Spelling Bee Buzzes in Again

It's time for the Great National spelling Bee again. SigEp is once again a major sponsor of this test to see who is the best speller among America's youth. If past is prologue the "American youth" will be a first or second generation child of Oriental or Indian extraction. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

The National Spelling Bee word panel has compiled a list consisting of more than 1,000 words that will be used in the national competition.

Cash prizes for competitors range from $50 to $30,000 for the national champion. All spellers receive a commemorative watch; the Samuel Louis Sugarman Award, which consists of a $100 EE U.S. Savings bond; and Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged, on CD-ROM from Merriam-Webster.

The national champion also receives an engraved loving cup; from Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation, a $5,000 scholarship; from Merriam-Webster, a $2,500 U.S. Savings Bond and a reference library; and from Encyclopedia Britannica, reference materials valued at more than $3,800.

Information about the 2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee can be found online at http://www.spellingbee.com/ .

Best of luck to the participants. We look forward to seeing the winner at the Orlando Conclave next year.

2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee Continues Today in Washington D.C.