are included in the room fee.
• Thursday activities include a creative writing workshop offered twice on Thursday afternoon, as well as a dance on Thursday evening.
• Students will be paired with other same-sex students. Any specific requests for accommodations should be submitted to info@powerofthepen.org for review in writing. Accommodations will be made based upon availability and resources.
• There are no refunds for residence hall rooms and meals after April 20, 2023.

Friday, May 17, Arrivals
and Teams Not Staying in the Residence Halls

If you plan to arrive on Friday, all writers and judges must be present for coaches to register the team in the Campus Center no later than 8:45 a.m. It is best to arrive early during the registration period, which opens at 7:00 a.m.

Meals must be purchased in advance with your state registration. Meal tickets will be available for pre-order only, and will not be available for purchase during the Tournament. Runners' names are not registered in this form with the contestants arriving on Friday, but please include them in your meal count.

Click here for a sample dining hall menu from Ashland University. Specific items will change, but it will give you an idea of what to expect.

Meal packages:

• Meal Package A: $50 per person.
• This breaks down into Thursday dinner ($20), Friday breakfast ($15), and Friday lunch ($15) for a grand total of $50 per person.
• Meal Package B: $30 per person
• This breaks down into Friday breakfast ($15) and Friday lunch ($15) for a grand total of $30 per person.
• Meal Package C: $15 per person
• This breaks down into Friday lunch only ($15).

If you have questions about meal reservations, contact info@powerofthepen.org. Meal packages can also be purchased via self-pay on our Square site. 

There are no refunds for meals after April 20, 2023.

Drop Fees (Paid at the State Tournament)
Fees for contestant and judge drops will apply. We produce a preliminary grid in advance of the tournament, and last-minute changes to that preliminary grid can cause delays. Fees are intended to help ensure tournament quality. A fee will be charged for every drop that occurs after the April 20 registration deadline.

Contestant drop fee (collected at the state tournament): $75 per contestant

Judge drop fee (collected at the state tournament): $100 per judge