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This past weekend some journalism, speech, and math students got a chance to travel to Waller High School in to compete at their Boovitational meet.
“UIL is a great opportunity to push yourself to be better,” journalism coach and UIL coordinator Emily Meachen said. “If a student wants to separate themselves from the pack of students applying for college or scholarships, they need to show they did extra and tried harder than everyone else. That is what UIL is. It is a place to learn more, you can diversify your high school experience and get better at something. You learn so much more.”
UIL might be a little bit scary at the beginning, but after awhile you get used to the competitions – practice makes perfect at these meets. The more a competitor practices, the more likely they are to win some awards.
“I was very happy winning all my awards since it was the first UIL competition of the year and being able to place four different times is actually insane,” junior Victoria Medina said.
Even if a student is unfamiliar with the other events, it’s always good to at least give them a try. They never know if their actually really good at that event.
“It was a huge shock to me that I did so well in poetry,” senior Danica Sundquist said. “Not only was it my first time ever competing in that event, I was up against some very strong competition. When I heard that I had placed 5th, I was overwhelmed with joy and a new sense of confidence making me all the more eager for the next time I get to perform those pieces.”
There are many different events in the journalism category for someone to try. Some events can be from 15 minutes to one hour, it really just depends on what writing a student is interested in.
“Competing in journalism for the first time was pretty fun,” junior Katelyn Davies said. “I didn’t do great because I was stressed and couldn’t focus and use the amount of time that was needed.”
Even though some meets can take up to a full day of waiting, students still make many memories with all of the friends at UIL.
“My favorite memory from this meet was just how loud we all are when one of us got an award and when we won #1 journalism team,” senior Kaitlin Burns said.
Even if competitors don’t place at some meets they still have the chance to practice and get better for other meets where there is more competition.
“I am currently looking forward to potentially returning to the A&M Consolidated meet,” Sundquist said. “I always find that the meet is riddled with some amazing competition and even a handful of state champions that I am eager to go against one more time.”
