Frequently Asked Questions

As soon as we can process your application.  This can take from one to three days.

If you do not hear from us within 72 hours, please contact miwascher@harvardpfdebate.org regarding Harvard Instute for Public Forum Debate applications and SBauschard@planetdebate.com regarding Harvard Institute for Congressional Debate applications.

Once you are accepted, you will receive a package of information by email that includes forms that your parents or guardians must sign, including: Permission for Medical treatment, a Code of Behavior Contractual Agreement signed by you and your parents in which you agree to abide by the rules and regulations of the Institute, and an In Case of an Emergency information on who and how to reach someone in case of an emergency.  You will also receive a short Debate Questionnaire that will help us assign you to a specific lab.  You will not be allowed to register for Institute without these forms.

Probably. Depending upon the individual spending habits, many students will also need additional money for snacks, laundry, optional (excessive) photocopying, and other incidentals. The $2495 will cover tuition, housing and meals. One expense most welcome is transportation between Logan and Cambridge. 

We have contracted with a Bus Company to shuttle students to and from the airport.  The charge for this service will be $30 roundtrip.

Students may also purchase a T-shirt with the list of names of everyone at the institute for $10.

Students will be able to sign-up for transportation assistance starting on June 5th.

<p>Name of Participant<br />Harvard Debate Institutes<br />Conference Bureau<br />Tufts University<br />Medford, MA 02155-7049</p>

Students will be housed at the South Hall at Tufts University.  They will be bussed a short ten minutes to Hilles at Harvard each day where the instruction will occur.

CHECK-IN PROCEDURE:  Public Forum participants should check into The Harvard Institute for Public Forum Debate anytime on Sunday, July 4, 2010 between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p. m.  Arrivals outside this time period must be arranged in advance. Students will be moved in housing as part of this registration.

CHECK-OUT PROCEDURE:  Public Forum participants will move out of housing on July 16, 2010 between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p. m. Late departures must be arranged in advance and might incur additional charges.

Yes, if we have a written request from both parties.

<p>The dorm on the Tufts University campus is in a residential neighborhood.</p> <p>Tufts provides 24/7 security.&nbsp; There is only one door that opens into the dorm and the dorm is staffed 24/7 by an attendant.</p>

<p>Linens -- sheets &amp; pillows -- are provided by the dorm.&nbsp; Students can change their linens after one week.</p>

<p>Students will have access to the athletic facilities and the library&nbsp; when they are on the Tufts university campus.</p>

<p>We assume that students will have cell phones and will not need phones in their rooms.</p> <p>If they do not have a cell phone, and they wish to have a phone installed, they may do so --</p> <p>Participants and staff may arrange for phone service through Tufts University upon arrival at an additional charge. Contact us for details, including activation fees and toll charges, on this service. Participants may bring their own phone units or phone units will be available for rental at the front desk for a charge of $25.00 per unit.</p>

<p>Tufts University Health Service is available to help address any urgent medical need that arises while you are attending a program at Tufts (Any participant under 18 years of age must bring a medical permission slip signed by a parent or guardian before treatment may be administered.) The minimum charge for a Health Services visit is $80.00. (Tests, lab fees, etc. may incur additional charges.)</p> <p>We will keep medical forms on record and can also take students to a hospital if we need to.</p>

<p>A key deposit is not needed, but anyone who loses a key will be charged a $60 replacement fee.&nbsp; We will call parents and ask for a credit card number to pay for the replacement key.</p>

Yes, the price of food is included in the tuition.  Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be served each day of the institute, starting with dinner on July 4th and ending with lunch on July 16th.

<p><span>Breakfasts will consist of home-baked breads and muffins: chocolate-cherry bread, pumpkin bread, orange-pecan bread, lemon-poppyseed muffins, orange scones, etc.&nbsp; Breakfast will also include a selection of fresh fruit and cereals, including home-made granolas.&nbsp; Soy milk will be provided along-side traditional milk at all meals.&nbsp; </span>&nbsp;</p> <p><span>For lunch we will emphasize soups, salads, sandwiches and pastas.&nbsp; Two home-made soups will be available each day; at least one of the two will be vegetarian.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>Some of the <strong>soups</strong> to be served include: chile (beef, chicken and veggie varieties); spiced lentil soup; Mulligatawny (fantastic Indian soup); spicy peanut soup; potato, leek and quinoa soup; German potato soup; spicy corn chowder; borlotti bean soup with faro; and white bean and fennel soup.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span><strong>Sandwiches</strong> will be made fresh each day.&nbsp; Samples include: New Orleans-style roast pork on buns; Turkish chicken salad on buns; vegetarian wraps with hummos and fresh veggies; and burritos.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>In addition to a serve-yourself <strong> salad</strong> bar with fresh vegetables and home-made salad dressings, we will offer a variety of prepared salads each day.&nbsp; Salads include: grilled corn salad with jalapeno vinaigrette; &ldquo;Texas-style&rdquo; black-eyed pea salad; Moroccan carrot salad; Asian noodle salad with peanut dressing; cous-cous salad with dried fruits and nuts; and crisp green beans with hazelnuts and red onions.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>Keeping with the theme of light and healthy lunches, we will also provide <strong>pasta</strong> dishes including lemon fetuccini with creamy leeks; ravioli in a swordfish putanesca sauce; gnocci with home-made pesto; vegetarian lasagna; and tortellini with sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts.&nbsp; Light and yummy desserts and more fresh fruit will round out the meals.</span>&nbsp;</p> <p><span>Dinners will showcase cuisines from around the world: Mexican, Caribbean, Creole/Cajun, African, Indian, Italian, Greek, and Turkish.&nbsp; Each dinner will be built around one of these culinary traditions.&nbsp; Dinners will include fresh salad and bread along with hot entrees and always finish with a delicious dessert. </span></p> <p><span><strong>Mexican</strong> meals will include classic enchiladas made with my own home-made New-Mexico red pepper enchilada sauce, chicken enchiladas in a green chili sauce as well as a vegan adaptation; chile rellenos; refried beans and Spanish rice.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>Some <strong>Caribbean</strong> dishes include Haitian chicken; ropa vieja (Cuban beef stew); spicy black bean stew with rice and mangoes; Jamaican red bean stew; gallo pinto (black beans and rice with peppers); baked plantains and stewed greens.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span><strong>Cajun and Creole</strong> dishes are some of my favorite things to cook and eat.&nbsp; Menu items will include: jambalaya (including vegetarian version); red beans and rice (with and without sausage); gumbo (seafood and vegetarian varieties); shrimp etouffe; barbecued shrimp and grits; black-eyed peas and okra; and Creole-style spinach casserole.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span><strong>African</strong> cuisine is an area I am learning more and more about.&nbsp; I will spend thee weeks in southern Africa before the camp, so my list of African items may expand.&nbsp; My favorites now include a chicken and rice casserole in a spicy tomato and peanut sauce; doro wat (an Ethiopian braised chicken in a red pepper sauce); kae atar wot (green pea stew); misr allecha (spiced red lentil puree); yetakelt wat (mixed vegetable stew); Tunisian yam and red bean stew; and vegetarian tagine.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>A great way to experience vegetables and grains in tasty ways is through <strong>Indian</strong> cuisine.&nbsp; </span></p> <p><span>Indian dishes will include: curried rice and lentils; vindaloo (spicy curry with chicken or with vegetables); potato curry; gingery chickpeas in a spicy tomato sauce; okra braised in tomato sauce; cauliflower &ldquo;stuffed&rdquo; with an almond spice paste topped with cilantro-tomato sauce and chicken tikka masala. </span></p> <p><span><strong>Italian</strong> fare will include chicken with olives; creamy eggplant parmesan; lamb shanks in red wine sauce; lamb stew baked with gnocchi; and saut&eacute;ed Italian-style green beans. </span></p> <p><span>From the <strong>Greeks and Turks</strong> I like: stifado (a wonderful stew made from beef shortribs); roasted vegetables with feta and herbed cous-cous; spanikopita (spinach and feta pie); moussaka (lasagna-style casserole with eggplant and vegetables with or without beef); potato spinach casserole; okra stew with olive oil; and stewed green lentils.&nbsp; </span>&nbsp;</p> <p><span>I will be around during the meals to talk about the food with anyone who has questions and will make any and all recipes available upon request.&nbsp; I hope that you will join us in Cambridge this summer to hone your debating skills, and quite possibly change your relationship to food.&nbsp; At a minimum, I hope we can change your stereotypes about &ldquo;institutional&rdquo; meals.</span>&nbsp;</p> <p><span>Sherry Hall</span></p> <p><span>Coach, Harvard Debate Council</span></p>

Meal service begins with the breakfast on Monday, July 5, 2010 and will end with lunch on Friday, July 16, 2010.  Students will have options adjacent to the Harvard campus to eat lunch and dinner of Sunday.

As for our meal service we are contracted with Sherry Hall, who will cater a diverse meal.  More on Sherry’s menu will be forthcoming.

<p>It will be <strong>extremely </strong>helpful for students to bring lap tops to the institute.</p> <p>If a student does not have a lap top, they may rent one from the institute for $50, but they are responsible for damages to the unit and will be billed for replacement costs ($350).</p> <p>Students who do not bring or rent a lap top will not be able to use one during the day, though they may use the Tufts computer lab in the evening.</p>

<p>Internet is available at Tufts and Hilles on the Harvard campus for no additional charge.</p> <p>Students will need to register for Tufts internet 48 hours in advance of their attendance and they will receive instruction for doing so.</p>

For a $30 roundtrip fee, Institute shuttles will run between Logan airport and campus for participants’ arrival and departure.  We will begin this shuttle on July 4, 2010 at 10 a.m. and conclude with a final run at 4 p. m.  RAs will be available to greet students at the airport to make sure that they are able to locate the institute bus.

On July 16, 2010, we will begin runs to the airport at 1:00 p. m. and conclude at 5 p. m.

Taxis are available, of course, if you prefer, but this mode is more expensive.

In addition, the Boston Mass Transportation system, The “T”, operates from Logan Airport to Harvard Square. 

If you attend, more information will be sent to you later on these alternatives.

Morning assemblies with roll call, attendance checks in all lab meetings, as well as nightly building check-in and room checks, are part of a daily routine.

Adult housing staff and faculty of the institute will reside in the dorms to maintain supervision. 

Students will not be permitted to leave the campus except to designated stores and fast food restaurants adjacent to the campus, unless escorted by their parents or by the Institute Staff for Institute sponsored functions.

No, except with parents or for Institute sponsored events accompanied by Staff. For Institute purposes campus is an area that includes a part of Harvard Square, home to several restaurants and stores.  (Each student and parent will receive a code of conduct that they will be asked to sign.  Included are rules concerning this matter.)

No. ATM machines, however, are available on campus.

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