Page 12 of 49 pages ‹ First < 10 11 12 13 14 > Last ›
UIL Unveils Swimming and Diving Historical Display
By Michelle Carrigan, UIL Intern | Friday, March 01, 2013 10:41 AM
The timeline highlights the growth of UIL Swimming and Diving.
Photo by Jeanne Acton
The University Interscholastic League in collaboration with the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center unveiled their new swimming and diving timeline at a ceremony during the state swimming and diving meet Feb. 22. The timeline displays the history, growth and development of swimming and diving with the UIL.UIL staff worked closely with Charles Logan, director of the Lee and Joe Jamail Swimming Center to chronicle the progression and highlights of UIL swimming and diving and the state meet.
Dr. Charles Breithaupt, UIL executive director, said he was grateful for University of Texas and its support of the timeline and the multiple state championships it hosts.
“If you know the University of Texas like we have known them, they don’t do anything halfway,” Dr. Breithaupt said. “If the University of Texas does it, it is first class and Charles [Logan] epitomizes that.”
Documentation Details for 2012-2013
By Jana Riggins, Speech and Debate Director | Wednesday, February 06, 2013 2:17 PM
As you prepare for competition, one of the most important things prose and poetry performers must do is to secure appropriate documentation for the performance categories.
Securing documentation is not a task that can be left until the last minute. The categories were designed to document easily, but you should secure proper documentation in advance of invitational and district meets. Do this before you put your heart and soul into analyzing and rehearsing a literary work for competition. If documentation is insufficient, you won’t even get to compete, so knowing the requirements and making certain you have met the contest rules is an integral part of preparation.
The Constitution & Contest Rules require all coaches to read the 2012-2013 edition of the UIL Prose and Poetry Handbook, which should be ordered from the state office:
UIL Computer Applications Update for 2013
By Linda Tarrant, Computer Applications Contest Director | Tuesday, January 29, 2013 11:35 AM
Being a contest based on Microsoft Office, Computer Applications will continue to make incremental changes to keep abreast of the changing technology. Again this year, competitors will be using only Office 2007 or Office 2010. The format of these two versions is fairly consistent.
In 2012, we created an Access file with multiple tables that we posted on the UIL website. We posted an exercise for practice using such a downloaded file. The State test last year utilized a downloaded file from the UIL website as well. The consensus of using this type of data was positive. This year, both the Region and State test will use the same 2013 Starter Files that we are posting to be used with a practice exercise.
Academic Deadlines Are Near
By Dr. David Stevens, Academic Director | Thursday, January 24, 2013 2:37 PM
Ready or not, deadlines for academic district meets are upon us. We are available to answer any questions you might have about the online system, but urge you to read the excellent help instructions before you call.
Setting Up the Academic District Meet
If you are in charge of setting up your academic district meet and have not done so by the Feb. 1 deadline, you will be hearing not only from our office, but also from the coordinators in your district trying to enter their contestants. Many academic district directors or meet hosts have already entered meet information, but some have failed to click the correct ‘Status of the Meet’ link from the pull-down menu on the meet setup page. ‘This meet is closed to schools and public’ is the default setting, which you would use before you are ready for schools to use the entry process. However, meet directors must change the status by Feb. 1 at the latest to ‘schools may enter contestants in the meet’ to allow academic coordinators to enter students in events. Some meets that have been setup online do not yet have scheduled times of events, so meet directors will want to check this, too.
UIL Announces Sponsor Excellence Award Winners
By Kate Y. Hector, Media Coordinator | Thursday, January 24, 2013 1:35 PM
The University Interscholastic League is proud to recognize 16 of the top UIL sponsors in Texas as the 2012 UIL Sponsor Excellence Award winners.
The winners were selected by a panel of judges in the areas of music, athletics and academics from nominations submitted by school principals and superintendents across the state.
The award, now in its 22nd year, was created to identify and recognize outstanding sponsors who enable students to develop and refine their extracurricular talents to the highest degree possible within the educational system.
Theatre Director’s Play Invited to International Festival
By Jamie Oberg, UIL Intern | Thursday, January 24, 2013 1:21 PM
Texas students will perform Coram Boy in Lincoln, Nebraska, this summer at the International Thespian Society's 50th festival.
This summer and fall Theatre Director Luis Muñoz spent several weeks and many weekends directing a group of 90-plus students from around the state in the production of Coram Boy for the All-State Thespian company. The hard work paid off with a successful performance at the state theater convention last November and an invitation to perform at the International Thespian Society’s 50th festival this summer in Lincoln, Nebraska.
“When I got the call, it was like I was going to state for the first time again,” said Muñoz, who began directing at age 17 and has served as UIL Theatre Director for the past 10 years.
It’s Time to Write the Rating Down
By Mark McGahey, TMAA Concert Band Vice President | Thursday, January 24, 2013 12:47 PM
At the conclusion of a band’s performance at a UIL contest, our job, as music adjudicators, is to give our professional opinion of the performance. What criteria should we use when deciding the rating?
1] Write the summary for tone, technique and musicianship. Remember, we are evaluating the band’s overall achievement, not just a summary of each of the three concert selections.
Lone Star Cup race heats up after fall season
By Chris Schmidt, Public Affairs Representative | Thursday, January 24, 2013 12:45 PM
The latest update to the UIL Lone Star Cup standings was posted on January 11 and after points from the fall season of events have been tabulated the race for the cup in each conference is heating up. The current standings include State and Area Marching Band, Team Tennis, Cross Country, Volleyball and Football.
The UIL Lone Star Cup is awarded annually to five high schools, one in each of the five UIL classifications (1A, 2A, 3A, 4A and 5A), based on their team performance in district and state championships. The winning schools in each classification will receive the UIL Lone Star Cup trophy and a $1,000 scholarship, also presented by the UIL.
January Gives Us Time to Think and Plan for Future
By Richard Floyd, Music Director | Thursday, January 24, 2013 12:35 PM
If there is such a thing, January is perhaps one of the quietest times of the year in the UIL State Music Office. Why? Marching season is behind us, the TMEA Convention is just around the corner and directors are busily preparing for Region Solo and Ensemble Contests while planning their spring concert programs. Most phone calls and emails have to do with solo and ensemble issues or questions about specific repertoire performance requirements. We take great pride in answering all inquiries in 24 hours or less.
So, what else do we do? Many years ago while I was still on the faculty at Baylor University, I had a colleague who was a history professor say to me, “Dick, sometimes we forget that one of the things the university pays us to do is to sit and think.” I never forgot that comment, and I took it to heart. Sometimes it is wise and productive to simply step back, ask ourselves probing questions and take stock of where we are and where we are going. In other words, think. January gives us an advantageous opportunity to do so.
Debate Season Underway in New Year
By Jana Riggins, Speech and Debate Director | Thursday, January 24, 2013 11:13 AM
The dawning of a new year begins a fresh semester. Some of you will get a whole new crop of students in your classrooms. The anticipation of spring just around the corner brings with it zeal to polish those oral interpretation pieces, attack the recently-released Lincoln-Douglas Debate resolution with fervor, beef up your extemporaneous files and design new CX plan attacks.At the League, it means the beginning of Cross-examination Debate district meets and heavy preparation for the state debate tournament. Deadlines loom just around the corner.
Your district entries are due no later than 10 calendar days prior to the scheduled meet. You must input those entries into the UIL Spring Meet Online System. There’s a link to the system conveniently located on the home page of the UIL speech/debate section of our website.
In the excitement of competing at district, if your teams place, don’t forget to pick up your winning coach packet from your district contest director. This large white and red envelope contains details about the state tournament and reminders about critical deadlines and responsibilities you as a coach have if your teams advance to the state tournament.