Sep. 19-21, the Arkansas Communication & Theatre Arts Association (ACTAA) hosted its annual Fall Conference which included the organization’s annual General Business Meeting and regular meeting of the Board of Directors. The following outlines approved proposals of policies and programs that hope to advance the association's ability to better serve its membership and ensure continuity.
Membership Action:
The ASC Qualifying Tournament Document was amended to add back five theatre events (dramatic song lyric interpretation, solo acting, duet acting, solo musical acting, & duet musical acting) and the development of a Tabroom.com tournament shell for use on the Arkansas circuit. Ballots for these new theatre events have been added to the Membership Library on the website, actaa.org/ballots.
Support document(s): Updated ASC Qualifying Tournament Document
The ACTAA Bylaws are amended to allow the Board of Directors to initiate changes outside of the annual general membership business following a thirty (30) day comment period before ratification.
Support document(s): Updated ACTAA Bylaws
The Student Congress Bylaws were amended to add a late drop fee, limit use of fall competition topics for bills, require use of committee provided placards and other minor edits for clarification.
Support document(s): Updated Student Congress Bylaws
A Nomination Committee was elected for the 2024-2026 term, namely Brittney McGloflin of Fayetteville (chair), Beck Greenway of Bentonville, & Breanne Selah of Cabot.
Board Action:
The ACTAA in Action Strategic Plan was adopted by the Board and announced to membership. The outstanding goals of the 2021 DEI Working Plan adopted by the DEI Taskforce was added to the draft strategic plan document that shared with the membership at Summer Workshop.
Support document(s): Finalized ACTAA in Action Strategic Plan
The scholarship program named after Jennifer Akers, the individual Akers Scholarship established in 2021 was eliminated, the college scholarship amount was lowered from $1,000 to $500, and the forensics & theater scholarship was separated into two scholarships.
Support document(s): Approved scholarship proposal
The Student Advisory Board was more formalized with meeting schedule, participation requirements, and leadership training. Brittney McGloflin has agreed to serve as SAB Advisor. McGloflin and Tucker will work together to build out more resources over the next year to further structure of the program.
Support document(s): Student Advisory Board Policy
The awards & recognition process and timelines were formalized for the organization’s five existing awards (e.g., Teacher of the Year, Administrator of the Year, Spirit of ACTAA, Lifetime Member recognition, and NFHS Outstanding Educator recognition), and the board approved the creation of five additional new awards:
- NFHS Heart of the Arts. The Board has approved to nominate a candidate for the NFHS Heart of the Arts. The award is presented to an individual/ organization (e.g., student, adult, or group) associated with a high school speech & debate or theatre program that exemplifies the ideals of the positive “heart of the arts” that represent the core mission of education-based activities.
- Heart of ACTAA Award. The Board approved the creation of a state-level award presented by ACTAA that would lead to the nomination of the NFHS Heart of the Arts award, similar to how the ACTAA Teacher of the Year is nominated for the NFHS Outstanding Speech, Debate, & Theatre Educator award.
- All-State Speech & Debate designation. The Board approved the designation of "All-State Speech & Debate." Any student that qualifies for the Arkansas State Championship (ASC) tournament, shall earn the recognition of “All-State Speech & Debate” for that academic year. Additionally, students will be recognized with numbered diamonds to accompany the all-state title for the number of qualifiers earned to the ASC. (Example. A student who qualifies for the ASC in three events would be recognized as “Three Diamond All-State Speech & Debate.”) Although ASC allows for substitutes for student qualifiers unable to attend the tournament, all-state recognition will be limited to the students who qualified to the ASC without substitution.
- Academic All-State designation. The Board approved the designation of "Academic All-State Speech & Debate" and "Academic All-State Theatre." The top 10% of students in speech & debate and theatre of all the students reported will be recognized in each category. ACTAA members sponsoring the program will submit a roster of the names and cumulative grade point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale of students active in their program. Rosters are due March 15 each year and must be signed by the coach and appropriate principal.
- Academic State Champion award. The Board approved the creation of the Academic State Champion award. The school with the highest average cumulative grade point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale in speech & debate and theatre will be recognized at the Arkansas State Championship (ASC) tournament as the Academic State Champions for their category (i.e., speech & debate or theatre). The second and third-highest average GPAs in speech & debate and theatre will be recognized as finalists for the award.
Support document(s): Awards & Recognition Policy
Appointments. Following Fall Conference, President Zackery Tucker appointed and the board confirmed the following appointments:
- Anthony McMullen, ABA Mock Trial 2024-2027
- Dustin Jackson, ASC Committee 2024-2028
- Brittney McGloflin, SAB Advisor
- Rosie Valdez Block, Past President 2024-2026
Spring Workshop 2025 was approved by the Board to be held July 20-22 in Little Rock. The facility will be announced before the Board's Winter Meeting on January 5, 2025.
Fall Conference 2025 was approved by the Board to be held at the Hotel Hot Springs August 28-30, 2025.
A new Board Meeting Schedule was approved for the 2024-2025 academic year. The Board agreed to start meeting bi-monthly on the first Sunday of scheduled month at 1:30 p.m. All meetings will be virtual, outside of the three in-person meeting we historically have (Summer Workshop, Fall Conference, & Winter Meeting).
2024-2025:
- July (during Summer Workshop, as required by the Constitution)
- September (during Fall Conference, as required by the Constitution)
- November 3, 2024 (virtually)
- January 5, 2025 (Winter Meeting, required by the Constitution)
- March 2, 2025 (virtually)
- May 4, 2025 (virtually)
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