Gahr High School commended their 18th Annual Spelling Bee in December of last year before going on winter break. This event was put on by the ASB Commissioners of Academics, Kaitlyn Teng and Simran Sitaula, along with English teacher, Ms. Steffen. The competition took place on the week of December 12th and consisted of rounds such as the placement test, one official round, and the finals. Despite being fresh into ASB, the Commissioners hosted a great Spelling Bee to be remembered for years to come. They tell us, “Planning our first event felt very rewarding. It was great because we were able to get the hang of how everything worked, and the contestants were able to freely participate and have fun. There wasn't confusion or conflict while setting up the events, not to mention the crowd was able to really enjoy it!”

 

Students sign up for the Spelling Bee based on the level of their English class; CP or AP/Honors. From the CP batch, of the 24 students who signed up, only 16 of them passed the placement test to advance to the official rounds, and just after two days of competing, sophomore Michelle Chan was awarded as the winner. Her winning word was tendency and she was “a little shocked” at the outcome. Her history with Spelling Bees hasn't been the smoothest, so she made sure this was her year to shine and gracefully succeed. “I signed up for the spelling bee because Mrs. Ojeda encouraged me to, and I knew that I would regret it if I didn't even try. I did something really foolish in elementary school that caused me to not be in the spelling bee and I regret the decision I made back then, so this year after first hearing about the spelling bee, I did not want to have any regrets.”

 

For the AP/Honors batch, of 20 students that signed up, only 10 passed the placement test to move on to the official rounds, and similarly, after two days of competition, junior Rachna Bharati was awarded the winner! Her winning word was Lieutenant, and in a short interview with Bharati, we got an insight into her winning moment; “My reaction to winning was just speechless. I was so happy and shocked that I had defeated last year's winner, that I just had no words. I yelled, "YEAAAAAAH!", and was so ecstatic about the victory. It took a moment to sink in, but I was so glad and proud of myself. I initially signed up for the Spelling Bee for fun. Ever since I was young, I was always told that I was "good at spelling." In elementary school, I never competed but always wanted to, so this year, I said: 'Why not?'”

 

The Spelling Bee is a challenging activity for some, but not for the Gladiators; Ahmeer Barter, Michelle Chan (CP Winner), Ivana Hart-Lewis, German Rodriguez, Isaiah Veliz, Rachna Bharati (AP/Honor Winner), Chumdi Ebunilo, Rhea Khurana, Brooke Nam, and Jacob Semira, who were all finalists in their batches. 

 

The Spelling Bee is an annual event at Gahr High School, and for the 18th year now, the students have impressed us with their knowledge. With the efforts of our Commissioners of Academics and the intelligence at Gahr, we can continue this great streak!
 

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