START A TEAM

Students enrolled in grades 9-12 at accredited U.S. high school may join a team to participate in the National High School Ethics Bowl program. Ethics Bowl teams are composed of 3-7 students with up to 5 students seated on a team in any given match. The team must have the official endorsement of the school administration to participate in the program.

All teams must have a coach or advisor vetted and approved by school administration. If a team does not have an approved adult coach/advisor, the team cannot compete at the NHSEB Regionals or National Championship. Teachers from students’ high schools usually serve in this role. It is, however, permissible for parents to coach a team if this arrangement is approved by the school administration.

NHSEB Organizers may, at their discretion, allow a team or teams of home school students to participate. Regional Organizers should verify students’ age for eligibility, and encourage home school students to form a team from multiple families. Participants may not be otherwise enrolled in another accredited high school. The coach or advisor of a home school team should be vetted and approved by the Regional Organizer in conjunction with the NHSEB Executive Committee.

If you’re a teacher, advertise in your classes. If you’re a student, bring your friends and classmates to an after school practice and talk through one of NHSEB’s cases to get a feel for the activity. For recruiting assistance, be sure and check out NHSEB’s ready-made Advocacy Resources.

For official recognition and to get started competitively, an Ethics Bowl team should complete a two-step registration process. These steps should generally be completed in tandem:

1. Teams should register with their geographically closest Regional Competition by contacting its Organizer(s). NHSEB Regionals typically occur between January 1 and early February of a given school year. A full list of contact information for NHSEB Regional Organizers is available here.

2. All teams participating in the NHSEB program must register with NHSEB HQ each season, and pay a yearly registration fee. The registration fee for 2023-2024 is $125, if schools register before November 1, 2023. On November 1, fees will increase to $175. All registrations for 2023-2024 must be received no later than January 15, 2024. NHSEB HQ is committed to ensuring that no students are prevented from participating because of financial need. Therefore, financial assistance and/or fee waivers are available for teams who qualify. For more information or to request a fee waiver, please contact us.

For resources to aid in preparing for an NHSEB Competition, please visit NHSEBAcademy: an online space for learning about and around the National High School Ethics Bowl. There, you’ll find a library of static resources in various formats (print, graphic, etc.), a growing collection of informational and instructional videos produced and curated by NHSEB HQ, opportunities for live, on-demand coaching assistance or practice scrimmages with UNC-based Ethics Bowl coaches via our Studio Hours initiative, and an annual series of events for NHSEB students, coaches, and community members: NHSEBAcademy Live.