By:
Ann Koehler
The UIL Announces Lone Star Cup Rankings for the 2021-22 School Year
Formed in 1913 at The University of Texas by merging a Debating League of Texas High Schools with the Athletic Association, the University Interscholastic League (UIL) has since existed to provide extracurricular academic, athletic and musical competitions throughout Texas and is even the largest interschool organization in the world.
The UIL Lone Star Cup program began in 1997 to recognize high schools’ overall team achievement in academics, athletics and music, and is ranked by the six UIL classifications: 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 5A and 6A. The list of scored activities is extensive, ranging from music, theatre and spirit to academics and all areas of sports, for a total of 23 categories. “The UIL Lone Star Cup rewards the best overall academic, athletic and music programs in the state of Texas,” said UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt on the organization’s website. “To win, every student, teacher and coach across all areas of UIL competition must contribute. The winning schools and communities should be proud of this outstanding achievement.”
Boerne ISD is, indeed, proud to announce that Boerne High School placed 4th out of 213 high schools in the 4A classification for the school year 2021-22, and Boerne-Champion High School placed 10th out of 253 5A high schools. This is the district’s third achievement in recent years, with Boerne ranking 3rd and Champion 10th in 2020-21 and Boerne 18th and Champion 9th in 2018-19. No Cup was awarded in 2019-20.
“What this means is we have one of the best 4A and 5A programs in the state. We try to be good at everything. A lot of this is based on our top enrollment, but we’ve got great parents who do a good job of getting their kids training and coaches who put the kids in the right spots,” said Coach Stan Leech, Director of Athletics at Boerne ISD, adding that what sets the district apart is the good, balanced extracurricular programs available to students at both high schools. “We don’t put all our eggs in one basket — we put them in all baskets,” he said. Leech also noted that while the UIL Lone Star Cup scores predominantly come from athletics, the other teams’ contributions are equally important, such as Champion High School’s One-Act Play State Championship in 2021-22 that contributed significantly to their current ranking.
UIL Lone Star Cup standings are announced every summer for the previous school year.
Another Cup that carries a lot of weight in Greater San Antonio and the surrounding areas is named in honor of Dan Cook, the legendary Express-News sportswriter and columnist from 1952-2003 and KENS-TV sports anchor from 1956-2000. The newspaper has awarded the Dan Cook Cup to one area high school every year since 2002-03, based entirely on athletic achievement with a scoring formula similar to the UIL’s.
Boerne High School was recently awarded the Cup for the second year in a row, adding to three previous consecutive wins in 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07. This award comes after Boerne High’s state championships in boys soccer and boys tennis singles, and state semifinals in boys basketball and girls soccer.
Boerne-Champion High School has also won the Dan Cook Cup four times, in 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2018-19.
Academically, Boerne ISD also stands out. The district just received its third-consecutive ‘A’ rating with a grade of 94 in The Texas Education Agency’s state-wide Student Testing and Accountability ratings for the 2021-22 school year. Only 33% (396) of nearly 1,200 school districts statewide received an ‘A’ rating for the 2021-22 school year and only 1% of districts have earned it three years straight.
The 21 distinction designations encompass 1 in English Language Arts; 2 in Mathematics; 7 in Science; 1 in Social Studies; 2 in Academic Growth; 4 in Post-Secondary Readiness; and 4 in Closing the Gaps. Distinction designations are awarded for achievement in several areas and are based on performance relative to a group of campuses of similar type, size, grade span and student demographics.
Boerne ISD Superintendent Dr. Thomas Price stated, “We must also stress that Boerne ISD is a lot more than just an ‘A’ rating in the classroom. Our students are well-rounded, having excelled in extracurricular activities such as Athletics, Fine Arts, FFA, 4-H and more. Our goal is to help students prepare for their future, which extends well beyond standardized tests or classroom assignments. We want our students to leave BISD ready to excel in their next stage of life, whether that is joining the workforce, attending college, enlisting in the military and more.”
