2014BeeWeekGuide

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Competition Schedule ..............................1 

About Our Program .................................2 

Information about Our 

Supporters and Sponsors ..........................3 

Contest Rules........................................4 

Competition Flow Chart ............................8 

Twenty Questions .................................10 

Meet the Spellebrities.............................14 

Champions and Their Winning Words............16 

Prizes ...............................................18 

Spellers and Sponsors ............................19 

Leadership and Year-Round Staff.................31 

Officials ............................................32 

Bee Week Staff ....................................33 

What’s it like to spell onstage at the 

Scripps National Spelling Bee 

With a QR reader, use this code to 

watch the video that inspired the 

cover of this Bee Week Guide. 

WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE TERM SPELLING BEE 

The word bee, as used in spelling bee, is one of those language puzzles that has never been 

satisfactorily accounted for. A fairly old and widely used word, it refers to a community social 

gathering at which friends and neighbors join together in a single activity (sewing, quilting, barn 

raising, etc.) usually to help one person or family. The earliest known example in print is a spinning 

bee in 1769. Other early occurrences are husking bee (1816), apple bee (1827), and logging bee (1836). 

Spelling bee is apparently an American term. It first appeared in print in 1875, but it seems certain that the term 

was used orally for several years before that. 

Those who used the word, including most early students of language, assumed that it was the same word as 

referred to the insect. They thought that this particular meaning had probably been inspired by the obvious 

similarity between these human gatherings and the industrious, social nature of a beehive. But in recent years 

scholars have rejected this explanation, suggesting instead that this bee is a completely different word. One 

possibility is that it comes from the Middle English word bene, which means “a prayer” or “a favor” (and is related 

to the more familiar word boon). In England, a dialect form of this word, been or bean, referred to “voluntary 

help given by neighbors toward the accomplishment of a particular task” (Webster’s Third New International 

Dictionary). Bee may simply be a shortened form of been, but no one is entirely certain. 

/ScrippsNationalSpellingBee /ScrippsBee #spellingbee /ScrippsBee 

/ScrippsNationalSpellingBee #scrippsbee 

/ScrippsBee

COMPETITION SCHEDULE 

TUESDAY, MAY 27 

Preliminaries Test 

8:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Chesapeake F 

All spellers will participate in this computer-based 

test at their individual test appointment times. 

WEDNESDAY, MAY 28 

Preliminaries: Round Two Live on ESPN3 

8:00 – 11:45 a.m. – Maryland Ballroom 

• Spellers 1 through 140 spell onstage between 8:00 and 9:45 a.m. 

• Spellers 141 through 281 spell onstage between 10:00 and 11:45 a.m. 

Preliminaries: Round Three Live on ESPN3 

1:15 – 4:45 p.m. – Maryland Ballroom 

• Spellers 1 through 140 spell onstage between 1:15 and 2:45 p.m. 

• Spellers 141 through 281 spell onstage between 3:15 and 4:45 p.m. 

Announcement of Semifinalists: Live on ESPN3 

Approximately 5:00 p.m. – Maryland Ballroom 

Semifinals Test 

7:00 – 7:45 p.m. – Chesapeake G 

All Semifinalist spellers will participate in this computer-based test. 

THURSDAY, MAY 29 

Semifinals: Live on ESPN2 

10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – Maryland Ballroom 

Championship Finals: Live on ESPN 

8:00 – 10:00 p.m. – Maryland Ballroom 

2014 SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE 1

ABOUT OUR PROGRAM 

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is the nation’s largest and longest-running educational program. 

Local spelling bees take place in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, 

Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Department of Defense Schools in Europe. It also is 

administered in cooperation with local spelling bee sponsors from seven other countries: the 

Bahamas, Canada, China, Ghana, Jamaica, Japan and South Korea. We are administered on a 

not-for-profit basis by The E.W. Scripps Company in cooperation with local spelling bee sponsors 

PURPOSE 

Our purpose is to help students improve their spelling, increase 

their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English 

usage that will help them all their lives. 

To better achieve this purpose, in 2013 the evaluation of 

vocabulary knowledge was formally incorporated as an 

element of the National Finals. The change was well received 

and is incorporated into all levels of the Bee this year. 

LOCAL SPELLING BEE SPONSORS 

Each year we grant a limited number of local spelling bee 

sponsorships to media organizations, universities, nonprofits 

and other community leaders. Most organizations sponsoring 

local spelling bees are not owned by The E.W. Scripps Company. 

In fact, only 13 sponsorships were awarded to Scripps-owned 

television stations and newspapers this year. 

Local sponsors conduct community spelling bee programs in 

cooperation with teachers and administrators at public, private, 

parochial, charter, virtual and home schools. The champion of 

each sponsor’s program qualifies for participation in the Scripps 

National Spelling Bee. 

SCHOOLS 

Every fall, thousands of schools enroll in our program. 

Throughout the fall and winter, schools conduct spelling 

bees at the classroom, grade and school level to choose 

their representatives for the next level of competition. 

Students may further compete 

in district, county or regional 

spelling bees before earning 

the right to represent 

their communities at 

the Scripps National 

Spelling Bee. 

STUDENTS 

More than 11 million students participated in this year’s 

Scripps National Spelling Bee at one level or another. To 

prepare, students used study materials created by spelling 

bee staff and Merriam-Webster using our official dictionary: 

Webster’s Third New International Dictionary and its 

addenda section, copyright 2002. 

All of the spellers here have advanced to the Scripps National 

Spelling Bee by winning a series of spelling bees as outlined by 

their local spelling bee sponsors. In general terms, the program 

is open to students who are 15 years old or younger, have not 

passed beyond eighth grade and attend schools officially 

enrolled with our program for the current academic year. 

See Rule 1 on page 4 for full eligibility requirements. 

HISTORY 

This is the 87th Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 

National Spelling Bee started in 1925 with nine contestants. 

Frank Neuhauser of Louisville, Kentucky correctly spelled 

“gladiolus” to win the inaugural Bee. 

The E.W. Scripps Company took ownership in 1941 and, after not 

holding the competition for three years during World War II, has 

managed the Bee continuously since 1946. 

The Bee declared co-champions in 1950, 1957 and 1962. Of the 

89 champions, 47 have been girls and 42 have been boys. See 

pages 16 and 17 for a complete list of champions and their 

winning words. 

AN AMERICAN INSTITUTION 

While the Scripps National Spelling Bee has been around for 

a long time, it’s more than a contest for children. It is a classic 

element of Americana. 

Since 1925, participating in a spelling bee has been part of the 

collective American experience – even immortalized in a 

Norman Rockwell lithograph. As millions have gone to the front 

of a classroom or taken the stage to spell a word, it has become 

an iconic symbol of education, progress, and the opportunity for 

future generations to be more enriched than the previous. 

2 2014 SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE

THANK YOU 

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is only possible through the support 

of our sponsors and supporters. 

For the first time this year, Microsoft joined us as the Official Technology 

Champion of the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee. 

This means that the nation’s largest and longest-running educational 

program is collaborating with the world’s largest software company. 

Microsoft is deeply committed to supporting educators and educational 

programs. In fact, since 2003, Microsoft has partnered with educators to 

impact more than 207 million students in 119 countries. 

THE COLLABORATION INCLUDES: 

A Windows 8 spelling app for teachers and students. 

Bing for Schools lesson plans focused on spelling. 

Spelling-related surprises for certain queries using Bing for Schools. 

Bing for Schools Word of the Day available on the Bee’s Facebook page. 

Microsoft onsite experiences during Bee Week. 

Microsoft joins a growing number of companies that show their enthusiasm for education by supporting the 

Bee, including: 

And our local sponsors are the lifeblood of the Bee. There are more than 270 organizations that administer the local 

spelling bees. All of our local sponsors are listed in the Spellers and Sponsors section, which starts on page 19. 

PLEASE JOIN US IN THANKING ALL OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS! 


CONTEST RULES OF THE 2014 

SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE 

RULE 1: ELIGIBILITY 

(1) The speller must not previously have been declared champion 

of the Bee. 

(2) The speller must attend a school that is officially enrolled 

with the Bee. 

(3) The speller must not have passed beyond the eighth grade on 

or before February 1, 2014. 

(4) The speller must not have repeated any grade for the purpose 

of extending spelling bee eligibility. If the speller has repeated 

any grade, the speller must notify the Bee of the circumstances 

of grade repetition by March 31, 2014; and the Bee will, in its sole 

discretion, determine the speller’s eligibility status on or before 

April 30, 2014. 

(5) The speller — or the speller’s parent, legal guardian or 

school official acting on the speller’s behalf — must not have 

declared to another entity an academic classification higher 

than eighth grade for any purpose including high school 

graduation equivalency or proficiency examinations and/or 

examinations such as the PSAT, SAT or ACT. 

(6) The speller must not have earned the legal equivalent of a 

high school diploma. 

(7) The speller must not have completed nor ever been enrolled 

in more than six high school-level courses or two college-level 

courses on or before April 30, 2014. 

(8) The speller must not bypass or circumvent normal school 

activity to study for spelling bees. The Bee defines normal 

school activity as adherence to at least four courses of study 

other than language arts, spelling, Latin, Greek, vocabulary 

and etymology for at least four hours per weekday for 34 of 

the 38 weeks between August 27, 2013, and May 18, 2014. 

(9) The speller must not have reached the age of 15 on or before 

August 31, 2013. 

(10) The speller must have been declared a champion of a final 

local spelling bee on or after February 1, 2014. 

(11) The speller must not have been disqualified at any level of 

a sponsor’s spelling bee program between June 2013 and April 

2014. Further, if the speller becomes disqualified at any level of a 

sponsor’s spelling bee program before April 2014, the speller will 

be ineligible to compete in the Bee and may not seek 

4 2014 SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE 

advancement in the Bee through another sponsor and/or 

enrollment in another school. 

(12) The speller must not have any first-, second- or third-degree 

relatives (i.e. sibling, child, grandchild, aunt, uncle, niece, 

nephew, half-sibling, first cousin or great grandchild) who 

are current employees of The E.W. Scripps Company. 

(13) The speller, upon qualifying for the Bee, must submit a 

completed online Champion Profile form, a signed Appearance 

Consent and Release Form and a hard or electronic copy of a 

photo to the Bee. The speller will notify the Bee, at least 24 hours 

prior to the first day of competition, if any of the statements 

made on the Certification of Eligibility Form are no longer true or 

require updating. The speller’s sponsor will provide access to the 

necessary forms. 

The Bee may disqualify prior to or during competition any 

speller who is not in compliance with any of the above Eligibility 

Requirements; and it may — at any time between the conclusion 

of the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee and April 30, 2015 — 

require any speller who is found to have not been in compliance 

with any of the Eligibility Requirements to forfeit any prizes, 

rank, and other benefits accorded to the speller as a result of 

participation in the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee. 

RULE 2: PRELIMINARIES FORMAT 

The Preliminaries is the first of three distinct segments of the 

competition: Preliminaries, Semifinals and Championship Finals. 

The Preliminaries consists of a test (Preliminaries Test) 

delivered by computer on Tuesday, May 27 and two rounds of 

oral spelling onstage on Wednesday, May 28. Spellers may earn 

up to 36 points during the Preliminaries: up to 30 points on the 

Preliminaries Test, three points for correctly spelling in Round 

Two and three points for correctly spelling in Round Three. 

Spellers must report to the Chesapeake F Room in the Gaylord 

National Resort and Convention Center for the Preliminaries Test 

at their individual appointment times. Individual test appointment 

times are claimed by spellers prior to Bee Week 2014 through the 

online Champion Profile Form available to spellers who log into 

spellingbee.com. 

The Preliminaries Test has four sections: 

1. In Section A, the speller will spell 24 words using a computer 

keyboard. Only 12 of the 24 spellings will count toward the speller’s 

Preliminaries score — one point per each correctly spelled score 

word. The 12 spelling words that count toward the speller’s

Preliminaries score will be labeled “score spelling words” by 

Bee officials prior to May 27, but score spelling word status will 

not be apparent to a speller while taking the test. Score spelling 

words are the same for all spellers. This part of the test will be 

labeled as Round One. 

2. In Section B, the speller will respond to 24 multiple-choice 

vocabulary questions. Only 12 of the 24 vocabulary responses will 

count toward the speller’s Preliminaries score — one point per 

each correctly answered vocabulary question. The 12 vocabulary 

questions that count toward the speller’s Preliminaries score will 

be labeled “score vocabulary questions” by Bee officials prior to 

May 27. Score vocabulary questions are the same for all spellers. 

This part of the test will also be labeled as Round One. 

3. In Section C, the speller will respond to one multiple-choice 

vocabulary question that will be labeled as a Round Two 

vocabulary question and, if correctly answered, count three 

points toward the speller’s Preliminaries score. The speller’s 

Round Two vocabulary question will be unique to the speller. 

4. In Section D, the speller will respond to one multiple-choice 

vocabulary question that will be labeled as a Round Three 


points toward the speller’s Preliminaries score. The speller’s 

Round Three vocabulary question will be unique to the speller. 

During the afternoon of Wednesday, May 28 the Bee will publicly 

identify the 12 score spelling words and the 12 score vocabulary 

questions on spellingbee.com; also, the Bee will email individual 

speller Preliminaries Test score reports to parents and spellers. 

Eliminations: There are no immediate eliminations for misspelling 

or providing an incorrect answer in the Preliminaries Test. Upon 

incorrectly spelling a word in Round Two or Three, the speller is 

eliminated from the competition. Spellers eliminated during Round 

Two are tied for the same place. Spellers eliminated during Round 

Three are tied for the same place. Immediately after Round Three 

a “maximum of 50” standard is applied to remaining spellers’ 

scores accrued during the Preliminaries. Spellers’ scores are 

plotted on a chart. Beginning at 36 on the chart, spellers at each 

consecutive scoring level are added until a sum of no more than 50 

spellers has been attained. All remaining spellers are eliminated. 

All spellers eliminated after Round Three and before the start of 

the Semifinals are tied for the same place. 

RULE 3: SEMIFINALS FORMAT 

The Semifinals is the second of three distinct segments of the 

competition: Preliminaries, Semifinals and Championship Finals. 

The Semifinals consists of a test (Semifinals Test) delivered by 

computer on Wednesday evening, May 28 and two rounds of oral 

spelling onstage on Thursday, May 29. Spellers may earn up to 36 

points during the Semifinals: up to 30 points on the Semifinals 

Test, three points for correctly spelling in Round Five and three 

points for correctly spelling in Round Six. 

Spellers must report to Chesapeake Room G in the Gaylord 

National Resort and Convention Center for the Semifinals Test on 

Wednesday, May 28 at 7:00 p.m. EDT. 

The Semifinals Test has four sections: 

1. In Section A, the speller will spell 12 words using a computer 

keyboard. All 12 spellings count toward the speller’s Semifinals 

score and will be labeled “score spelling words” by Bee officials 

prior to May 27. Score spelling words are the same for all 

spellers. This part of the test will be labeled as Round Four. 

2. In Section B, the speller will respond to 12 multiple-choice 

vocabulary questions. All 12 vocabulary responses will count 

toward the speller’s Semifinals score and will be labeled “score 

vocabulary questions” by Bee officials prior to May 27. Score 

vocabulary questions are the same for all spellers. This part of 

the test will also be labeled as Round Four. 

3. In Section C, the speller will respond to one multiple-choice 

vocabulary question that will be labeled as a Round Five 


points toward the speller’s Semifinals score. The speller’s 

Round Five vocabulary question will be unique to the speller. 

4. In Section D, the speller will respond to one multiple-choice 

vocabulary question that will be labeled as a Round Six 


points toward the speller’s Semifinals score. The speller’s 

Round Six vocabulary question will be unique to the speller. 

During the morning of Thursday, May 29 the Bee will publicly 

identify the 12 score spelling words and the 12 score vocabulary 

questions on spellingbee.com; also, the Bee will email individual 

speller Semifinals Test score reports to Semifinalist spellers and 

their parents. 

Eliminations: There are no immediate eliminations for misspelling 

or providing an incorrect answer in the Semifinals Test. Upon 

incorrectly spelling a word in Round Five or Six, the speller is 

eliminated from the competition. Spellers eliminated during Round 

Five are tied for the same place. Spellers eliminated during Round 

Six are tied for the same place. Immediately after Round Six a 

“maximum of 12” standard is applied to remaining spellers’ scores 

accrued during the Preliminaries and Semifinals. Spellers’ scores 

are plotted on a chart. Beginning at 72 on the chart, spellers at 

each consecutive scoring level are added until a sum of no more 

than 12 spellers has been attained. All remaining spellers are 

eliminated unless, in the course of applying the maximum of 12 

standard, it appears that fewer than nine spellers will qualify for 

the Championship Finals. 


Continued from previous page 

In this circumstance, spellers at the next consecutive scoring 

level (or levels) may be named as Championship Finalists if, in sole 

determination of Bee officials, there is sufficient time and word list 

content to accommodate additional spellers in the Championship 

Finals. All spellers eliminated after Round Six and before the start 

of the Championship Finals are tied for the same place. 

RULE 4: CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS 

FORMAT 

The Championship Finals is the third of three distinct segments 

of the competition: Preliminaries, Semifinals and Championship 

Finals. 

The Championship Finals consist of rounds of oral spelling 

beginning with Round Seven and continuing until a champion is 

declared (or co- champions are declared). 

All spellers who have not been eliminated from the competition 

spell one word in each round. Upon incorrectly spelling a word, 

the speller is eliminated from the competition except as provided 

under “End-of-Bee Procedure” herein. All spellers eliminated in 

the same round are tied for the same place. 

Championship Words and Provision for Declaration of 

Co-Champions: At the beginning of any round in which either 

two or three spellers remain, the pronouncer will move to the 

25-word championship section of the word list. If a champion 

does not emerge in the course of administering these final 25 

words, the remaining spellers will be declared co-champions. 

In the event that a round beginning with more than either two 

or three spellers ends with only one speller to begin the next 

and perhaps final round, the pronouncer will not move to the 

championship section at that point in the competition. 

End-of-Bee Procedure: If all spellers in a round misspell, all 

remain in the competition and a new round begins with the 

spellers spelling in their original order. If only one speller in a 

round spells correctly in a round, a new one-word round begins 

and the speller is given an opportunity to spell the next word on 

the list (anticipated winning word). If the speller succeeds in 

correctly spelling the anticipated winning word in this one-word 

round, the speller is declared the champion. If the speller misspells 

the anticipated winning word in a one-word round, a new round 

begins with all the spellers who spelled correctly and incorrectly 

in the previous round: these spellers spell in their original order. 

RULE 5: OFFICIAL DICTIONARY AND 

SOURCE OF WORDS 

Webster’s Third New International Dictionary and its addenda 

section, copyright 2002, Merriam-Webster, (Webster’s Third) 

is the final authority and sole source for the spelling of words; 

the primary source used to craft the pronunciations, definitions, 

and language origins for the Bee; and the only printed authority 

consulted by officials, as well as the sole source used during the 

Bee to verify the information in our prepared lists. If more than 

one spelling is listed for a word, any of these spellings will be 

accepted as correct if the following three criteria are met: (1) the 

pronunciations are identical, (2) the definitions are identical, and 

(3) the words are identified as being variants of each other. 

Spellings having temporal labels (such as archaic, obsolete), 

stylistic labels (such as substand, nonstand) or regional labels 

(such as North, Midland, Irish) which differ from main entry 

spellings not having these status labels will not be accepted as 

correct. 

RULE 6: TIME CONSTRAINTS 

During the Preliminaries and Semifinals Tests: Spellers are 

subject to a 45-minute time limit for taking the test, and can 

view a 45-minute countdown clock on screen as they take the 

test. If the 45-minute time period expires and the speller has not 

submitted the test, the test application will close and the speller’s 

responses on record at that time will be scored by Bee officials. 

During oral spelling rounds in the Preliminaries, Semifinals 

and Championship Finals: The speller’s time at the microphone 

has a limit of 2 minutes. Time begins when the pronouncer first 

pronounces the word. For the first 1 minute and 15 seconds, the 

speller will have the benefit of viewing a monitor displaying a 

traffic light in green light mode. After 1 minute and 15 seconds, 

the monitor will show the traffic light graphic in yellow light 

mode and will also show the time clock as it counts down to the 

30-second mark. At the 30-second mark, the monitor will show 

the traffic light graphic in red light mode and will also show a 

countdown of the remaining 30 seconds. The judges and 

pronouncer will not communicate with the speller during the final 

30 seconds (red light mode). The judges will disqualify any speller 

who does not provide a complete spelling before the expiration of 

time (0 seconds in red light mode). If the judges and pronouncer 

need to discuss a competition-related matter while a speller is 

contemplating a word, they may pause the time clock, and they 

will inform the speller when they pause and resume the time clock. 

RULE 7: SPECIAL NEEDS 

The Bee strives to provide accommodation for spellers who have 

diagnosed medical conditions. All requests for accommodation 

of special needs should be directed in writing to the director of 

the Bee before May 1, 2014. The judges have discretionary power 

to amend spelling requirements on a case-by-case basis for 

spellers with diagnosed medical conditions. 


RULE 8: PRONOUNCER’S ROLE 

The pronouncer strives to pronounce words according to the 

diacritical markings in Webster’s Third. 

Homonyms: If a word has one or more homonyms, the pronouncer 

indicates which word is to be spelled by defining the word. 

Speller’s requests: In oral competition the pronouncer responds 

only to the speller’s requests for repetition of the word’s 

pronunciation, a definition, sentence, part of speech, language(s) 

of origin and alternate pronunciation(s). When presented with 

requests for alternate pronunciations, the pronouncer or 

associate pronouncer checks for alternate pronunciations in 

Webster’s Third. If the speller wishes to ask if the dictionary lists 

a specific root word as the root of the word to be spelled, the 

speller must specify a pronunciation of the root (not a spelling), 

its language and its definition. The pronouncer will grant all such 

requests as long as they are in accordance with time constraints 

outlined in Rule 6. 

Pronouncer’s sense of helpfulness: The pronouncer may offer 

word information — without the speller having requested the 

information — if the pronouncer senses that the information is 

helpful and the information appears in the 2014 Scripps National 

Spelling Bee word list or Webster’s Third. 

RULE 9: JUDGES’ ROLE 

The judges listen carefully, determine whether or not words 

are spelled correctly and uphold the rules. The decisions of the 

judges are final. 

Misunderstandings: The judges will not respond to the speller’s 

question(s) about the word and its pronunciation but, if the judges 

sense that the speller has misunderstood the word, the judges 

will direct the speller and pronouncer to interact until they are 

satisfied that reasonable attempts have been made to assist the 

speller in understanding the word within the time constraints 

outlined in Rule 6. It is sometimes impossible to detect a 

misunderstanding until a spelling error has been made, and the 

judges are not responsible for the speller’s misunderstanding. 

sole discretion, merit holding the speller’s word in reserve and 

offering it to the speller after all other spellers in the round have 

spelled and before the close of the round; (2) who engages in 

unsportsmanlike conduct; (3) who, in the process of retracing a 

spelling, alters the letters or sequence of letters from those first 

uttered; or (4) who, in the process of spelling, utters unintelligible 

or nonsense sounds. 

Speller activities that do not merit disqualification: The judges 

may not disqualify a speller (1) for failing to pronounce the word 

either before or after spelling it, (2) for asking a question, or 

(3) for noting or failing to note the capitalization of a word, the 

presence of a diacritical mark, or the presence of a hyphen or 

other form or punctuation. 

RULE 10: SPELLER’S ROLE 

The speller makes an effort to face the judges and pronounce 

the word for the judges before spelling it and after spelling it. 

The speller while facing the judges makes an effort to utter each 

letter distinctly and with sufficient volume to be understood by 

the judge. The speller may ask the pronouncer to say the word 

again, define it, use it in a sentence, provide the part of speech, 

provide the language(s) of origin and/or provide an alternate 

pronunciation or pronunciations. The speller may also ask root 

word questions that meet the specifications delineated in Rule 8. 

Misunderstandings: The speller is responsible for any 

misunderstanding of the word unless (1) the pronouncer never 

provided a correct pronunciation; (2) the pronouncer provided 

incorrect information regarding the definition, part of speech, or 

language of origin; or (3) the speller correctly spelled a homonym 

of the word and the pronouncer failed to either offer a definition 

or distinguish the homonyms. 

Pronouncer Errors: The judges compare the pronouncer’s 

pronunciation with the diacritical markings in the word list. If the 

judges feel that the pronouncer’s pronunciation does not match 

the pronunciation specified in the diacritical markings, the judges 

will direct the pronouncer to correct the error as soon as it is 

detected. 

Disqualifications for reasons other than clear misspelling: The 

judges will disqualify a speller (1) who does not approach the 

microphone when it is the speller’s time to receive the word 

unless there are extenuating circumstances that, in the judges’ 


COMPETITION FLOW CHART 

Advance to Round Two 

Misspell or provide 

incorrect responses 

COMPUTER-BASED TEST (PRELIMINARIES) 

Section A: 24 spelling words: 12 scored 1 point each 

Section B: 24 vocabulary words: 12 scored 1 point each 

Sections C & D: 1 vocabulary word per 3 points each 

TUESDAY MORNING, MAY 27 

EARN UP TO 30 POINTS FOR CORRECT RESPONSES. 

Misspell and out 

ROUND TWO (PRELIMINARIES) 

WEDNESDAY MORNING, MAY 28 | ESPN3 

SPELL CORRECTLY AND EARN 3 POINTS IN THIS ROUND. 


ROUND THREE (PRELIMINARIES) 

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON, MAY 28 | ESPN3 


Do Not Meet Threshold Out 

SEMIFINALS THRESHOLD 

WEDNESDAY, APPROXIMATELY 5 P.M. 

MAY 28 | ESPN3 

NO MORE THAN 50 SPELLERS WILL ADVANCE TO SEMIFINALS. (See rules for details.) 

Advance to Round Five 

Misspell or provide 

incorrect responses 

COMPUTER-BASED TEST (SEMIFINALS) 

Section A: 12 spelling words 1 point each 

Section B: 12 vocabulary words 1 point each 

Sections C & D: 1 vocabulary word per 3 points each 

WEDNESDAY EVENING, MAY 28 

EARN UP TO 30 POINTS FOR CORRECT RESPONSES. 


ROUND FIVE (SEMIFINALS) 

THURSDAY MORNING, 




ROUND SIX (SEMIFINALS) 

THURSDAY MIDDAY, 



Out 

Do Not Meet 

Threshold 

CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS THRESHOLD 

THURSDAY, APPROXIMATELY 1 P.M. 


IT’S ANTICIPATED THAT NO MORE THAN 12 SPELLERS WILL ADVANCE TO 

THE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS. (See rules for details.) 

• If all spellers in a round 

misspell, all remain in the 

competition and a new round 

begins with the spellers 

spelling in their original order. 

and out, with 

two exceptions: 

Misspell 

ROUNDS SEVEN AND HIGHER 

(CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS) 

THURSDAY EVENING, 

MAY 29 | ESPN 

• If the speller misspells the 

anticipated winning word in a 

one-word round, a new round 

begins with all the spellers 

who spelled correctly and 

incorrectly in the previous 

round; these spellers spell in 

their original order. 

SPELL CORRECTLY 

CHAMPION 



TWENTY QUESTIONS 

1. DIDN’T SHE SPELL THAT WORD CORRECTLY 

THAT’S HOW MY DICTIONARY SPELLS IT. 

She didn’t spell the word the way it’s spelled in the Bee’s official dictionary, 

Webster’s Third New International Dictionary and its addenda section, copyright 

2002, Merriam-Webster (Webster’s Third). Bee rules state that Webster’s Third is the 

final authority for the spelling of words. 

2. WHERE DOES DR. BAILLY GET THE WORDS 

The individuals — Bee officials and special contributors — who collaborate to 

produce the word list find the words in the course of going about their lives, reading 

books and traveling. Then they confirm the words’ presence in Webster’s Third. 

Occasionally, we hear theories that the Bee strategically recycles words from 

previous lists or creates special themes for its word lists. Let’s just say that we 

find these theories amusing. 

3. DR. BAILLY MISPRONOUNCED THE WORD. 

WHAT CAN BE DONE 

What Dr. Bailly did was pronounce the word according to the diacritical markings in 

Webster’s Third. Diacritical markings are symbols such as ä and ŋ that you see in a 

dictionary. If he didn’t pronounce it the way you expected it to be pronounced, it’s 

because your pronunciation wasn’t in the dictionary, and the pronouncer is bound by 

the rules to pronounce only what is listed in the dictionary. It’s also important to note 

that the legion of Bee officials in the front of the ballroom closely listen to Dr. Bailly 

and immediately alert him to make an on-the-spot correction in the event of an error. 

4. WHY DOES THE BEE ASK SO MANY FOREIGN 

WORDS 

Most words in the English language are words that we borrowed from other 

languages. We borrowed them, used them and now call them our own. 

5. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SPELLER MISSPELLS 

ONSTAGE 

The judges’ bell will ring, the pronouncer will offer the correct spelling, and the 

speller will exit in the direction of the sofas located stage right. One or both of the 

speller’s parents will meet the speller at the sofas and lead the speller from the 

stage area. 

6. WHAT HAPPENS IF EVERY SPELLER IN A 

ROUND MISSPELLS 

Every speller who misspelled in the round is reinstated to the competition. 

A new round begins, and they spell in their original order. 


7. WHAT HAPPENS IF THE SPELLER CORRECTLY 

SPELLS A HOMONYM OF THE WORD 

The speller is out of luck unless Dr. Bailly failed to say that the word is a homonym 

or did not provide a definition of the word. 

8. WHAT ARE THE TIME LIMITS 

Both the Preliminaries and Semifinals computer-based tests have a 45-minute 

limit. During all rounds of onstage spelling, spellers have a limit of two minutes. 

9. WHY DOES THE PRONOUNCER GIVE A LOT OF 

INFORMATION TO SOME SPELLERS AND VERY 

LITTLE INFORMATION TO OTHERS 

Some words have multiple pronunciations, long definitions and complex origins. Other words have only one pronunciation, a brief 

definition and a simple origin. Here’s the interesting part: there is no correlation between the volume of information and the spelling 

difficulty level. 

Also, some spellers don’t ask for information, while others ask multiple questions. The rules give Dr. Bailly discretion to offer 

information (as long as it’s in the word list or Webster’s Third) if he feels that it would be helpful to the speller, or if he has a 

sentence that he thinks is funny. 

10. WHAT IF THE SPELLER DOESN’T UNDERSTAND THE WORD 

The rules say it’s the speller’s responsibility to understand the word. If he doesn’t understand the word, misspelling is likely. 

Bee officials are not aware of a problem unless the speller: 

1) says “I don’t understand,” 

2) distinctly mispronounces the word while facing the judges, or 

3) delivers an Oscar-worthy interpretation of confusion. 

If the officials detect a lack of understanding, they will do all that they can within the limits of the rules to help the speller achieve 

an understanding of the word. 

11. HOW MANY ROUNDS WILL THERE BE 

The Preliminaries and Semifinals are each three rounds with Rounds One and Four being computer-based tests. The Championship 

Finals begins with Round Seven but we simply don’t know how many rounds it will take to determine a Champion. It all depends on 

how many spellers misspell in each round. 

12. WHAT HAPPENS IF THE BEE RUNS OUT OF WORDS 

That’s not a significant concern of Bee officials, as the list contains enough words for us to conduct the Bee through dawn on 

Friday morning. 


Continued from previous page 

13. WHY AT THE END OF THE BEE DOES THE SCREEN COUNT DOWN FROM 25 

AFTER EACH SPELLER SPELLS WHAT HAPPENS IF IT REACHES ZERO 

The screen counts down from 25 to indicate that the pronouncer is offering words from the 25-word Championship Words section of 

the list. If a champion is not determined in the course of administering these final 25 words, Co-Champions will be declared. 

14. WHY DIDN’T THE CHAMPION HAVE TO CORRECT THE SPELLING OF THE 

OTHER SPELLER ONSTAGE 

The rule about correcting the other speller’s spelling went away in 1991. Now, in order to be declared Champion, you must be the only 

speller to spell correctly in a round; plus, in the next round — a one-word, one-person round — you must spell correctly. 

15. WHEN WILL THE SPELLERS EVER SEE OR USE THESE WORDS AGAIN 

Maybe never. And that’s fine by us. Why Because the spellers you see onstage are the crème de la crème — the best from a field of 

more than 11 million students. Of course we have to give these brilliant kids such difficult words! What really matters are the hundreds 

of important, useful words that they and the 11 million others learned and spelled prior to this competition — words they will definitely 

see and use again such as philanthropy, imperative and amenable. As for those incredibly difficult words, they’re out there — in great 

works of literature, guide books, high school and college textbooks and other great places. We’re proud to put the spotlight on these 

rare and important gems of the English language. 

16. HOW DOES THE BEE DECIDE WHO MAKES IT TO THE SEMIFINALS 

Let’s suppose that 225 spellers remain in the Bee at the end of Round Three. Each of the 225 spellers has a Preliminaries score — 

points earned in the Preliminaries Test and Rounds Two and Three. The highest possible Preliminaries score a speller can earn is 36. 

Now let’s suppose that the scoring distribution looks like this: 

PRELIMINARIES SCORE 

36 

35 

34 

33 

32 

31 

30 

29 

NUMBER OF SPELLERS 

ACHIEVING THIS SCORE 

2 

3 

8 

12 

19 

18 

23 

17 

CUMULATIVE NUMBER OF SPELLERS 

AT OR ABOVE THIS SCORING LEVEL 

2 

5 

13 

25 

44 

62 

85 

102 

The remainder of this sample scoring distribution table not shown. 

No more than 50 spellers will make it to the Semifinals. In this example, the Semifinals scoring threshold is 32. All spellers who 

achieved Preliminaries scores of at least 32 — in this sample case, it’s 44 spellers — qualify for the Semifinals. 

17. HOW MANY SPELLERS USUALLY QUALIFY FOR THE SEMIFINALS 

Looking over the past five Bees, 42 spellers qualified for the Semifinals in 2013. In 2012, it was 50; 2011: 41; 2010: 48; and 2009: 41. 


18. HOW DOES THE BEE DECIDE WHO MAKES IT TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS 

This formula is similar to the one used for the Semifinals. Let’s suppose that 28 spellers remain in the Bee at the end of Round Six. Each 

of the 28 spellers has a Preliminaries score — points earned in the Preliminaries Test and Rounds Two and Three; also, a Semifinals 

score — points earned in the Semifinals Test and Rounds Five and Six. Immediately after Round Six, a speller’s Preliminaries score and 

Semifinals score are added together. The highest possible cumulative Preliminaries and Semifinals score a speller can earn is 72. Now 

let’s suppose that the scoring distribution for the 28 spellers looks like this: 

CUMULATIVE PRELIMINARIES 

AND SEMIFINALS SCORE 

72 

71 

70 

69 

68 

67 

66 

65 

64 

63 

62 

NUMBER OF SPELLERS 

ACHIEVING THIS SCORE 

0 

1 

1 

2 

4 

2 

1 

0 

2 

1 

5 

CUMULATIVE NUMBER OF SPELLERS 

AT OR ABOVE THIS SCORING LEVEL 

0 

1 

2 

4 

8 

10 

11 

11 

13 

14 

19 

The remainder of this sample scoring distribution table not shown. 

It is anticipated that no more than 12 spellers will make it to the Championship Finals. In this example, the Championship Finals scoring 

threshold is 65. All spellers who achieved a cumulative Preliminaries and Semifinals score of at least 65 — in this sample case, it’s 11 

spellers — qualify for the Championship Finals. 

19. HOW MANY SPELLERS USUALLY QUALIFY FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS 

Looking back over the past five Bees, 11 spellers qualified in 2013. In 2012, it was 9; 2011: 13; 2010: 8; and 2009: 11. 

20. HOW DOES THE BEE RANK SPELLERS AS THEY EXIT THE COMPETITION 

Here is a summary: 

TIMING OF COMPETITION EXIT 

Misspell in Round Two 

Misspell in Round Three 

In Bee at the end of Round Three but do not 

qualify for the Semifinals 

Misspell in Round Five 

Misspell in Round Six 

In Bee at the end of Round Six but do not qualify 

for the Championship Finals 

Misspell and are eliminated during the 

Championship Finals 

RANK 

number of spellers in Bee at the end of Round Two + 1 

number of spellers in Bee at the end of Round Three + 1 

number of Semifinalists + 1 

number of spellers in Bee at the end of Round Five + 1 

number of spellers in Bee at the end of Round Six + 1 

number of Championship Finalists + 1 

number of spellers spelling in the round occurring immediately 

after the round in which speller was eliminated + 1 


MEET THE SPELLEBRITIES 

SPELL•E•BRI•TY 

noun: a person renowned for the ability to spell 

difficult words under pressure, bright lights and 

the adoring gaze of millions. 

Ask for my autograph, because I’m a 

SPELLERS BY THE NUMBERS 

Age 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

Total 

1 

3 

7 

26 

55 

98 

90 

1 

Percent 

0.4% 

1.1% 

2.5% 

9.3% 

19.5% 

34.8% 

32.0% 

0.4% 

Grade 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

Total 

1 

1 

2 

18 

41 

84 

134 

Percent 

0.4% 

0.4% 

0.7% 

6.4% 

14.6% 

29.8% 

47.7% 

School Type 

Public 

Private 

Parochial 

Home 

Charter 

142 GIRLS: 50.53% 139 BOYS: 49.47% NUMBER OF SPELLERS: 281 

Total 

190 

52 

19 

11 

9 

Percent 

67.6% 

18.5% 

6.8% 

3.9% 

3.2% 

STUDYING SIBLINGS 

Many spellers list their brothers and sisters 

as study buddies. Of this year’s spellers, 56 

are only children and 124 spellers have one 

sibling. The remaining 101 spellers have 290 

siblings combined. Ten spellers – spellers 4, 

53, 85, 88, 163, 168, 182, 227, 236, 267 – have 

5 siblings or more. And speller 88, Michaella 

Bostrom, is the 9th of 13 children. 

Four spellers have a fraternal twin – spellers 

26, 30, 60, 248 – and spellers 162 and 268 

have identical twins. Speller 114, Spencer 

Pogue, is a triplet, as is speller 268, Buck 

Walling. 

SPELLING IN THEIR BLOOD 

Twenty two spellers 

have relatives who have 

participated in a combined 

52 Scripps National Spelling 

Bees. Kavya Shivashankar, 

the sister of speller 90, 

Vanya Shivashankar, won in 2009; and Anamika Veeramani, 

the sister of speller 188, Ashwin Veeramani, won in 2010. 

SPELL-PEATERS 

There are many spellers returning to the Scripps National 

Spelling Bee this year. In fact, 78 spellers have collectively 

competed in 104 previous Bees. 

FIVE-YEAR REPEATER (1) 

154 Sriram Hathwar 

FOUR-YEAR REPEATERS (5) 

60 Lucas Urbanski 

61 Yasir Hasnain 

90 Vanya Shivashankar 

222 Isabella Neubauer 

264 Shayley Martin 

THREE-YEAR REPEATERS (13) 

18 Isabel Cholbi 

68 Sophie Bergman 

123 Hannah Jackson 

132 Faaris Khan 

139 Gokul Venkatachalam 

145 Eboseremhen Eigbe 

147 Katharine Wang 

149 Carson Monks 

165 Dylan O’Connor 

172 Katie Danis 

187 Joseph Cusi Delamerced 

232 Kate Miller 

262 Jae Canetti 

TWO-YEAR REPEATERS (59) 

7 Chythanya Murali 

14 Patrizzia Fox-Beaudet 

16 Aditya Mishra 

20 Neha Konakalla 

32 Keshav Ramesh 

34 Lillian Allingham 

43 Mary Horton 

47 Brian Reinhart 

55 Christine Alex 

57 Meghana Kamineni 

58 Alia Abiad 

59 Zander Patent 

83 Kimmie Collins 

84 Sean Ives 

85 Zander Reed 

89 Sterling Hollond 

112 Meryl Warpula 

115 Neha Seshadri 

120 Marguerite Arbogast 

121 Nathaniel Britton 

124 Cameron Haynes 

135 Jade Samanta 

142 Amna Raza 


Favorite Sports 

1. Soccer 

2. Basketball 

3. Swimming 

4. Tennis 

5. Football 

GET TO KNOW THE SPELLERS 

Favorite Novels 

1. Veronica Roth’s Divergent series 

2. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series 

3. Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy 

4. Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series 

5. John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars 

Favorite Movies 

1. The Hunger Games series 

2. The Harry Potter series 

3. Frozen 

4. Divergent 

Favorite Musician/Band 

1. Taylor Swift 

2. Imagine Dragons 

3. The Beatles 

4. Eminem 

5. Beethoven 

Favorite T.V. Shows 

1. The Big Bang Theory 

2. Doctor Who 

3. Jeopardy 

4. Sherlock 

5. Shark Tank 

Favorite App or 

Computer Game 

1. Minecraft 

2. Flappy Bird 

3. Temple Run 

4. Clash of Clans 

5. Fruit Ninja 

Hope to Attend 

1. Harvard 

2. Stanford 

3. M.I.T. 

4. Yale 

Favorite Historical Figure 

1. Abraham Lincoln 

2. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

3. Mahatma Gandhi 

4. Albert Einstein 

5. George Washington 

Languages Spoken 

English is not the 1st language of 28 spellers. Overall, 138 

spellers speak or study a language other than English, 

including Filipino, Finnish, Hindi, Ilocano, Indonesian, 

Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Marathi, Polish, 

Russian, Samoan, Telugu, Urdu and Vietnamese. 

This year’s competitors are all great spellers, but that’s not all they do! Here’s a brief look into the interests and accomplishments 

of the students competing to become the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee Champion. 

Speller 59 Zander Patent 

In his free time, Zander 

enjoys remixing and 

singing his own creative 

versions of popular music. 

Speller 68 Sophie Bergman 

Sophie is a world traveler. 

Her extensive travels have 

taken her to all 50 states 

and 25 countries. 

Speller 105 Maddie K. Bowers 

Maddie has performed in 

several ballets and she 

was the lead in her dance 

school’s performance of 

The Nutcracker. 

Speller 138 Peyton Wiewel 

Peyton is a competitive 

figure skater who has won 

a gold medal in the Ice 

Skating Institute world 

championships. 

Speller 154 Sriram J. Hathwar 

Sriram, who is returning to 

the Scripps National Spelling 

Bee for the 5th time this year, 

spoke about his experiences 

at a TEDx event. 

Speller 103 Megan A. Rabe 

Megan is a talented violinist 

who has performed in 

prestigious venues such 

as the Kennedy Center 

for the Performing Arts. 

Speller 186 Olivia C. Kaiser 

Olivia is passionate about music 

and plays college-level classical 

piano and sings in three choirs. In 

March, Olivia performed at one of 

the most famous concert venues 

in the world, Carnegie Hall. 

Speller 239 Syamantak Payra 

Syamantak enjoys creative 

writing and has published 

more than a dozen poems and 

essays in various anthologies, 

magazines and books. 

Speller 262 Jae Canetti 

Jae loves math and puzzles. 

He can solve a Rubik’s Cube 

in less than 40 seconds and 

recite pi up to 115 digits. 

146 Sanjana Malla 

155 Gavin Buehler 

158 Michael James 

159 Sai Vishudhi Chandrasekhar 

167 Shiv Patel 

178 Lauren Lim 

188 Ashwin Veeramani 

190 Kaitlin Hall 

192 Alotus Wei 

194 Justin Hamilton 

195 Sasha Davis 

196 Nathan Keenan 

201 Nicholas Stark 

202 Cole Shafer-Ray 

203 Divya Amirtharaj 

204 Shreyas Parab 

205 Jacob George 

207 Aparajita Rao 

208 Hannah Citsay 

210 Anna Tran 

214 Emily Gunkel 

216 Alexandra Harper 

217 Stephen Landry 

223 Kalika Bridwell 

224 Antonio Vince Miguel Lansang 

226 Benjamin Kulas 

237 Ansun Sujoe 

238 Shobha Dasari 

239 Syamantak Payra 

243 Gabrielle Rubio 

244 Kara Lehnert 

250 Manav Thadani 

255 Samuel Pereles 

259 Jensen Schram 

275 Lillian Bischof 

277 Victoria Allen 


CHAMPIONS AND THEIR WINNING WORDS 

1925 

1925: GLADIOLUS 

Frank Neuhauser 

Louisville Courier-Journal 

Louisville, Kentucky 

1926: CERISE 

Pauline Bell 



1927: LUXURIANCE 

Dean Lucas 

Akron Beacon Journal 

Akron, Ohio 

1928: ALBUMEN 

Betty Robinson 

South Bend News-Tribune 

South Bend, Indiana 

1929: ASCETICISM 

Virginia Hogan 

The Omaha World-Herald 

Omaha, Nebraska 

1930: FRACAS 

Helen Jensen 

Des Moines Register & Tribune 

Des Moines, Iowa 

1931: FOULARD 

Ward Randall 

White Hall Register-Republican 

White Hall, Illinois 

1932: KNACK 

Dorothy Greenwalk 



1933: TORSION 

Alma Roach 


Akron, Ohio 

1934: DETERIORATING 

Sarah Wilson 

Portland Evening Press 

Portland, Maine 


1935: INTELLIGIBLE 

Clara Mohler 


Akron, Ohio 

1936: INTERNING 

Jean Trowbridge 



1937: PROMISCUOUS 

Waneeta Beckley 



1938: SANITARIUM 

Marian Richardson 

Louisville Times 


1939: CANONICAL 

Elizabeth Ann Rice 

Worcester Telegram & Gazette 

Worcester, Massachusetts 

1940: THERAPY 

Laurel Kuykendall 

The Knoxville News Sentinel 

Knoxville, Tennessee 

1941: INITIALS 

Louis Edward Sissman 

Detroit News 

Detroit, Michigan 

1942: SACRILEGIOUS 

Richard Earnhart 

El Paso Herald-Post 

El Paso, Texas 

1946: SEMAPHORE 

John McKinney 



1926 

1947: CHLOROPHYLL 

Mattie Lou Pollard 

Atlanta Journal 

Atlanta, Georgia 

1948: PSYCHIATRY 

Jean Chappelear 


Akron, Ohio 

1949: DULCIMER 

Kim Calvin 

Canton Repository 

Canton, Ohio 

1950: METICULOSITY 

Diana Reynard 

Cleveland Press 

Cleveland, Ohio 

and Colquitt Dean 

Atlanta Journal 

Atlanta, Georgia 

1951: INSOUCIANT 

Irving Belz 

Memphis Press Scimitar 

Memphis, Tennessee 

1952: VIGNETTE 

Doris Ann Hall 

Winston-Salem Journal 

Winston-Salem, 

North Carolina 

1953: SOUBRETTE 

Elizabeth Hess 

Arizona Republic 

Phoenix, Arizona 

1954: TRANSEPT 

William Cashore 

Norristown Times Herald 

Norristown, Pennsylvania 

1955: CRUSTACEOLOGY 

Sandra Sloss 

St. Louis Globe-Democrat 

St. Louis, Missouri 

1956: CONDOMINIUM 

Melody Sachko 

The Pittsburgh Press 

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 

1957: SCHAPPE 

Sandra Owen 

Canton Repository 

Canton, Ohio 

and Dana Bennett 

Rocky Mountain News 

Denver, Colorado 

1958: SYLLEPSIS 

Jolitta Schlehuber 

Topeka Daily Capital 

Topeka, Kansas 

1959: CATAMARAN 

Joel Montgomery 



1960: EUDAEMONIC 

Henry Feldman 



1961: SMARAGDINE 

John Capehart 

Tulsa Tribune 

Tulsa, Oklahoma 

1962: ESQUAMULOSE 

Nettie Crawford 



and Michael Day 

St. Louis Globe-Democrat 


1971 

1963: EQUIPAGE 

Glen Van Slyke III 



1964: SYCOPHANT 

William Kerek 


Akron, Ohio 

1965: ECZEMA 

Michael Kerpan, Jr. 

Tulsa Tribune 

Tulsa, Oklahoma 

1966: RATOON 

Robert A. Wake 

Houston Chronicle 

Houston, Texas 

1967: CHIHUAHUA 

Jennifer Reinke 

The Omaha World-Herald 

Omaha, Nebraska 

1968: ABALONE 

Robert L. Walters 

The Topeka Daily Capital 

Topeka, Kansas

1996 

1969: INTERLOCUTORY 

Susan Yoachum 

Dallas Morning News 

Dallas, Texas 

1970: CROISSANT 

Libby Childress 

Winston-Salem Journal & Sentinel 

Winston-Salem, North Carolina 

1971: SHALLOON 

Jonathan Knisely 

Philadelphia Bulletin 

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

1972: MACERATE 

Robin Kral 

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal 

Lubbock, Texas 

1973: VOUCHSAFE 

Barrie Trinkle 

Fort Worth Press 

Fort Worth, Texas 

1974: HYDROPHYTE 

Julie Ann Junkin 

Birmingham Post-Herald 

Birmingham, Alabama 

1975: INCISOR 

Hugh Tosteson 

San Juan Star 

San Juan, Puerto Rico 

1976: NARCOLEPSY 

Tim Kneale 

Syracuse Herald 

Journal-American 

Syracuse, New York 

1977: CAMBIST 

John Paola 



1978: DEIFICATION 

Peg McCarthy 

The Topeka Capital-Journal 

Topeka, Kansas 

1979: MACULATURE 

Katie Kerwin 



1980: ELUCUBRATE 

Jacques Bailly 



1981: SARCOPHAGUS 

Paige Pipkin 



1982: PSORIASIS 

Molly Dieveney 



1983: PURIM 

Blake Giddens 



1984: LUGE 

Daniel Greenblatt 

Loudoun Times-Mirror 

Leesburg, Virginia 

1985: MILIEU 

Balu Natarajan 

Chicago Tribune 

Chicago, Illinois 

1986: ODONTALGIA 

Jon Pennington 

The Patriot News 

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 

1987: STAPHYLOCOCCI 

Stephanie Petit 



1988: ELEGIACAL 

Rageshree Ramachandran 

The Sacramento Bee 

Sacramento, California 

1989: SPOLIATOR 

Scott Isaacs 



1990: FIBRANNE 

Amy Marie Dimak 

The Seattle Times 

Seattle, Washington 

1991: ANTIPYRETIC 

Joanne Lagatta 

The Wisconsin State Journal 

Madison, Wisconsin 

1992: LYCEUM 

Amanda Goad 

The Richmond News Leader 

Richmond, Virginia 

1993: KAMIKAZE 

Geoff Hooper 

The Commercial Appeal 


1994: ANTEDILUVIAN 

Ned G. Andrews 



1995: XANTHOSIS 

Justin Tyler Carroll 

The Commercial Appeal 


1996: VIVISEPULTURE 

Wendy Guey 

The Palm Beach Post 

West Palm Beach, Florida 

1997: EUONYM 

Rebecca Sealfon 

Daily News 

New York, New York 

1998: CHIAROSCURIST 

Jody-Anne Maxwell 

Phillips & Phillips 

Stationery Suppliers 

Kingston, Jamaica 

1999: LOGORRHEA 

Nupur Lala 

The Tampa Tribune 

Tampa, Florida 

2000: DEMARCHE 

George Abraham Thampy 

St. Louis Post-Dispatch 


2001: SUCCEDANEUM 

Sean Conley 

Aitkin Independent Age 

Aitkin, Minnesota 

2002: PROSPICIENCE 

Pratyush Buddiga 



2003: POCOCURANTE 

Sai R. Gunturi 

The Dallas Morning News 

Dallas, Texas 

2004: AUTOCHTHONOUS 

David Scott Pilarski Tidmarsh 

South Bend Tribune 

South Bend, Indiana 

2005: APPOGGIATURA 

Anurag Kashyap 

San Diego Union-Tribune 

San Diego, California 

2006: URSPRACHE 

Katharine Close 

Asbury Park Press/ 

Home News Tribune 

Asbury Park, New Jersey 

2007: SERREFINE 

Evan M. O’Dorney 

Contra Costa Times 

Walnut Creek, California 

2008: GUERDON 

Sameer Mishra 

Journal and Courier 

Lafayette, Indiana 

2009: LAODICEAN 

Kavya Shivashankar 

The Olathe News 

Olathe, Kansas 

2010: STROMUHR 

Anamika Veeramani 

The Plain Dealer 

Cleveland, Ohio 

2011: CYMOTRICHOUS 

Sukanya Roy 

Times Leader 

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 

2012: GUETAPENS 

Snigdha Nandipati 

U-T San Diego 

San Diego, California 

2013: KNAIDEL 

Arvind Mahankali 

Daily News 

New York, New York 

Want to relive last year’s championship 

moment With a QR reader, use this 

code to watch the video. 


PRIZES 

FOR THE CHAMPION 

From Scripps: a $30,000 cash prize and the Scripps National Spelling Bee engraved trophy 

From Merriam-Webster: a $2,500 U.S. savings bond and a complete reference library 

From Encyclopaedia Britannica: $1,200 of reference works including the Britannica Global Edition, 

1768 Encyclopaedia Britannica Replica Set Deluxe Edition, 3-year membership to Britannica Online 

Premium and Britannica World Atlas 

FOR THE CHAMPION’S SCHOOL AND SPONSOR 

From Scripps: Scripps National Spelling Bee engraved plaques 

FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALISTS 

A medal from the Scripps National Spelling Bee 

Cash Prizes 

• Misspell in the first round of the Championship Finals to 7th place: $1,500 

• 6th Place: $2,000 

• 5th Place: $2,500 

• 4th Place: $3,000 

• 3rd Place: $7,500 

• 2nd Place: $12,500 

FOR THE SEMIFINALISTS 

A medal from the Scripps National Spelling Bee and a $500 gift card 

FOR ALL SPELLERS 

From Merriam-Webster: Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged, including a CD-ROM 

From Mr. Jay Sugarman: The Samuel Louis Sugarman Award — a 2014 United States Mint 

Proof Set presented by Mr. Sugarman in honor of his father 

From Microsoft: educational tools 

From Encyclopaedia Britannica: a one-year membership to Britannica Online Premium 

Spellers who are eliminated from the competition in the same round are assigned the same rank (place). If Bee officials 

declare Co-Champions, each Co-Champion will receive a $30,000 first place cash prize. 


SPELLERS AND SPONSORS 

ALABAMA 

1 Joshua Bryant Kelley of 

Gadsden is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Gadsden 

Middle School. His 

sponsor is Adventure 

Travel, Birmingham. 

ALASKA 

2 Abigail FitzGibbon of 

Sitka is a 12-year-old 7th 

grader at Blatchley Middle 

School. Her sponsor is the 

Anchorage Daily News. 

3 Vivian R. Miller of Delta 

Junction is an 11-year-old 

6th grader at Whitestone 

Farms School. Her 

sponsor is the Daily 

News-Miner, Fairbanks. 

AMERICAN SAMOA 

4 Walter Fa’apouli of 

Olosega Manu’a is a 

13-year-old 7th grader 

at Olosega Elementary 

School. His sponsor is the 

Samoa News, Pago Pago. 

ARIZONA 

5 Nila Dhinaker of Gilbert 

is a 12-year-old 7th grader 

at Cooley Middle School. 

Her sponsor is the Arizona 

Educational Foundation, 

Scottsdale. 

6 Alessandro Luis Bolus 

of Second Mesa is a 


at Second Mesa Day 


Navajo Times Publishing 

Company, Window Rock. 

ARKANSAS 

7 Chythanya Murali of Little 

Rock is a 13-year-old 8th 

grader at LISA Academy 

West. Her sponsor is the 

Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 

Little Rock. 

THE BAHAMAS 

8 Prachi Kondapuram of 

Nassau is an 11-year-old 

7th grader at Queen’s 

College. Her sponsor is 

The Nassau Guardian. 

CALIFORNIA 

9 Eesha R. Sohail of 

Bakersfield is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at Norris 

Middle School. Her 

sponsor is KERO 23 ABC, 

Bakersfield. 

10 Sam Coats of Ventura 


at Cabrillo Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Ventura 

County Star, Camarillo. 

11 Sanat Mishra of Chino 

Hills is a 12-year-old 7th 

grader at Canyon Hills Junior 

High School. His sponsor is 

Quest Literacy Consortium, 

Inc., Diamond Bar. 

12 Chase Seals of Imperial 


at Frank Wright Middle 

School. His sponsor is 

the Imperial Valley Press, 

El Centro. 

13 Timothy Lau of Torrance 


at Calle Mayor Middle 


Los Angeles Spelling Bee 

Collaborative. 

14 Patrizzia C. Fox-Beaudet 

of Cottonwood is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at University 

Preparatory School. Her 

sponsor is the Record 

Searchlight, Redding. 

15 Keerthana Sivathasan 

of Corona is a 12-yearold 

8th grader at Corona 

Fundamental Intermediate 

School. Her sponsor is 

The Press-Enterprise, 

Riverside. 

16 Aditya Mishra of 

Lincoln is a 12-year-old 7th 

grader at Olympus Junior 


The Sacramento Bee. 

17 Jonathan P. Capuyan 

of Salinas is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Palma 


Monterey County Office of 

Education, Salinas. 

18 Isabel Cholbi of San 

Bernardino is a 12-year-old 

8th grader at Cesar E. Chavez 

Middle School. Her sponsor 

is the San Bernardino 

Spelling Bee Collaborative. 

19 Allison Grace Grygar 

of San Diego is a 


at St. Michael’s Catholic 


U-T San Diego. 

20 Neha Konakalla of 

Cupertino is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Sam H. Lawson 


is KPIX-TV & KCBS Radio 

AM & FM, San Francisco. 

21 Samuel Littrell of 

Placentia is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Golden Elementary 

School. His sponsor is The 

Orange County Register, 

Santa Ana. 

22 Victoria Lynn Phillips of 

Yermo is an 11-year-old 6th 

grader at Yermo School. 

Her sponsor is the Daily 

Press, Victorville. 

23 Eileen Xue of Tulare is 

a 12-year-old 6th grader at 

Mission Valley Elementary 


Visalia Times-Delta/ 

Tulare Advance-Register. 

24 Shirlyn Prabahar of 

San Ramon is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Gale Ranch 


is the Contra Costa Times, 

Walnut Creek. 

CANADA 

25 Emily D. Hynes of 

Torbay is a 10-year-old 

5th grader at Holy Trinity 

Elementary School. Her 

sponsor is The Telegram, 

St. John’s, Newfoundland 

and Labrador. 


SPELLERS AND SPONSORS continued 

26 Ryan Glenn Spencer of 

Great Village is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at West 

Colchester Consolidated 


The Chronicle Herald, 

Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

CHINA 

27 Dana Chiueh of Hsinchu 

City is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at the International 

Bilingual School at 

Hsinchu-Science-Park. 

Her sponsor is the 

Community Center Shanghai. 

28 Xi Yuan Wang of Shaoxing 

is a 12-year-old 6th grader at 

Qooco Training School. His 

sponsor is the Community 

Center Shanghai. 

COLORADO 

29 Teddy Schoenfeld of 

Boulder is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Summit Middle 


Barnes & Noble, Boulder. 

30 Alex Jurich of Denver 


at Hamilton Middle 


The Denver Post. 

CONNECTICUT 

31 Anika R. Malayappan 

of Danbury is an 11-yearold 

5th grader at Stadley 

Rough Elementary 


the Hearst Connecticut 

Media Group, Danbury. 

32 Keshav Ramesh of 

South Windsor is an 


at Eli Terry Elementary 


New Haven Register. 

33 Connor Spencer 

of Barkhamsted is a 

13-year-old 8th grader at 

Northwestern Regional 


sponsor is the Register 

Citizen, Torrington. 


281 Noah Fitzgerald of 

Ridgefield is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Scotts Ridge 

Middle School. His sponsor 

is the Hearst Connecticut 

Media Group, Danbury. 

DELAWARE 

34 Lillian Elizabeth 

Allingham of Wilmington is 


Sanford School. Her sponsor 

is the Delaware Spelling Bee 

Collaborative, Wilmington. 

DISTRICT OF 

COLUMBIA 

35 Greer R. Marshall of 

Washington is an 11-yearold 

6th grader at Alice Deal 


is The Washington Informer. 

EUROPE 

36 Selomi Dayaprema of 

Vicenza, Italy is an 11-yearold 

6th grader at Vicenza 

Middle School, U.S. 

Department of Defense 


European PTA, Defense and 

State Department Schools. 

FLORIDA 

37 Alexander John Manning 

of Lakeland is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Lakeland 

Highlands Middle School. His 

sponsor is the Polk County 

School District Collaborative, 

Bartow. 

38 Jacob Daniel 

Williamson of Cape 

Coral is a home-schooled 

15-year-old 8th grader. His 

sponsor is The Daily News, 

Bonita Springs. 

39 Daniel G. Samraj of 

Gainesville is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Westwood 


is The Florida Times-Union, 

Jacksonville. 

40 Dylan Olster of Pembroke 

Pines is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Pembroke Pines 

Charter Middle School West 

Campus. His sponsor is 

The Miami Herald. 

41 Amber R. Robinson of 

Homestead is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Herbert 

A. Ammons Middle 


The Miami Herald. 

42 Amy A. Maldonado of 

Naples is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Golden Gate 


is the Naples Daily News. 

43 Mary Elizabeth Horton 

of West Melbourne is a 

home-schooled 13-yearold 

8th grader. Her sponsor 

is Orlando Sentinel 

Communications. 

44 Riju Datta of Tampa is a 


Corbett Preparatory School 

of IDS. His sponsor is the 

Tampa Bay Spelling Bee 

Collaborative, St. Petersburg. 

45 Jonathan Buckley of 

Vero Beach is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Saint 

Edward’s School. His 

sponsor is Treasure Coast 

Newspapers, Stuart. 

46 Summer Skye Hayes of 

Marianna is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Cottondale 

High School. Her sponsor is 

the Tallahassee Democrat. 

47 Brian Reinhart of 

Palm Beach Gardens is 

a 14-year-old 8th grader 

at The Weiss School. His 

sponsor is the Kiwanis 

Club of West Palm Beach. 

GEORGIA 

48 Charles Sirui Li of 

Martinez is an 11-yearold 

5th grader at Stevens 

Creek Elementary School. 

His sponsor is The Augusta 

Chronicle.

49 Sumedh S. Garimella 

of Duluth is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Richard Hull 


is the Georgia Association 

of Educators, Tucker. 

GHANA 

50 Khushi Jeswani of 

Accra is a 10-year-old 

6th grader at Delhi Public 


the Young Educators 

Foundation, Accra. 

GUAM 

51 Ron Rocky Naig Coloma 

of Barrigada is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Santa 

Barbara Catholic School. 

His sponsor is the Pacific 

Daily News, Hagåtña. 

HAWAII 

52 Christianne Borbe 

Abella of Kailua Kona is 


at Konawaena Middle 


aio, Honolulu. 

IDAHO 

53 Kiana Jaz Lacroix 

of Coeur d’Alene is a 


Coeur d’Alene Charter 

Academy. Her sponsor is 

the Coeur d’Alene Press. 

54 Maia R. Dykstra of 

Clarkston, Washington, is 


at Asotin Junior High 


the Lewiston Tribune. 

ILLINOIS 

55 Christine Alex of 

Chicago is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Whitney 

Young Magnet High 


Chicago Public Schools. 

56 Nafisa Asad of 

Oakbrook is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Herrick Middle 


Commonwealth Edison, 

Chicago. 

57 Meghana Kamineni of 

Lockport is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Homer Junior 

High School. Her sponsor 

is Commonwealth Edison, 

Chicago. 

58 Alia Abiad of Western 

Springs is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at McClure Junior 


is Commonwealth Edison, 

Chicago. 

59 Zander Patent of 

Chicago is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Latin School 

of Chicago. His sponsor is 

the Chicago Spelling Bee 

Collaborative. 

60 Lucas Michael Urbanski 

of Crystal Lake is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Immanuel 

Lutheran School. His 

sponsor is the Northwest 

Herald, Crystal Lake. 

61 Yasir Hasnain of Forsyth 


at Maroa-Forsyth Middle 


Macon-Piatt Regional Office 

of Education, Decatur. 

62 Keith Gerard Mokry 

of Somonauk is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Somonauk 


is the Daily Chronicle, 

DeKalb. 

63 Anna Ackerman Snider 

of Forreston is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Forrestville 

Valley Junior/Senior High 


The Telegraph, Dixon. 

64 Kendra Leanne Scace 

of Stockton is an 11-yearold 

6th grader at Stockton 


is the Carroll/JoDaviess/ 

Stephenson Regional Office 

of Education, Freeport. 

65 Adam R. Kastler of Vernon 

Hills is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at West Oak Middle 


Lake County Regional Office 

of Education, Grayslake. 

66 Madhav Chand Srivatsa 

Gampala of Bradley is a 


Bradley Central Middle 


Daily Journal, Kankakee. 

67 Kodai M. Speich of 

Rockford is a 10-year-old 

5th grader at Washington 

Academy. His sponsor is 

the Boone-Winnebago 

Regional Office of 

Education, Loves Park. 

68 Sophie Bergman of 

Bettendorf, Iowa, is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Morning Star 

Academy. Her sponsor is The 

Dispatch and The Rock Island 

Argus, Moline. 

69 Srivinay Tummarakota 

of Peoria is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at Dunlap 

Valley Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Peoria 

Journal Star. 

70 Anika Patel of Gilberts 


at Cambridge Lakes 

Charter School. Her 

sponsor is the Kane County 

Chronicle, Saint Charles. 

71 Audrey Melton of Rock 

Falls is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at St. Andrew 

Catholic Grade School. 

Her sponsor is The Daily 

Gazette, Sterling. 

278 Medha C. Venigalla of 

Springfield is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at Glenwood 


is The State Journal-Register, 

Springfield. 

INDIANA 

72 Tristan B. Hankins 

of Alexandria is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Highland 


is The Herald Bulletin, 

Anderson. 



73 Alexandria Louise Wilt 

of Martinsville is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Ronald K. 

Bell East Middle School. 

Her sponsor is Indiana 

University, Bloomington. 

74 Alekhya Ankaraju of 

Carmel is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Carmel 


sponsor is Williams 

Comfort Air, Carmel. 

75 Vanessa Anna 

Jodlowski of Evansville 


at North Junior High 


Evansville Courier & Press. 

76 Lwin Moe Aung of Fort 

Wayne is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Lutheran South 

Unity School. His sponsor 

is The Journal Gazette, Fort 

Wayne. 

77 Victor Y. Xiao of Carmel 


at Park Tudor School. 

His sponsor is Indiana 

University-Purdue 

University Indianapolis. 

78 Anastasia Spahr of Peru 

is an 11-year-old 5th grader 

at Maconaquah Elementary 

School. Her sponsor is Ivy 

Tech Community College, 

Kokomo. 

79 Andy M. Bertodano 

of West Lafayette is a 


West Lafayette Junior/ 

Senior High School. His 

sponsor is the Journal and 

Courier, Lafayette. 

80 Jinwon Pae of Marion 

is an 11-year-old 5th grader 

at Justice Intermediate 


Indiana Wesleyan 

University, Marion. 

81 Risha Mehta of Yorktown 


at Burris Laboratory School. 

Her sponsor is The Star 

Press, Muncie. 


82 Hudson T. Wellin of 

South Bend is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Community 

Baptist Christian School. 

His sponsor is the South 

Bend Tribune. 

83 Kimmie Collins of Terre 

Haute is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Woodrow Wilson 


is The Tribune-Star, Terre 

Haute. 

84 Sean Kenneth Ives of 

Crown Point is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Trinity 

Lutheran School. His 

sponsor is the Kankakee 

Valley REMC, Wanatah. 

280 Akshaj Mishra 

of Evansville is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Perry 

Heights Middle School. 

His sponsor is the 

Evansville Courier & Press. 

IOWA 

85 Zander Reed of 

Ankeny is a home-schooled 

11-year-old 6th grader with 

the Ames Homeschool 

Assistance Program. His 

sponsor is Iowa State 

University, Greenlee 

School of Journalism & 

Communication, Ames. 

86 Sibani S. Ram of 

Dubuque is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at George 

Washington Middle 


the Telegraph Herald, 

Dubuque. 

JAMAICA 

87 Tajaun S. Gibbison of 

Mandeville is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Knox 

College. His sponsor is 

the Jamaica Gleaner, 

Kingston. 

JAPAN 

88 Michaella Shari 

Bostrom of Kakegawa-shi 


at Kakegawa International 

Christian School. Her sponsor 

is The Japan Times, Tokyo. 

KANSAS 

89 Sterling A. Hollond 

of Linwood is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Basehor- 

Linwood Middle School. 


Hays Daily News. 

90 Vanya Shivashankar 

of Olathe is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at California 

Trail Middle School. Her 

sponsor is The Olathe 

News. 

91 Ethan S. Perrins of 

Lawrence is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Southwest 


sponsor is The Topeka 

Capital-Journal. 

KENTUCKY 

92 Paul Keaton of Pikeville 


at Christ Central School. 

His sponsor is the Scripps 

Howard First Amendment 

Center, Lexington. 

LOUISIANA 

93 Navya Murugesan of 

Baton Rouge is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Glasgow 


is the Louisiana Children’s 

Discovery Center, Hammond. 

94 Amelia Hebert of 

Lafayette is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Cathedral- 

Carmel School. Her 

sponsor is the Kiwanis 

Club of Lafayette. 

95 Chloe S. LaFleur 

of West Monroe is a 


at Good Hope Middle 


The News-Star, Monroe. 

96 Peter Antony Davis of 

Metairie is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Brother 

Martin High School. His 

sponsor is The Times- 

Picayune, New Orleans.

97 Mary Wynne of 

Ruston is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Cedar Creek. 

Her sponsor is the Alliance 

For Education, Shreveport. 

MAINE 

98 Nathan A. Manaker of 

Orono is a 12-year-old 7th 

grader at Orono Middle 

School. His sponsor 

is Husson University, 

Bangor. 

99 Lucy Tumavicus of 

Portland is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Lincoln Middle 


Portland Press Herald/ 

Maine Sunday Telegram. 

MARYLAND 

100 Isabelle Marie 

Simmons of Crofton is a 


School of the Incarnation. 

Her sponsor is the 21st 

Century Education 

Foundation, Annapolis. 

101 Danyah Farhat 

Imam of Catonsville is a 


at Al-Rahmah School. 

Her sponsor is Learn It 

Systems, Baltimore. 

102 Nikita Singh of 

Rockville is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Takoma 

Park Middle School. Her 

sponsor is The Meakem 

Group, Bethesda. 

103 Megan A. Rabe of 

Clarksville is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Clarksville 


sponsor is the Howard 

County Library, Columbia. 

104 Stephen Hochschild 

of Emmitsburg is a 


Mother Seton School. His 

sponsor is the Frederick 

County Public Libraries. 

105 Maddie K. Bowers of 

Hagerstown is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at E. Russell 

Hicks Middle School. 

Her sponsor is The 

Herald-Mail, Hagerstown. 

106 Tamya Michelle 

Matthews of Clinton is 


at Mt. Calvary Catholic 

School. Her sponsor is The 

Gazette & The Star, Laurel. 

107 Jennifer M. Tenant of 

Hollywood is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Father Andrew 

White S.J. School. Her 

sponsor is The Enterprise, 

Lexington Park. 

108 Selena D. Antosh 

of Prince Frederick is a 


Calvert Middle School. Her 

sponsor is The Recorder, 

Prince Frederick. 

109 Gia Lauren B. Bautista 

of Salisbury is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at Wicomico 


sponsor is the University 

of Maryland Eastern 

Shore, Princess Anne. 

110 Aashka J. Patel of 

Hughesville is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Milton M. 

Somers Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Maryland 

Independent, Waldorf. 

MASSACHUSETTS 

111 Christy Jose Jestin of 

West Roxbury, Boston is 


at William H. Ohrenberger 


Boston Centers for Youth 

& Families. 

112 Meryl R. Warpula of 

Leominster is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Sky 

View Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Sentinel & 

Enterprise, Fitchburg. 

113 Mitchell A. Robson of 

Marblehead is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Marblehead 

Community Charter Public 


Daily Item, Lynn. 

114 Spencer Pogue of 

Edgartown is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Edgartown 


The Martha’s Vineyard 

Times, Vineyard Haven. 

MICHIGAN 

115 Neha Seshadri 

of Novi is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Northville 

Christian School. Her 

sponsor is The Detroit 

News. 

116 Rebecca Tran of 

Wyoming is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Grandville Middle 


Kent Intermediate School 

District, Grand Rapids. 

117 Rushil Raghu Kasetty of 

Gladstone is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Holy Name 

Catholic School. His sponsor 

is the Upper Peninsula 

Spelling Bee Collaborative, 

Iron Mountain. 

118 Sean Hickey of Grass 

Lake is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Grass Lake 


sponsor is The Jackson 

Citizen Patriot. 

119 Nathan A. Jasper of 

Attica is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Zemmer Middle 


The County Press, Lapeer. 

120 Marguerite Arbogast 

of Ludington is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at O.J. 

DeJonge Middle School. 


Ludington Daily News. 



121 Nathaniel Britton of 

Macomb is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Shelby Junior 


The Macomb Daily. 

122 Nikhil S. Dwibhashyam 

of Lake Orion is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Scripps 


sponsor is The Oakland 

Press, Pontiac. 

123 Hannah Jackson 

of Midland is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Saginaw 

Arts & Sciences Academy. 

Her sponsor is Saginaw 

Valley State University. 

124 Cameron L. Haynes of 

Stevensville is a homeschooled 

13-year-old 7th 

grader with Lakeshore 

Lifelong Learners. His 

sponsor is The Herald 

Palladium, St. Joseph. 

125 Jessie Skylar 

Williams of Traverse City 


at The Pathfinder School. 


Traverse City Record- 

Eagle, Traverse City. 

MINNESOTA 

126 Alyssa E. Boynton 

of Slayton is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Murray 

County Central. Her 

sponsor is the Lakes 

Country Service 

Cooperative, Fergus Falls. 

127 Mark J. Kivimaki 

of Edina is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Valley 

View Middle School. His 

sponsor is Augsburg 

College, Minneapolis. 

128 Kellen Rufus Rodriguez 

of Fairmont is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Fairmont 

Junior/Senior High School. 


Central Service Cooperative, 

North Mankato. 


129 Shane DeSilva of 

Austin is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Pacelli Catholic 

Schools. His sponsor 

is the Southeast Service 

Cooperative, Rochester. 

130 Lauren Crabtree of 

Ironton is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Forestview 


is the National Joint Powers 

Alliance, Staples. 

MISSISSIPPI 

131 Caribbean Sea’Era 

Adams of Silver Creek is a 


New Hebron Attendance 

Center. Her sponsor is the 

Mississippi Association of 

Educators, Jackson. 

MISSOURI 

132 Faaris Khan of 

Columbia is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Gentry 


sponsor is the Columbia 

Daily Tribune. 

133 Joel C. Miles of 

Greenwood is an 11-yearold 

5th grader at Eagle Glen 

Intermediate School. His 

sponsor is the Cass County 

Democrat Missourian, 

Harrisonville. 

134 Kush N. Sharma of 

Kansas City is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Frontier 

School of Innovation. His 

sponsor is the Jackson 

County Spelling Bee 

Collaborative, Kansas City. 

135 Jade Ray Samanta of 

Cape Girardeau is a 13-yearold 


Lutheran School. His sponsor 

is Three Rivers Community 

College, Poplar Bluff. 

136 Julianna Sonnik of 

Sedalia is an 11-year-old 

5th grader at Sedalia 


sponsor is the Sedalia 


137 Krishan Ghosh of 

Springfield is a 9-year-old 

4th grader at David 

Harrison Elementary 


the College of Arts and 

Letters-Missouri State 

University, Springfield. 

138 Peyton Wiewel of 

Parkville is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Plaza 


sponsor is the St. Joseph 

News-Press. 

139 Gokul Venkatachalam 

of Chesterfield is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Parkway 

West Middle School. His 

sponsor is the St. Louis 

Post-Dispatch. 

MONTANA 

140 Erik Alexander Hovland 

of Billings is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Canyon 

Creek School. His sponsor 

is Lee Newspapers of 

Montana, Billings. 

NEBRASKA 

141 Grace Johanningsmeier 

of Omaha is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Westside 


is the Omaha World-Herald. 

NEVADA 

142 Amna Raza of Las 

Vegas is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Omar Haikal 

Islamic Academy. Her 

sponsor is the Las Vegas 

Review-Journal. 

NEW HAMPSHIRE 

143 Arushi R. Kalpande of 

Billerica, Massachusetts, 


at Infant Jesus School. 

Her sponsor is the New 

Hampshire Union Leader, 

Manchester.

NEW JERSEY 

144 Alexander Paul Hauer 

of Blackwood is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Glen 

Landing Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Camden 


145 Eboseremhen I. Eigbe 

of Galloway is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Galloway 

Township Middle School. 


Jersey Spelling Bee 

Collaborative, Galloway. 

146 Sanjana Mohan 

Malla of Haverstraw, New 

York, is a 13-year-old 8th 

grader at Fieldstone Middle 


Record and Herald News, 

Hackensack. 

147 Katharine S. Wang of 

Morristown is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at The Peck 


The Record and Herald 

News, Hackensack. 

148 Ed Horan of Hoboken 

is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at The Hudson 


the Hudson County Office 

of Cultural and Heritage 

Affairs, Jersey City. 

149 Carson A. Monks of 

Montague is a homeschooled 


grader. His sponsor is the 

Tri-State Spelling Bee 

Committee, Montague. 

150 Aron Wiener of Loch 

Arbour is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Oak Hill Academy. 

His sponsor is the Asbury 

Park Press/Home News 

Tribune, Neptune. 

NEW MEXICO 

151 Anish Kumar of 

Santa Fe is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Desert 

Academy. His sponsor is 

The Albuquerque Journal. 

NEW YORK 

152 Lydia Loverin of 

Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 


at Mountain Road School. 

Her sponsor is the Times 

Union, Albany. 

153 Andrew C. Erdman of 

Williamsville is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Saints 

Peter and Paul School. 

His sponsor is The Buffalo 

News. 

154 Sriram J. Hathwar of 

Painted Post is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Alternative 

School for Math and 

Science. His sponsor 

is the Corning Rotary Club. 

155 Gavin J. Buehler 

of Pultneyville is a 


Williamson Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Finger 

Lakes Times, Geneva. 

156 Katie Ammann of 

Johnstown is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Knox 

Junior High School. Her 

sponsor is The Leader- 

Herald, Gloversville. 

157 Jhanvi V. Ravishankar 

of Nesconset is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Great 

Hollow Middle School. 

Her sponsor is Hofstra 

University, Hempstead. 

158 Michael James of New 

Windsor is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Cornwall Central 


is the Times Herald-Record, 

Middletown. 

159 Sai Vishudhi 

Chandrasekhar of Flushing 


at Hunter College High 


Daily News, New York. 

160 Anil Singh of South 

Ozone Park is an 11-yearold 

5th grader at The 

Queens College School 

for Math, Science and 

Technology. His sponsor is 

the Daily News, New York. 

161 Buddy D. Noorlander 

of Oneonta is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Oneonta 


sponsor is The Daily Star, 

Oneonta. 

162 David Simeon Khamis 

of Oswego is a 14-yearold 

7th grader at Oswego 

Community Christian 


Palladium-Times, Oswego. 

163 Connor S. Niederbuhl of 

Champlain is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Northeastern 

Clinton Central School. His 

sponsor is the Press- 

Republican, Plattsburgh. 

164 Alaina Kenny of 

Syracuse is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Onondaga 

Hill Middle School. Her 

sponsor is The Post- 

Standard, Syracuse. 

165 Dylan O’Connor 

of Alexandria Bay is a 


at Alexandria Central 


Watertown Daily Times. 

166 Harshita M. Shet of 

White Plains is a 10-yearold 

4th grader at R.J. Bailey 


sponsor is the Theodore D. 

Young Community Center, 

White Plains. 

NORTH CAROLINA 

167 Shiv Patel of 

Burlington is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at 

Turrentine Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Times- 

News, Burlington. 



168 Mary C. Polking of 

Charlotte is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Holy Trinity 

Catholic Middle School. 


Charlotte Observer. 

169 Abigail Pittman of 

Four Oaks is an 11-yearold 

6th grader at 

Southside Christian 


The Clayton News-Star. 

170 Bettie Lehem Closs of 

Durham is a 10-year-old 

5th grader at Little River 


sponsor is Duke University’s 

Office of Durham 

and Regional Affairs. 

171 William Austin 

Elder of Fayetteville is a 


at Fayetteville Academy. 

His sponsor is The 

Fayetteville Observer. 

172 Katie M. Danis of 

Gastonia is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Gaston 

Day School. Her sponsor 

is The Gaston Gazette, 

Gastonia. 

173 Kellan R. All of 

Smithfield is a 10-yearold 

5th grader at Angier 

Elementary School. His 

sponsor is the Harnett 

County Spelling Bee 

Collaborative, Lillington. 

174 Suzanna Murawski of 

Raleigh is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Ligon GT Magnet 


sponsor is PAGE of Wake 

County, Raleigh. 

175 Hailey J. Lancaster of 

Spring Hope is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Southern Nash 


is the Delta Center for Life 

Development, Inc., Rocky 

Mount. 

176 Emily Garcia of 

Sanford is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at East Lee 


sponsor is PAGE of Lee 

County, Sanford. 

177 Thomas Manning 

of Boiling Springs is a 


at Crest Middle School. 

His sponsor is The Shelby 

Star. 

178 Lauren Somin Lim of 

Greenville is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Hope Middle 


Washington Daily News. 

179 Zachary Vincent 

Mallol of Wilson is a 


at Springfield Middle 


The Wilson Times. 

180 Hayat Alkadir of High 

Point is a 13-year-old 8th 

grader at Ledford Middle 


Winston-Salem Journal. 

NORTH DAKOTA 

181 Madeline R. Rickert 

of Minot is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Erik Ramstad 


is the North Dakota Council 

of Educational Leaders, 

Bismarck. 

OHIO 

182 Ferdian Euro 

Aditama of Barberton is a 


Barberton Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Akron 

Beacon Journal. 

183 Harry Harman 

of New Concord is a 


at East Muskingum Middle 


Ohio University’s Scripps 

College of Communication, 

Athens. 

184 Max Danner of 

Lewis Center is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Oakstone 

Academy. His sponsor is Ohio 

University’s Scripps College 

of Communication, Athens. 

185 Nolan R. Reed of New 

Philadelphia is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Joseph 

Welty Middle School. 


Repository, Canton. 

186 Olivia C. Kaiser of 

Hebron, Kentucky, is a 


Connor Middle School. 

Her sponsor is WCPO, 

Cincinnati. 

187 Joseph Cusi 

Delamerced of Cincinnati 


at The Summit Country 

Day School. His sponsor is 

WCPO, Cincinnati. 

188 Ashwin Veeramani of 

North Royalton is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Incarnate 

Word Academy. His sponsor 

is the Northeast Ohio Media 

Group, Cleveland. 

189 Emily E. Helm of 

Dayton is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Our Lady of the 

Immaculate Conception 


Dayton Daily News. 

190 Kaitlin Hall of Avon is 


Avon Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Educational 

Service Center of Lorain 

County, LaGrange. 

191 Kyle Ayisi of 

Pickerington is an 


at Diley Middle School. 


Lancaster Eagle-Gazette. 

192 Alotus Nguyen Wei of 

Lima is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Shawnee Middle 


Lima News. 


193 Peyton Hall of 

Sardis is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at River Elementary 


Marietta Times. 

194 Justin Thomas 

Hamilton of Flushing is a 


Union Local. His sponsor 

is The Times Leader, 

Martins Ferry. 

195 Sasha M. Davis of 

Washingtonville is a 


Leetonia Middle School. 

His sponsor is Salem News, 

East Liverpool Review and 

The Morning Journal. 

196 Nathan J. Keenan of 

Toronto is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Toronto Junior/ 

Senior High School. His 

sponsor is The Herald- Star, 

Steubenville. 

197 Phoebe M. Jackson 

of Elmore is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Woodmore 


sponsor is The Blade, 

Toledo. 

198 Elias P. Kondolios of 

Warren is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Howland 


sponsor is The Tribune 

Chronicle, Warren. 

199 Melina Gabele of 

Willoughby is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at Mater 

Dei Academy. Her sponsor 

is The News-Herald, 

Willoughby. 

200 Annabelle E. Day of 

Boardman is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at Willow 

Creek Learning Center. 


Vindicator, Youngstown. 

OKLAHOMA 

201 Nicholas Allen Stark 

of Howe is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Howe Public 

Schools. His sponsor is 

the Muskogee Spelling 

Bee Collaborative. 

202 Cole Shafer-Ray 

of Norman is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Alcott Middle 


Oklahoman, Oklahoma City. 

OREGON 

203 Divya Amirtharaj of 

Beaverton is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at Meadow 

Park Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Portland 

Tribune. 

PENNSYLVANIA 

204 Shreyas Parab of 

Aston is a 13-year-old 8th 

grader at Northley Middle 


The Chester Spirit. 

205 Jacob George of 

Exton is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at St. Norbert 

School. His sponsor 

is the Chester County 

Intermediate Unit, 

Downingtown. 

206 Colin Francis of 

Milford, New Jersey, is a 

home-schooled 13-year-old 

8th grader with Warren 

Hunterdon Christian Home 


Express-Times, Easton. 

207 Aparajita Rao of 

Hummelstown is a 


St. Joan of Arc School. 

Her sponsor is WITF: 

Public Media for Central 

Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. 

208 Hannah Michele 

Citsay of Lititz is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at St. Anne 


Intelligencer Journal/ 

Lancaster New Era. 

209 Kevin Cui of 

Norristown is an 11-yearold 

5th grader at Skyview 

Upper Elementary School. 


Times Herald, Norristown. 

210 Anna Tran of 

Quakertown is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Strayer 


sponsor is the Pennridge 

Community Education 

Foundation, Perkasie. 

211 Diana T. Nguyen of 

Philadelphia is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Philadelphia 

Academy Charter School. 


Philadelphia Tribune. 

212 Suneel Banerjee of 

Pittsburgh is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Fort 

Couch Middle School. His 

sponsor is the Pittsburgh 

Post-Gazette. 

213 Devina Singh of 

Frackville is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at North 

Schuylkill Junior/Senior 


is The Republican Herald, 

Pottsville. 

214 Emily M.X. Gunkel of 

Leesport is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Schuylkill 

Valley Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Reading 

Eagle. 

215 Tushan Dargan of 

Edwardsville is a 9-yearold 

5th grader at Good 

Shepherd Academy. His 

sponsor is the Times 

Leader, Wilkes-Barre. 

PUERTO RICO 

216 Alexandra Harper 

of Guayama is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at 

Guamani Private School. 


Commonwealth-Parkville 

School, San Juan. 



RHODE ISLAND 

217 Stephen Andrew 

Landry of Saunderstown 

is an 11-year-old 6th 

grader at Wickford 


sponsor is The Valley 

Breeze, Cumberland. 

SOUTH CAROLINA 

218 Hussain A. Godhrawala 

of Barnwell is an 8-yearold 

2nd grader at Barnwell 

Primary School. His sponsor 

is The Allendale Sun. 

219 Andrew Dunn of 

Anderson is a 13-year-old 

8th grader at Lakeside 

Middle School of Inquiry 

and Innovation, a STEM 


Anderson Independent 

Mail. 

220 Razeen Basunia of 

North Charleston is an 


Rollings Middle School 

of the Arts. His sponsor 

is The Post and Courier, 

Charleston. 

221 Lloyd Aleister Bonds 

of Olanta is a 12-year-old 

6th grader at Ronald E. 

McNair Middle School. 

His sponsor is the Pee 

Dee Education Center, 

Florence. 

222 Isabella Mika 

Neubauer of Pawleys Island 


at The Georgetown School 

of Arts and Sciences. Her 

sponsor is The Sun News, 

Myrtle Beach. 

223 Kalika Melody 

Burnett Bridwell of 

Woodruff is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Florence 

Chapel Middle School. Her 

sponsor is the Herald- 

Journal, Spartanburg. 

SOUTH DAKOTA 

224 Antonio Vince Miguel 

A. Lansang of Brookings is 


George Mickelson Middle 


University of South Dakota, 

Vermillion. 

SOUTH KOREA 

225 Seongjun Lee of 

Incheon Metropolitan City 


at Jinsan Middle School. 

His sponsor is Yoon’s 

English School, Seoul. 

TENNESSEE 

226 Benjamin Kulas of 

Nashville is a homeschooled 


grader with Middle 

Tennessee Home Education 

Association. His sponsor is 

the Crossings Nashville 

Action Partnership, Antioch. 

227 Matthew J. Prus of 

Cohutta, Georgia, is a 

home-schooled 11-yearold 

6th grader. His sponsor 

is the Chattanooga Times 

Free Press. 

228 Hayden McCuan of 

Jackson is a 12-yearold 


Christian Academy. His 

sponsor is The Jackson 

Sun and Union University. 

229 Naama Friedman of 

Knoxville is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Bearden 


sponsor is the Knoxville 

News Sentinel. 

230 Dwight M. Moore, Jr. 

of Collierville is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Central 

Day School. His sponsor 

is The Commercial Appeal, 

Memphis. 

231 Maria Victoria 

Kaltchenko of Tupelo, 

Mississippi, is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at Tupelo Middle 


The Commercial Appeal, 

Memphis. 

TEXAS 

232 Kate Miller of Abilene 

is a home-schooled 14-yearold 

8th grader with Big 

Country Home Educators. 

Her sponsor is the Abilene 

Reporter-News. 

233 Krishna J. Gandhi of 

Woodward, Oklahoma, is 


at Mooreland Junior/ 

Senior High School. Her 

sponsor is the Amarillo 

Globe-News. 

234 Claire Margaret 

Thomas of Portland is 


Incarnate Word Academy. 

Her sponsor is the Corpus 

Christi Caller-Times. 

235 Lokesh Nagineni 

of Flower Mound is a 


at Lamar Middle School. 

His sponsor is The Dallas 

Morning News. 

236 Melody Grace 

Harwood of Silver City, 

New Mexico, is an 


at La Plata Middle 

School. Her sponsor 

is the El Paso Times. 

237 Ansun Sujoe of Fort 

Worth is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Bethesda 

Christian School. His 

sponsor is Texas Christian 

University, Fort Worth. 

238 Shobha Dasari of 

Pearland is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Pearland 

Junior High West. Her 

sponsor is Houston 

Public Media. 


239 Syamantak Payra 

of Friendswood is a 


Westbrook Intermediate 


Houston Public Media. 

240 Mary Joy Li-Ann D. 

Patricio of Laredo is a 


at United Middle School. 


Laredo Morning Times. 

241 Rena Morrell of 

Snyder is a 12-year-old 

7th grader at Snyder 


sponsor is the Lubbock 

Avalanche-Journal. 

242 Stephanie Nicole 

Garza of Rio Grande 

City is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at Veterans Middle 

School. Her sponsor is Rio 

Grande Valley AIM Media 

Texas, McAllen. 

243 Gabrielle M. Rubio 

of Midland is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Alamo 


sponsor is the Midland 

Reporter-Telegram. 

244 Kara Paige Lehnert 

of Sweetwater is a 


at Sweetwater Middle 


the Odessa American. 

245 Kasey Cuenca Torres of 

San Angelo is a 9-year-old 

3rd grader at Cornerstone 

Christian School. His 

sponsor is the San Angelo 

Standard-Times. 

246 Nikhita Pathapati 

of San Antonio is a 


at Keystone School. Her 

sponsor is the San 

Antonio Express-News. 

247 Muriel Margaret 

Cotman of Cuero is a 

home-schooled 13- 

year-old 7th grader 

with The Acorn School. 


Victoria Advocate. 

248 Anna M. Turner of 

Woodway is a 14-yearold 

7th grader at Midway 


sponsor is BBVA 

Compass Bank, Waco. 

249 Manasvi J. Reddy 

of Wichita Falls is an 


at Crockett Elementary 


the Times Record News, 

Wichita Falls. 

U.S. VIRGIN 

ISLANDS 

250 Manav A. Thadani of 

St. Thomas is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at Antilles 


The Virgin Islands Daily 

News, St. Thomas. 

UTAH 

251 Mikayla J. Hall of 

Heber City is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Rocky 

Mountain Middle School. 

Her sponsor is the Utah 

Valley Spelling Bee, Orem. 

252 Grange Monaco 

Simpson of Bluff is a 


Albert R. Lyman Middle 


the Southeast Education 

Service Center, Price. 

279 Michael T. Jones of 

Draper is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Indian Hills Middle 


Overstock.com, Salt Lake City. 

VERMONT 

253 Liam A. Lustberg 

of South Burlington is a 


Frederick H. Tuttle Middle 


the Rutland Herald/Barre 

Times-Argus. 

VIRGINIA 

254 Nicole Seman of 

Leesburg is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Smart’s Mill 


is Loudoun County Public 

Schools, Ashburn. 

255 Samuel T. Pereles of 

Waynesboro is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Kate 

Collins Middle School. His 

sponsor is The News- 

Virginian and The Daily 

Progress, Charlottesville. 

256 Jacob Lawrence 

McDaniel of Danville is a 


Sacred Heart School. His 

sponsor is Big Brothers 

and Big Sisters, Danville. 

257 Brianna Bartley of 

Montross is an 11-yearold 

6th grader at Montross 


sponsor is The Free Lance- 

Star, Fredericksburg. 

258 Brayden Kelley of 

Timberville is a 13-yearold 

8th grader at J. Frank 

Hillyard Middle School. 


Rockingham District 

Ruritans, Harrisonburg. 

259 Jensen Schram of 

Forest is a 14-year-old 8th 

grader at New Covenant 

Schools. Her sponsor is 

The News & Advance, 

Lynchburg. 

260 Ankita Vadiala of 

Manassas is a 12-yearold 

7th grader at 

Stonewall Middle School. 

Her sponsor is Prince 

William Today, Manassas. 

261 Ted Hamacher of 

Chesapeake is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at 

Hickory Middle School. 


Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk. 



262 Jae Canetti of Fairfax 

is a 12-year-old 6th 

grader at Hunters Woods 

Elementary School for 

the Arts and Sciences. 

His sponsor is the Fairfax 

County Times, Reston. 

263 Tejas Muthusamy 

of Glen Allen is an 


Rivers Edge Elementary 


Richmond Times-Dispatch. 

264 Shayley Grace Martin 

of Riner is a 13-year-old 8th 

grader at Floyd County High 


The Roanoke Times. 

265 Hadrian Reeves 

of Tazewell is a 12-yearold 

6th grader at Tazewell 


sponsor is Tazewell 

County Fair Association. 

266 Jeffrey Cho of 

Gloucester is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Page 


sponsor is Adult Literacy 

on the Middle Peninsula, 

Williamsburg. 

267 George Stuart Estep of 

Berryville is a home-schooled 

14-year-old 8th grader with 

Northern Shenandoah Valley 

Homeschoolers. His sponsor 

is the Boys & Girls Club of 

Northern Shenandoah Valley, 

Winchester. 

WASHINGTON 

268 Buck Walling of 

Republic is a 14-year-old 

8th grader at Republic 


the Ferry County View, 

Republic. 

269 Elisabeth Ince of Oak 

Harbor is an 11-year-old 

5th grader at Broadview 


sponsor is the Skagit Valley 

Herald, Mount Vernon. 

270 Téa Freedman- 

Susskind of Redmond is 


at Lakeside Middle 


Town Hall Seattle. 

271 Emily K. Schneider of 

Omak is a 13-year-old 7th 

grader at Omak Middle 


North Central Washington 

Collaborative Spelling Bee, 

Wenatchee. 

WEST VIRGINIA 

272 Varun Kukkillaya of 

Charleston is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at John 

Adams Middle School. 


Charleston Gazette-Mail. 

273 George Andrew 

Triplett of Elkins is a 


Elkins Middle School. His 

sponsor is The Clarksburg 

Exponent-Telegram. 

274 Raimah Hossain of 

Morgantown is a 14-yearold 

8th grader at Suncrest 


is The Dominion Post, 

Morgantown. 

275 Lillian Taylor Bischof 

of Wheeling is a 13-yearold 

7th grader at Saint 

Michaels School. Her 

sponsor is The Catholic 

Spirit, Wheeling. 

WISCONSIN 

276 Karelyn Malliet of 

Shawano is a 13-year-old 

7th grader at Shawano 

Community Middle 


the Wisconsin State 

Journal, Madison. 

WYOMING 

277 Victoria Paige Allen 

of Green River is a 

14-year -old 8th grader 

at Lincoln Middle School. 


Wyoming Community 

Foundation, Laramie. 

Speller 278 can be found on page 21 

under Illinois. 


under Utah. 


under Indiana. 


under Connecticut. 


LEADERSHIP AND YEAR-ROUND STAFF 

PAIGE KIMBLE 

Executive Director 

Paige is the 1981 national 

champion and the 1980 runner-up 

representing the El Paso Herald- 

Post. She has served the program 

in various capacities for the past 

30 years, including 17 years as 

executive director. 

ABIGAIL C. EVANS 

Sponsorship and Operations 

Manager 

Abi works full-time for the program 

from The E.W. Scripps Company’s 

corporate office. This is her 4th 

year with the program. 

CHRIS R. KEMPER 

Communications and Public 

Relations Manager 

Chris works full-time for the program 


corporate office. This is his 2nd year 

with the program. 

CORRIE E. LOEFFLER 

Program Manager 

Corrie is serving her 8th year on 

the Bee’s permanent staff after 

having served six years on Bee 

Week staff. She represented the 

Merced Sun-Star in the 1994, 1995 

and 1996 national finals, tying for 

6th place in 1996. 

CYBELLE L. WEEKS 

Lead Program Manager 

Cybelle works full-time for the program 


corporate office. This is her 17th year 


JANICE S. LIEBENBERG 


Coordinator 

Janice works full-time for the program 




SALLY MCMAIN 


Coordinator 

Sally works full-time for the program 


corporate office. This is her 3rd year 


LAURIE K. H. MORRIS 

Editorial Coordinator 

Laurie works full-time for the program 


corporate office. This is her 2nd year 


NICOLE A. DITTOE 


Coordinator 

Nicole works full-time for the program 




OWEN W. SEREY 

Communication Specialist 

Owen works full-time for the program 


corporate office. This is his 1st year 


THE E.W. SCRIPPS COMPANY 

RICH BOEHNE 

Rich is chairman, president and 

chief executive officer of The E.W. 

Scripps Company. 


OFFICIALS 

DR. JACQUES A. BAILLY 

Pronouncer 

Dr. Bailly is the 1980 national champion representing the 

Rocky Mountain News. He is an associate professor of 

classics at the University of Vermont. This is his 12th 

year as pronouncer after having served 12 years as 

associate pronouncer. 

DR. BRIAN M. SIETSEMA 

Associate Pronouncer 

Dr. Sietsema is an ordained priest of the Greek 

Orthodox Archdiocese of America and serves a parish 

in Lansing, Michigan. After receiving a doctorate in 

linguistics in 1989, he was the pronunciation editor 

for Merriam-Webster from 1990 to 1998. This is 

Dr. Sietsema’s 12th year as associate pronouncer. 

MARY BROOKS 

Head Judge 

Mrs. Brooks is a retired West Des Moines, Iowa, 

educator. She has served the program in various 

capacities for the past 43 years, including 27 years 

as a judge and five years as co-director. 

BLAKE GIDDENS 

Judge 

Mr. Giddens is the 1983 national champion representing 

the El Paso Herald-Post. He is a professional engineer 

for a civil engineering firm in Fairfax, Virginia. This is 

his 14th year as a judge after having served five years 

as auxiliary judge and four years on staff. 

DR. ED LOW 

Judge 

Dr. Low is professor emeritus of English at the 

Metropolitan State College of Denver. This is Dr. Low’s 

21st year as a judge. For 27 years, he has served as a 

judge for the Colorado State Spelling Bee (which lasted 

31 rounds this year). 

GEORGE THAMPY 

Judge 

Mr. Thampy is the 2000 national champion representing 

the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He is an administrative 

resident at St. Anthony’s Medical Center in St. Louis, 

Missouri. This is Mr. Thampy’s 3rd year as a judge after 

having served six years on staff. 

MARK BOWEN 

Photographer 

Mark is a professional freelance 

photographer in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

BRYAN BRANDEBERRY 

Production Staff 

Bryan is manager of Linux and 

database systems for The E.W. 

Scripps Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

KAYDEE BUTTS 


Kaydee is an executive assistant 

for The E.W. Scripps Company in 

Cincinnati, Ohio. 

ALEX CLINE 


Alex Cline is a program manager 



JULIE CORNWELL 


Julie is a paralegal for The E.W. 

Scripps Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

JEFF COWENS 


Jeff is a digital marketing manager 



DAVE GILES 


Dave is vice president, deputy general 

counsel and chief ethics officer for The 

E.W. Scripps Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

PAUL GILMAN 

Stage Manager 

Paul is manager of application 

development for The E.W. Scripps 

Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

JEFF HASSAN 


Jeff is managing director for 

planning for The E.W. Scripps 


KRISTIN HAWKINS 


Kristin graduated from the University 

of Virginia in 2009 and now works in 

Russia. Kristin represented the Loudoun 

Times-Mirror in the 1999, 2000 and 2001 

national finals, placing 2nd in 2001. 

CLINTON HESS 


Clinton is director of IT planning 

and analysis for The E.W. Scripps 



BEE WEEK STAFF 

ROBYN HILDAL 

Media Desk Manager 

Robyn is vice president of 

talent and diversity for The 

E.W. Scripps Company in 


ROBBIN HOLLIDAY 


Robbin is vice president of 

finance and administration for 

The E.W. Scripps Company in 


MONICA HUMPHREY 


Monica is a brand leader at 

Intrinzic, Inc., a brand design 

agency based in Newport, 

Kentucky. 

ARIELLE KASS 


Arielle is a business reporter for 

the Atlanta Journal-Constitution 

in Atlanta, Georgia. 

SCOTT KEMMERER 


Scott is a systems specialist 

for The E.W. Scripps Company 

in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

MIKE KLAWITTER 


Mike is a manager of business 

applications for The E.W. Scripps 


VAGELIS “V” KONTOPOS 


V is a senior manager of 

compensation for The 

E.W. Scripps Company in 


SATHYA KOTHANDRAM 


Sathya is a digital product 

architect for The E.W. Scripps 


CHIP MAHANEY 


Chip is senior director for 

local operations (digital/TV) 



VINCE MARCIANO 


Vince is general manager of 

United Feature Syndicate, part 

of The E.W. Scripps Company in 


VALERIE MILLER 


Valerie is corporate 

communications manager 

for The E.W. Scripps 


SAMEER MISHRA 


Sameer is an Economics 

and Statistics major at 

Columbia University. He is 

the 2008 national champion, 

representing the Journal and 

Courier in Lafayette, Indiana. 

KEVIN MOCH 


Kevin is a PhD student in 

Classics at the University of 

California, Berkeley. He 

represented North Dakota in 

the 2001 and 2002 national 

finals, tying for 3rd place in 2002. 

AMANDA MOORE 


Amanda is a digital product 

specialist for The E.W. Scripps 


ROB MORRISON 


Rob is a systems analyst for 



BRET G. NEALIS 


Bret is a software engineer 

for Professional Consulting 

Services, Inc. 

BRIDGET NEALIS 


Bridget is a personal banker 

for Fifth Third Bank in 

Greensburg, Indiana. 

MALORIE NEALIS 


Malorie is a student at 

The Ohio State University, 

studying marketing and 

nutrition. 

BRETT PAPPAS 


Brett is an application architect 



ERIC PEGUERO 


Eric is senior director of 

training and development for 



DAN PERSCHKE 


Dan is a director of finance for 



JESSICA RAPPAPORT 


Jessica is vice president of 

marketing for The E.W. Scripps 


CAROLE RAWLINS 


Carol is in the corporate 

communications department at 



JON REISCHEL 


Jon is the owner of ColorNine, 

a marketing consultancy based 

in Mason, Ohio. 

PAUL RICCOBENE 


Paul is a network architect for 



BRIAN SCHERMERHORN 


Brian is a program manager for 



KIM SIGALA 


Kim is the manager of network 

engineering for The E.W. Scripps 


BOB STEC 


Bob is a director of systems 

engineering for The E.W. Scripps 


DAVID TAYLOR 


David is a senior personal 

technology systems specialist 



JENNIFER TEETS 


Jennifer is an information security 

analyst for The E.W. Scripps 


BETH WELTER 


Beth is in the corporate 

communications department 

at The E.W. Scripps Company 



ABOUT SCRIPPS 

The E.W. Scripps Company (scripps.com) serves audiences and businesses through a growing portfolio 

of television, print and digital media brands. Scripps owns 21 local television stations as well as daily 

newspapers in 14 markets across the United States. It also runs an expanding collection of local and 

national digital journalism and information businesses including online multi-source video news provider 

Newsy. Scripps also produces television programming and runs an award-winning investigative reporting 

newsroom in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1879, Scripps is focused on the stories of tomorrow. 

SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE 

312 Walnut Street, 28th Floor • Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 

BEFORE AND AFTER BEE WEEK: 513-977-3040 

MEDIA DESK DURING BEE WEEK (MAY 26 – MAY 30): 301-965-5591 

SPELLER & SPONSOR DESK DURING BEE WEEK (MAY 26 – MAY 30): 301-965-5590 

/ScrippsNationalSpellingBee /ScrippsBee #spellingbee /ScrippsBee 

/ScrippsNationalSpellingBee #scrippsbee 

/ScrippsBee

2014BeeWeekGuide

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