Congratulations on your acceptance to the Experimental Extemp Lab! We have a big group coming to Boston, one of our most diverse yet, and we’re excited about EXL 2009.

Some technical and logistic details:

You’ll need to fill out a 2009 Health Form, and a Boston Travel Form. Please adhere to the due dates.

We’ll pick you up from Logan Airport or South Station train depot. How cool is that?

We will be staying in the Piano Row dormitories, which are configured as suites. Students will be in a double room, with their own bed, desk, closet space and chair. There are private bathrooms in the suite, a lounge area with a couch, coffee table and chairs.

Mailing us at camp

Name of Student
Summit Debate
Emerson College/Summer Conference
120 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02116

All packages and mail must arrive by Thursday, July 30th by 5pm for guaranteed delivery to students.

Things you should bring with you to EXL

If you have one, a laptop computer will be helpful. There is wireless internet access in the dorm, and we may have you do research or something with it. If you don’t have a laptop, please don’t freak out; we’ll have a few loaners available if and when they’re needed. If not, do bring a notebook or four; you’ll write a lot of notes. A USB Flash Drive would also not hurt.

You should bring a suit of your normal competition attire. One outfit is fine; don’t bring your entire wardrobe. Please do remember to bring the shoes you wear in competition. You’ll wear these items for a few hours — once to practice, once to give our end of camp speech. Otherwise, the dress code is “please wear clothes.” We’re not formal, so bring comfortable clothes. Be advised that the air conditioning in the building can be somewhat aggressive, so a sweatshirt might be helpful; otherwise Boston tends to be humid and hot (80s & 90s) in late July. It also rains frequently and suddenly in the summer, so an umbrella is a good idea.

We provide detergent, but you’ll need quarters for laundry if you’re going to have to do some.

A stopwatch is always a good idea when doing forensics. Write your name on it; some of our coaches freely admit to inadvertently stealing stopwatches if you give us the chance. An alarm clock, if your phone can’t act as one, is a good idea.

Some spending money is a good idea. We’ll definitely go on a Sunday brunch of traditional Chinese Dim Sum in Boston’s Chinatown, which typically will cost less than $10 a student. But we’re staying in the midst of downtown Boston; there will be chances to eat out and see the sights, and you’ll have the mid-camp free day to hang out in town, so you’ll want some money for that.

Sounds strange, but a towel. The rest of the linens provided are fine, but the towel Emerson provides is a bit small; you might want to bring a bigger one. Check out the FAQs for more information.

Things you should NOT bring with you to EXL

Your tubs or files. We’ll have sets of recent files prepared for you — that’s a major part of Max and Alex’s job — and we’ll also have a set of tubs from my team for background material.

Your favorite extempy book or library. Books are heavy, and a pain to travel with; you won’t need books.

A metric ton of computer games, your side business, the novel you’re writing, etc. EXL is a tightly packed two weeks, and you won’t have a heck of a lot of time for other things. That’s the nature of institutes; you only get two weeks here, so we’re sure to pack in everything we can in those two weeks. You’re not going to have a lot of time to do anything else; you’re going to want to relax and absorb during your free times.