Student Activity Conferences and Centennial Celebrations Mark the Start of the Year
By Treva Dayton | Wednesday, November 04, 2009 12:50 PM
When I turned my desk calendar from October to November — and yes, despite my Blackberry’s electronic calendar I still rely on the old-fashioned one for notes, reminders, etc. — I had to pause and marvel at how quickly the first part of the school year had passed. But I realized that recent months hadn’t just flown by but had been packed with so many events and projects that the days just seemed to blur together.
We’ve had several events to commemorate the League’s 100-year anniversary, including service projects by the UIL staff, the installation of an historical marker at our building on the UT campus and recognition of the members of the UIL Legislative Council during their October meeting. We’re in the planning stages of other projects, including special touches for the various state meets. Please check the Centennial Web site at uil.100.org for updates.
We’ve also just finished the last of our four fall Student Activities Conferences (SACs), and we had a record turnout at most of them. Hats off to those of you who promoted the SACs on your campus, arranged for transportation and chaperoned students to the half-day workshops around the state.
It takes commitment on your part and the willingness to work yet another weekend, but feedback consistently indicates that both students and coaches benefit from being there and find it a great way to kick off preparation for the competitive year ahead. We appreciate what you do and sincerely value the school administrators whose support makes such learning opportunities possible.
I also want to say a very special thank you to our hosts for their hospitality and hard work in making these educational conferences possible. Lynn Elms at Texas Tech University, Gina Howell at the University of North Texas and Dr. Max Coleman at Sam Houston State University, along with their staffs and student workers, do a tremendous job of welcoming students to their campuses and arranging for facilities, AV needs and other details. A great many of you will benefit from their dedication to service again at the regional meets these universities host for a variety of UIL athletic and academic events.
SAC sessions are taught not only by our outstanding state contest directors, both staff and consultants but also a myriad of guest speakers and student performers who graciously volunteer their time to share their knowledge and expertise with others. The multiple workshops in each time slot would not be possible without these folks, and we appreciate what they do more than I can say.
While it’s nice to have SACs behind us so we can concentrate on other responsibilities and look forward to an occasional weekend at home with our families, it’s also sad to know that our time spent with current state contest directors — our ‘extended UIL family’ — has pretty much come to an end until spring.
As part of our centennial celebration, however, we had a wonderful gathering of both current and former state contest directors and consultants here at the UIL headquarters on Oct. 16. Of course not all of them could make it to Austin for the occasion, but we got wonderful email updates from former contest directors now pursuing their professional careers or enjoying their retirement in all parts of Texas and across the country. And we had a lovely evening with those who could be here.
UIL and the students of Texas are tremendously fortunate to have such talented, dedicated and professional people providing the contest test materials, manuals and handbooks, workshops sessions and well-run contests at the UIL State Meet each year. And trust me, they are not doing it for the money, as we pay them a fraction of what their contributions are worth. They do it because they truly care about education and the students and coaches they serve, and they believe that academic competition provides a means of motivating students of all skill levels and an opportunity to develop lifelong skills.
We laughed, ate good food, caught up with the lives of people we hadn’t seen in some time and told funny road trip stories. In sharing favorite UIL memories, many noted the wonderful friendships developed among the people they worked with, despite our varied backgrounds and diverse areas of expertise.
Several also shared as their favorite memory the students they met and worked with over the years. They knew of former competitors who are now tremendously successful in many professions and many walks of life. Some remembered various family dynasties, where one sibling after another came to the State Meet and left as a state champion or medalist. Others remembered students they taught and mentored while serving as UIL coaches themselves.
Whatever their particular focus, they all remembered the people: the student competitors, the coaches, their colleagues. Which is so very fitting, since it’s the people who make UIL educational competition work, whether through athletics, music theatre or academic contests. That includes teachers, coaches, directors, advisors and administrators on the local campus level, officials and adjudicators of contests, hosts of all levels of competition, contest directors and consultants, UIL staff and families and communities that support UIL activities.
We hope as you join in UIL’s yearlong celebration, you find ways to say thank you to all those who contribute to the cause.