Texas Interscholastic League Foundation Scholarships

Scholarship Sponsored by Texas Interscholastic League Foundation

Here’s a clear, teacher-friendly guide to the 2026 scholarship application — what to do, who’s eligible, what to upload, and how selections are made. Read carefully and start collecting your documents now so you won’t be rushed.

Important dates
- Application opens: March 1, 2026
- Deadline to submit: May 22, 2026
- Notification of results: by mid-July 2026

Before you begin: electronic documents to have ready
Make electronic (PDF preferred) copies of each item below so you can upload them with your application.
- High school transcript (a seven‑semester transcript is acceptable)
- SAT or ACT score reports (only if you took the test)
- One letter of recommendation from one of the following: superintendent, principal, assistant principal, UIL coach, or counselor
- Parent/guardian’s most recent IRS Form 1040 — pages 1 and 2 only — with all Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, and routing numbers blacked out
- Your college financial aid notification OR your FAFSA Submission Summary that shows your Student Aid Index (SAI)

Eligibility — who may apply
You are eligible if all of the following are true:
1. Competition requirement (one of these):
- You competed at a UIL Academic State Meet, Congressional Debate State Meet, One‑Act Play State Meet, or Theatrical Design State Meet; OR
- You advanced to the second day (octofinals) of the Cross‑Examination Debate State Meet; OR
- You were a state finalist in the Barbara Jordan Historical Essay Competition, Latino History Essay Competition, or the Young Filmmakers Festival; OR
- You were a member of one of the top 10 teams in your competition group at the BEST, FIRST, or RECF‑VEX state robotics contests.
2. You plan to attend an accredited college or university in the state of Texas.
3. You will enroll full‑time in college and maintain at least a 2.5 college GPA (note: some individual scholarships may require a higher GPA).
4. You are graduating from high school in the current academic year.

Important exclusions and clarifications
- Participation only in athletic or music contests does NOT qualify you. You must advance to state in an ACADEMIC contest.
- For Cross‑Examination Debate: you must advance to the second day (octofinals).
- For Barbara Jordan Historical Essay, Latino History Essay, and Young Filmmakers Festival: only state finalists are eligible.
- For BEST, FIRST, or RECF‑VEX Robotics: only members of the top 10 teams in each competition group are eligible.
- Advancing in pilot academic contests that are not officially sanctioned by UIL for 2025–26 does NOT qualify you.

List of qualifying contests
Accounting; Barbara Jordan Historical Essay Competition*; Calculator Applications; Computer Applications; Computer Science; Congress; Current Issues and Events; Debate (Cross‑Examination* & Lincoln‑Douglas); Journalism (Copy Editing, Editorial Writing, Feature Writing, Headline Writing & News Writing); Literary Criticism; Mathematics; Number Sense; Latino History Essay Competition*; One‑Act Play; Ready Writing; Robotics*; Science; Social Studies; Speech (Prose Interpretation, Poetry Interpretation, Informative Speaking & Persuasive Speaking); Spelling & Vocabulary; Theatrical Design; Young Filmmakers Festival*.

(*See the clarifications above about which rounds qualify.)

How selection works
Applying makes you eligible — it does not guarantee an award. The scholarship committee and donors use several factors when choosing recipients:
1. Academic performance (GPA and class rank)
2. Financial need
3. College entrance exam scores (if applicable)
4. Participation and success in UIL academic competition
5. Plans to enroll for the fall semester at an accredited Texas college or university
6. Community involvement

Other notes
- You apply to the program, not to a specific donor scholarship. The committee assigns recipients based on eligibility and selection criteria; individual donor requirements listed on the scholarships page may also be considered.
- Pilot or non‑UIL sanctioned contests for 2025–26 do not qualify you for this scholarship.

Quick tips from your teacher
- Save everything as clearly named PDF files (Transcript.pdf, RecLetter.pdf, FAFSA_Summary.pdf).
- Black out sensitive numbers on tax documents before scanning.
- Ask for your recommendation early — give your recommender plenty of time and a reminder about the deadline.
- Double‑check you meet the competition‑specific rules (e.g., octofinals, state finalist, top 10 teams) before applying.
- If you have questions about eligibility or required documents, contact your counselor well before May 22.

If you want, I can help you check your eligibility or review your document checklist before you submit.