APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN
WHAT IS THE FDI SPEECH AND DEBATE LEARNING RETREAT?
Coaching speech and debate is a labor of love. It takes time, hard work, and lots of energy, but it’s also incredibly rewarding. The Florida Debate Initiative wants to help new and novice coaches build and grow strong and successful speech and debate programs. This isn’t your average professional learning workshop. Not only will you come away empowered, but we're committed to providing training in a comfortable and inspiring learning environment.
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THIS TRAINING IS FREE TO SPEECH AND DEBATE EDUCATORS.
Please note: Participants are expected to be present for all hours of training.
CENTRAL FLORIDA
Cocoa Beach | JUNE 6-8
SOUTH FLORIDA
Boca Raton | JUNE 10-12
NORTHEAST FLORIDA
St. Augustine Beach |JUNE 20-22
NORTHWEST FLORIDA
Pensacola | JUNE 23-25
WHO SHOULD APPLY?
Public and private school educators
Homeschool and microschool leaders
New/novice speech and debate coaches
(under 2 years of experience)
No prior speech and debate or specific teaching background required. to help us welcome and support new speech and debate coaches, this opportunity is reserved for first-time participants; those who have previously attended the Summer Coach Learning Retreat, DebatEd101, or DebatEd201 are not eligible to register.
IDEAL APPLICANTS
Access to 25+ students
Strong administrative or organizational support
Clear plan to implement a program next school year
Ability to impact a broad group of students over time
WHAT'S INCLUDED
FREE training for Florida educators
Hotel accommodations covered
​Up to 20 hours of recertification credit
PROGRAM FOCUS
Build or grow a middle or high school speech & debate program
Learn how to run classroom-based or after-school teams
Develop a clear plan to launch for the 2026–2027 school year
WHAT WILL I GAIN?
Hands-on, 3-day immersive training experience
Practical coaching skills and program-building strategies
Training in competitive events, recruitment, promotion, and judge development
A network of educators building programs across Florida
​THIS TRAINING IS FREE TO SPEECH AND DEBATE EDUCATORS.
Please note: Participants are expected to be present for all hours of training.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
Are you seeking to enrich civics education and be empowered to lead impactful extracurricular activities? Consider spearheading a speech & debate team at your school!
The Florida Debate Initiative offers programs approved by the Florida Department of Education that have been proven to enhance civics literacy end-of-course passage rates. Beyond academic outcomes, sponsoring a debate team in Florida can also provide you with a substantial supplemental income, ranging from $2k to $5k annually.
Building on this success, we proudly introduce the Florida Debate Initiative Speech & Debate Learning Retreat – a premier opportunity to cultivate exceptional debate coaches.
