Prospective Families

A Guide For Prospective Families

Legacy exists for the purpose of teaching children to leave a legacy by becoming effective communicators for Christ. Our parent-run club fosters a family environment of fun and encouragement while requiring a high commitment. Please carefully read and prayerfully consider our guidelines prior to club application.

We are no longer accepting families for the 2022-2023 school year, but you can read below to learn more about Legacy for 2023-2024 or future years.

ELIGIBILITY

In order to join Legacy and compete in tournaments, families must meet the following criteria:

1. Age

For the 2023-2024 season, competitors shall be ages 12 to 18 on October 1, 2023.

2. Statement of Faith

Must agree to the Stoa Statement of Faith:

1. There is one God eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 3:16, Matthew 28:19, John 10:30, 2 Corinthians 13:14)

2. Man is sinful and therefore separated from God, who is holy and perfect.
(Isaiah 53:5-9, Romans 3:23, I Peter 1:15-16)

3. Jesus Christ paid the eternal penalties for our sin through His death on the cross.
(Luke 24:46, I Peter 2:21)

4. Jesus Christ also resurrected bodily and ascended into heaven and will return one day to fulfill His kingdom. (Matthew 28:6, Revelation 19:11)

5. Only through Jesus Christ and the grace of His provision of salvation, may we be saved from eternal punishment, enter into God’s family and receive eternal life.
(Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 6:23, Romans 8:11, I John 1:9)

6. The Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible and authoritative Word of God and the truth for Christian faith and practice.
(2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20-21, John 17:17, 1 Thessalonians 2:13, Psalm 19:7-11, John 6:67-69)

3. Home Educated

If the following statements can be affirmed with a yes, the student shall be deemed privately home educated for Stoa purposes:

  1. Parent or legal guardian(s) direct the educational choices for the student, including the use of dual credit, online/ offline courses, cooperative courses, private tutored courses, and other parent directed methods that support the student’s educational plan; and
  2. Parent is the authority to award the Stoa competitor junior high or high school credits and grades; and
  3. Under the laws of your state, if your state defines home schooling, the student is classified as legally “homeschooled”; and
  4. Student is not enrolled full-time in a public charter school or public school independent study program.

4. Level of Education

Stoa student is classified as actively homeschooling as a junior high or high school student, and

  1. not previously graduated,
  2. nor in a full-time college-level degree program.

5. Summer Camp

The student and one parent must attend one of these summer camps before application.  Details and dates will be finalized in April and May 2023.

  • Lindsay Speech Camp, June 12-16, 2023 OR July 31 – August 4, 2023, 1-5 pm, San Jose
    • We highly recommend these camp.  This are small camps run by Barb Lindsay, who is Legacy’s co-founder and an experienced speech coach.  Lots of personal attention helps students and parents learn about Stoa competition speech.  Space is limited so apply early. 
    • Cost would be $325 for students and $30 for parents. 2nd sibling: $285. If you are interested in either camp (June or August), please fill out this Google Form.  We will be in touch.
  • NIHD, weeklong camp in Southern California
  • Novice speech camp, early July 2023, hosted by Response Speech and Debate Club.  Hayward, CA.  Contact: Anita Chen

6. Application

You can register your interest in joining Legacy for the 2023-24 season here.

We will contact you when the application process for the season starts.  Applications will be accepted July 15-30, 2023.  Two references and a family interview will be needed.

7. Financial Cost

  • Dues are $200 per student.  $100 is due in August, and $100 is due in January.
  • Families must become Stoa members after acceptance into Legacy, which is $75 per family per year.
  • Other costs are associated with attending at least 4 tournaments per year, including tournament fees and expenses related to travel and lodging.

8. Time Commitment

Club Meetings:

  1. Every other Friday – 2:30pm-6:30pm.  Schedule varies slightly based on tournament schedule.
  2. Kick-off party and first meeting is in Sept. 2023.  Dates TBD.
  3. Location TBD (likely at 5151 Carter Ave., San Jose, an additional facility of St. Timothy’s Church)
  4. Attendance is required for every meeting.  Every parent will coach and have special jobs.
  5. Parent attendance required, no drop-off
  6. No non-club siblings
  7. 3 Dad’s Nights per academic year.  Dad’s participation (or substitute) required.
  8. Two speeches minimum.  One speech must either be an interpretive or platform speech.
  9. 4 tournaments minimum.  Tournaments are in Northern California and Southern California.
  10. Both parents need to help with our two tournaments, which will probably be in winter/early Spring and in March/April.  Parents will have jobs before the tournament and must be available all day during the tournaments.

  11. Community Judge Recruitment:​ Recruiting good quality community judges is a tournament task for all families. Having a large selection of community judges is essential to keeping our tournaments running smoothly and on time. Judge recruitment is also a witness for Christ and for the home schooling lifestyle, as unsaved people who enjoy the idea of working with kids come and see our students will be exposed to the Stoa league’s community.

Outside of club meetings:

Students typically spend 2-6 hours per week at home on their speeches–researching, writing, revising, and practicing.  This is a rough guideline.  Sometimes students spend more time, sometimes less, depending on what needs to be done on their speeches.

Email us with questions: LegacySpeech@gmail.com

We are equipping our youth for things that matter.

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