ADAMS TWP — When Griffin Miller sets a goal, everyone else better look out.

Griffin, a Mars freshman, made it into the final Braille Challenge competition as a young child. His goal since has been to make it to finals every year.

“Eight down and three to go!,” Griffin said Wednesday.

The Braille Institute's Braille Challenge is a two-stage academic competition designed to motivate blind and visually impaired students in kindergarten through 12th grade to emphasize their study of Braille.

This year's competition was staged in 46 locations throughout the United States and Canada and conducted by teachers of visually impaired students.

More than 1,100 students took the test this year, and 10 were selected from each of the five age groups to travel to Los Angeles in June for the final competition.

Griffin has been blind since birth as a result of Leber's congenital amaurosis, which is an inherited retinal degenerative disease.

The cheerful ninth-grader manages very well using a cane to get around school and other places and using a Braille Note to email and use the Internet.

“He's pretty independent,” said his mother, Rachel Miller.

Griffin explained he is in the grade-seven-through-nine group in the Braille Challenge. He said students in his group take four tests in their attempt to make the finals. Students are given 50 minutes for each test at finals, he said.

In the speed and accuracy test, the proctor reads a passage from a book.

“You have to type it in,” Griffin said.

In the proofreading test, competitors must read a passage in Braille and find the mistakes.

“Sometimes they try to trick you, and there are no errors,” Griffin said.

The reading comprehension test sees competitors read a story in Braille and then answer multiple-choice questions about the story.

The chart and graph test sees students peruse Braille maps, bar graphs and other items and then answer questions about them.

“In the first-through- fourth-grade group, there are no speed and accuracy or charts and graphs,” Griffin said.

First-place winners in each category receive a prize, which is where Griffin got his BrailleNote computer, plus $1,000.

Griffin looks forward to finals in L.A. each year with his family, as it gives him a chance to interact with the friends he has made in the competition.

“Sometimes it's fun just talking to the same group of people,” Griffin said.

In addition to the finals competition, where Griffin has taken first place twice and second and third place once each, the Braille Challenge organizers put on a themed party for the contestants on the Friday night before the competition. Pirates, the circus and a swim party have been past themes.

“(The party) makes it nice for the kids to get to hang out together,” his mother said.

The family, his parents Rachel and Jeff Miller, and Griffin, also make it a point to visit Southern California attractions. The Millers have visited Disneyland, Universal Studios, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley.

“They had headphones for an audio display for each exhibit, and we went on Air Force One,” Rachel recalled of the latter.

Dale Sleva, assistant principal at the Mars High School, called Griffin intelligent and fun to be around.

“He has the greatest personality,” Sleva said. “He's so funny.”

Sleva said when Griffin was an eighth-grader at the middle school last year, he came to the high school to take a number of advanced classes.

Sleva marveled at the young man's nerve in attending high school classes and recalled how the high schoolers embraced him and helped him to class.

“The (high school) kids would say 'Griffin are you ready to go?' and they'd share a joke and take off for class,” Sleva recalled.

He imagines Griffin will have taken every advanced placement course at the high school by the time he's a junior.

“He's just exceptionally intelligent. It's a gift,” Sleva said. “Some kids don't take advantage of their gift, but Griffin is a competitor.”

Sleva also credited Griffin's family for his success in his young life considering he is totally sightless.

“He doesn't make excuses and his mom doesn't make excuses,” he said. “They just roll with it.”

Rachel said Griffin's competitive streak is one reason he excels at Mars.

“He loves school, and he loves to do well,” Rachel Miller said.

On Wednesday, Griffin's entire family sported Pittsburgh Penguins shirts in anticipation of game 7 against the Washington Capitals. Asked if he's a big Penguins fan, Griffin is incredulous.

“Of course! Who else are you going to root for?” he said.

More information on the 2017 Braille Challenge is available at www.brailleinstitute.org.