University Interscholastic League (UIL) is an extensive event that many students invest much of their time into. UIL incorporates both academics and sports, and numerous students strive to come out on top in this scholastic competition. One student in particular, Sameer Haider, works assiduously to prepare for this competition in order to succeed in many of the academic events.

Haider is a sophomore who has been involved in UIL throughout his junior high and high school years. He competes in number sense, science, math, calculator, and computer science. “Computer science is the most difficult,” Haider said, “but it is my favorite.” However, his forte is number sense. During his freshman year, he competed in UIL and advanced all the way to state. Haider is well on his way to reaching this level yet again.

At the UIL Fall Meet hosted at Texas Tech University on November 11^th, Haider took home a lot of gold. He won 1^st Place Calculator, 1^st Place Math, 1^st Place Number Sense, 1^st Place Science, 3^rd Place Computer Science, and was awarded Top Biology. Haider also helped his team achieve 1^st Place Calculator team, 1^st Place Computer Science team, 1^st Place Math team. 1^st Place Number Sense team, and 1^st Place Science team. Haider spends many of his weekends at practice meets to prepare for the district competition to be held in March 2018.

As much as Haider enjoys competing in the academic events, he also loves the memories that UIL helps create. He has made many friends through UIL, and he will never forget the time spent with them. Haider is also grateful for the teachers who push him every day and help him succeed meet after meet. Haider enjoys traveling outside of Abilene for these events and loves it when they eat at In-N-Out Burger. “I hope we get to eat there this year too,” Haider said.

UIL is a major part of many students’ lives, and those participating put in a lot of time and effort for these events. UIL encourages students, like Haider, to further their knowledge, interact with peers from different schools, and establish long-lasting memories. In addition, UIL is also a great way for students to prepare for college, and many students even receive UIL scholarships. Haider and many others have been practicing for the upcoming district competition and hope to win, satisfying the tradition of excellence that has been laid before them.