Vector Speech & Debate is a Christ-centered organization of homeschooling parents and students in Northern Virginia with the goal of providing opportunities to develop communication, leadership and critical thinking skills.
- Email: vectorspeechanddebate.va@gmail.com
- Website: stoahub.org/club/vector
Hello, welcome to the Vector Speech and Debate Club!
We meet Thursdays 4:30-6:00 pm for speech and 6:30-8:30 for debate @ St. Peter's Episcopal Church (37018 Glendale St, Purcellville, VA 20132.)
*The 2026-27 Vector Registration is open! Please fill out the form found here: Vector Registration 2026-27
Speech
We meet weekly to help students develop and pracrice their speeches. Parents and coaches give feedback each week to help the students improve.
Debate
Students choose from Team Policy or Lincoln Douglas debate. Each week they work on cases and practice debating with help and feedback from coaches and parents. Parlimentray Debate is also an option that can be done alongside one of the other two debate styles.
Parent expectations
Parents are vital to our club's success and therfore every family must have an engaged and present parent at each meeting to facilitate workshops, be a resource, and support students as they learn. This is a hands-on role, not a drop-off program. New parents and students are paired with veterans to walk them through the year.
Club Communication
VECTOR members MUST join an app called Band to get all the latest news and information for tournaments. There’s one Band for all VECTOR communication (speech and debate). Once you are registered you will receive an invitation to join.
$100 - Additional Student
$300 - Family Cap (does not include registration fee)
Tournaments
Tournaments are an integral part of speech and debate. They provide opportunities for students to showcase their hard work, learn from other competitors, and make lasting friendships. While we encourage all VECTOR members to participate in tournaments, regardless of experience or skill level, we do not require it.
VECTOR hosts one large 3-day tournament each year at Patrick Henry College and 1-3 smaller 1-day tournaments. These events take a tremendous amount of work, so we do require the following from all families of students competing in the tournament:
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Tournament job: At least one parent from every family of a competitor must have an assigned tournament job. Plan to be on-site for the duration of the tournament. It’s a long day, but incredibly rewarding.
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Judge recruiting: Judges are essential to our tournaments, so every family (even those not competing) will be asked to recruit judges for each tournament.
We are so grateful for your help in making sure our tournaments run smoothly!
Stoa Membership
VECTOR is part of Stoa, a national high school and junior high Speech and Debate organization serving the needs of privately-educated, Christian homeschooling families. Stoa trains and supports us to develop students into confident, articulate leaders who change their culture through the marketplace of ideas. To compete in tournaments, VECTOR families must also join Stoa. To learn more, visit https://www.stoausa.org.