2025 NSA Wisconsin 

Last Story Standing

Competition Entry

The Competition Entry Portal will be open

by November 15th

Cost to enter: $50

2024 Chapter Champion Paula Houlihan

with Ali Starr (2nd place on left ) and Ousmane Kabré (3rd place on right)

NSA Wisconsin

Last Story Standing 

Competition Process:

• All recordings received by 11:59 pm CT on December 5th will be reviewed by a panel of established NSA members.

• All recordings received by 11:59 pm CT on December 5th will be reviewed by a panel of established NSA members.

• All competitors will receive constructive feedback about their story.

• Chapter Finalists will be announced on December 18th

• Finalists hone their story based on the preliminary judges comments and sessions with Eliz Greene.

• Chapter Finalists may not change the storyline itself.

• Chapter Finalists compete at the in-person event in Madison on January 30th.

• All competitors are recognized at the Finals on January 30th.

• The order of Finalists will be chosen by lottery.

• All Finalists will receive written feedback from the Chapter Final Judges

• All Finalists receive professional video and photographs of their performance.

• The NSA Wisconsin Last Story Standing Champion Advances to the Regional Competition

• NSA Wisconsin will pay the Regional entry fee.

Last Story Standing Rules:

Eligibility:

This competition is designed for professional-level storytellers. To ensure the competition’s integrity, the following designations/individuals are not eligible to compete in this Last Story Standing™ competition.

• Council of Peers Award for Excellence (CPAE) Recipients.
• Million Dollar Speakers Club (MDSG) members.
• Last Story Standing™ National Champions.
• Chapter Executives and/or Competition Planning/Committee Members.
• NSA National Board of Directors.
• Immediate Past Chapter Champions.

• Chapter Champions are not allowed to compete the subsequent year. (E.g., if a contestant wins a Chapter Competition in 2024, they cannot compete in 2025 – they must wait until 2026).
• NSA Chapter membership is required to participate.
• A NSA Wisconsin Chapter Competition Fee of $50 is required. 
• A one-time $500 Regional Entry Fee paid to NSA National is will be paid by NSA Wisconsin. This fee covers event-related expenses (virtual and live) for Regional and National-Level Competitions.
• If a Contestant is disqualified for any reason, a reimbursement will not be issued.
• The National Champion is not eligible to compete in the competition in subsequent years - You can only WIN once.
• All Due Dates and Deadlines, Chapter, Regional and National, are non-negotiable and firm. No exceptions. Failure to comply may result in disqualification.
• A contestant can only compete once per year (one Chapter event only – not multiple Chapter competitions). This rule is applicable for anyone who is a member of multiple Chapters.
• Final scores and Champion selections made by the selected Judging Panel at all levels, including the final vote at the National competition, are conclusive and indisputable. Regional and National scores will not be revealed following the competitions.
• A contestant cannot change their primary storyline. The story used at Chapter-Entry Level must be used at Regional and National Level. The general story can be enhanced based onfeedback/coaching received during Mentor Sessions, but the story at large must remain the same.

Story Rules:

• Story Time Limit: 5 Minutes – The first word to the last is the timed window.
• This does not include their introduction for the Regional Submission. Introductions should not exceed 30 sec.
• Contestants cannot ask for time to restart and/or to start over.
• Stories that exceed 5 minutes will be disqualified.
• The contestant must tell ONE story with a beginning, middle and end.
• The story should have ONE theme and ONE outcome.
• It should provide a purpose for telling the story with a call to action.
• This should not be a TED style talk - it must be ONE STORY.
• The contestant must use their voice only- no Instruments, no props, no costumes, physical examples or additional elements are allowed. These will be considered distractions and negatively impact the score. 
• The contestant can use their voice in any way, but the story cannot be a SONG in its entirety.
• The message of the story should be clear and directed to the identified market.

Code of Conduct:

Contestants must adhere to NSA’s Professional Conduct Policy, NSA’s Values, Civility Code and Code of Ethics throughout the entire LSS competition, including but not limited to: the story topic, language, delivery, and behavior during all forms of participation or representation at any level (Chapter, Regional, National) and on any platform (social media, virtual, interviews, in-person events or other media). Any violation of these policies may resultin disqualification from the competition at any level. Participation in the Last Story Standing ™ competition at any level confirms agreement and compliance with these policies.

IP Agreement:

By participating in the LSS Competition, each contestant grants and releases to NSA, its successors, assigns, and licensees the right to photograph and record a contestant’s story submission at any level (Chapter, Regional and National), including likeness, voice, and verbal statements, on film, videotape, and audiotape (collectively, the “Recording”). Each contestant also grants NSA the right to edit, distribute and/or highlight the Recording in the NSA Digital Vault, alone or as part of a compilation, at its discretion without additional approval. This Agreement does not constitute an affirmative obligation on the part of NSA to distribute the Recording. NSA and its agents are permitted the right to use the Recording, name, likeness, voice, and biographical information and any other information about contestant in connection with the advertising, promotion and public relation efforts relating to the specific presentation dated herein, in all media, now known or hereafter created without any compensation.