This year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee took me back to my days of competing and reinvigorated my desire to remain an active figure in the spelling community. All six of my students, including Shradha Rachamreddy, Avi Randhawa, Ananya Prassanna, Aditi Muthukumar, Faizan Zaki, and my sister, Harini, put on strong performances in the Bee, advancing through the Preliminaries and Quarterfinals to the Semifinals. With exhilarating ups and sobering downs characterizing the flow of the Semifinals, Shradha, Harini, and Avi ended their run tying for 9th place, with Aditi, Ananya, and Faizan advancing to Finals and eventually placing fifth, third, and second, respectively. I’d also like to congratulate Bruhat for an incredible first place finish this year. Incredibly glad that Defining Success played a part in his spelling journey. I’ve seen the hard work my students put into their spelling bee aspirations over the course of the year and I’m glad to see their diligence come to fruition. I’m proud to have played a role in their journeys. Sharing some pictures from this year’s Bee:
