Southeast Missouri Regional Spelling Bee Beginning School Registration

Registration is now open for schools wanting to participate in the Sixth Annual Southeast Missouri Regional Spelling Bee, to be held on Saturday, February 28, 2015, at Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff.

Participating schools must complete their registration by October 15, 2014, and complete a school-wide spelling bee before Feb. 6, 2015, to participate. Students must not be older than age 14 on or before August 31, 2014, and cannot have passed beyond the eighth grade on or before Feb. 1, 2015. The top three contestants from each qualifying school will be eligible to participate in the regional spelling bee in Poplar Bluff, with the winner receiving an expenses-paid trip to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

"Three Rivers is proud to be able to host this event for Southeast Missouri, and we've had some incredible spellers show up to compete," said Mark Sanders, Chair of the Languages Department at Three Rivers and coordinator for the Regional Spelling Bee. "So far we've had winners from Advance, Poplar Bluff, and Cape Girardeau, and I don't think we've plumbed the depths of our local talent yet."

According to Sanders, the experiences a local champion receives include a week at the Gaylord National Resort in National Harbor, Maryland; a Memorial Day BBQ with the other contestants and bee officials; guided tours of the museums and monuments in the National Mall; meeting and competing with more than 250 spellers from all 50 states and several different countries.

The 2014 champion, Jade Ray Samanta from Trinity Lutheran School in Cape Girardeau, was a national semifinalist and competed live on ESPN2. Previous champions also include Adeesh Mishra from Sacred Heart School in Poplar Bluff and Summer Johnston from Advance Middle School.

All public, private, parochial, and home schools within the spelling bee's 17-county region are welcome to participate. Participating counties are: Bollinger, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Crawford, Iron, Madison, Mississippi, New Madrid, Perry, Reynolds, Ripley, Scott, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve, Stoddard, and Wayne counties. Registration is $120 per school and must be completed at www.spellingbee.com. For more information, contact Mark Sanders at 573-840-9618 or via email at msanders@trcc.edu.

Three Rivers College is committed to contributing to the quality of life in Southeast Missouri with quality, affordable higher education opportunities and community services that support and encourage the economic, civic, and cultural vitality of the region. For more information about college and workforce programs and upcoming events, visit trcc.edu.