Arvind Mahankali, 13, wins National Spelling Bee

For the past several years, SigEp Education Foundation has been a sponsor of the National Spelling Bee. Apparently they dropped the sponsorship this year. At least there was no mention of support or prizes from them on the Spellingbee.com web site. If I had to guess why support was dropped I would suggest some combination of cost cutting and not getting enough recognition and membership effect attributable to the effort.

In any case, here is a link to the story and a picture of this year's winner - Arvind Mahankali. Just one more public service we offer.

Arvind Mahankali, 13, wins National Spelling Bee - Yahoo! News:



'via Blog this'

Time to BEE Smart again!

This just in:
Snigdha Nandipati is the fifth Indian-American in a row to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 14-year old spelled 'guetapens,' which means ambush or trap. (link with video)

(Blatantly stolen from Sigep.org, the HQ Website)

This Thursday, May 31, 2012, at 8 p.m. EST, the finals of the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee will be broadcast live in Washington, D.C., on ESPN. For the seventh  year, the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation will present a $5,000 college scholarship to the winner.  Board of Governors member Anthony Balestrieri, George Washington ‘03, will bestow the scholarship at the closing banquet on Friday night, June 1.

The Educational Foundation sponsors the Scripps National Spelling Bee because SigEp believes that when students improve their spelling, they increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives.   This principle aligns with SigEp’s goal to be a valued partner in higher education.  Good spelling provides a basis for education and communication, which are building blocks for success, credibility and leadership.

Coverage of the semifinals begins at 10:00 a.m. EST, and the finals start at 8:00 p.m. EST. You will see SigEp listed as a sponsor during these broadcasts.  Please give the Bee your attention and support.

Many past winners have made an appearance at the biennial SigEp Conclave, and we look forward to the 2012 and 2013 winners joining us in August 2013 in Dallas.

Read more fascinating facts about the spelling bee and this year’s competitors.

Ohio teen wins National Spelling Bee

Congratulations to Anamika Veeramani, this year's winner of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The 14-year-old girl from North Royalton, Ohio, won the 83rd Scripps National Spelling Bee on Friday, acing the medical word “stromuhr” to claim the winner’s trophy and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes.

...and $5000 of that is a scholarship provided by the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation.

Read more:
The Herald-Sun - Ohio teen wins National Spelling Bee

National Spelling Bee starts today - SigEp a sponsor

The Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation has been a sponsor of the Scripps National Spelling Bee for over five years. They award a $5000 scholarship to the champion.

The "Bee" is always full of surprises and never predictable. There is edge-of-your-seat suspense and tension as well when these young people do battle using words no normal human can spell without a handy dictionary.

This year the fun starts today at 1:15 EDT on ESPN3 (it's a sport???) and continues tomorrow afternoon (ESPN) and tomorrow night (ABC). See the schedule to the right for full info.

Welcome | Scripps National Spelling Bee

Aspiring neurosurgeon from Kansas is top speller

"Toto, I have a feeling we aren't in Kansas anymore"

Congratulations to Kavya Shivashankar, the newest champion of the National Spelling Bee.

On her fourth and final try, the Kansas girl who flashed a sweet smile with every word won the Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night, outlasting 10 other finalists to take home more than $40,000 in cash and prizes and, of course, the huge champion's trophy.

One of the awards she will receive for winning is a $5000 Scholarship from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Education Foundation. And a trip to Orlando for Conclave (Its not Disney World, but, hey, you take what you get).

Aspiring neurosurgeon from Kansas is top speller - Yahoo! News

SigEp Ed. Foundation Sponsors Spelling Bee

How do you Spell Sponsor? - "S-I-G-E-P"

Set your Tivos, it is time again for the best kids event this side of the Little League world series - the Spelling Bee!

The Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation continues its successful sponsorship of the National Spelling Bee by once more offering a $5000 college scholarship to the winning speller.

You can catch the edge-of-your-seat action and suspense at the following times on ESPN and ABC:

• Preliminaries: Wed. May 27: 1:15pm EST - espn360.com
  
• Semifinals: Thur. May 28: 10:00am - ESPN TV
• Finals: Thur. May 28: 8:00pm ABC TV

The winners have been welcomed to the last two Conclaves and I expect they will be there again this year.
(Can you tell I am "buzzed" about it?)

Indiana boy spells 'guerdon' to win national bee

Sameer Mishra, in yellow shirt, of Lafayette, Ind., celebrates with his family after correctly spelling "guerdon" to win the 2008 Scripps Howard Spelling Bee.
CHUCK KENNEDY: MCCLATCHY NEWS SERVICE

We can all relax and take a breath, now. the suspense is over.

A 13-year-old boy has won the Scripps National Spelling Bee by correctly spelling the word "guerdon."

Sameer Mishra of West Lafayette, Ind., bested 287 other entrants to take first prize. He will receive $35,000 in cash plus more than $5,000 in other prizes.

Congratulations to all the participants.

Indiana boy spells 'guerdon' to win national bee

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.

You gave HOW MUCH?

The Educational Foundation Luncheon was a big success, at least from the foundation's perspective. This is a time when we learn about what the foundation is spending money on - mostly the Leadership Continuum (EDGE, CLA, Ruck, Quest) - and how desperately they want to have more to spend.

To start off, we heard from 6 undergrads how SigEp programs have had an impact on their lives. Then after lunch we met the Spelling Bee champions from the last two years. They were both well scripted and had very nice things to say about us.

The first Doud-Clayton award was presented to a group of men who stood by their brother and helped him keep vigil while his wife was dying in the hospital. It was quite emotional and touching. I won't even try to give the details, just read about it when the Journal comes out.

But the really big deal came when Garry Kief, Foundation President, announched a $5 million lifetime challenge gift to the Foundation. Garry suggested that those in attendance might want to make a similar contribution. There had obviously been some prior set up involved, but I think that the final total was more than even he expected: $16,845,000!!! That does include Bro. Schryer's challenge gift too, but still... It basically doubles the endowment. Wow. Not bad for a lunch. The entire place erupted whine the last giver stood up and made his decision known. Jim Clayton pledged a matching $5 million. The really interesting point was that many, if not most, of the men either had their wives with them or mentioned that they had discussed it with them. Let's hope so, or there will be some embarrassing conversations back at home.

We have a w-i-n-n-e-r

Evan O’Dorney,
Sponsored by the Contra Costa Times,
representing Walnut Creek, California

Evan O'Dorney has won the National Spelling Bee. He will receive numerous prizes, including a $5000 Scholarship from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Education Foundation. Way to go, Evan.

Click here for another story on Evan.

2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee

Don't worry, Bee Happy

The SigEp sponsored (a $5000 scholarship fron the Educational Foundation) National Spelling Bee gets under way today in Washington D.C.

Lets have a good, clean match. No eye gouging, rabbit punches, or dipthong hurling allowed. Plosives and fricatives may only be used with a doctor's excuse and prior consent of the judges.

The 286 champion spellers, ranging in age from 10- to 15-years-old, will be competing for the Scripps National Spelling Bee Championship, which will be determined during the semifinal and championship rounds of the competition Thursday, May 31. The spellers have qualified to compete in the national competition by winning locally sponsored spelling bees in their home communities. The national competition will be held in the Independence Ballroom of the Grand Hyatt Washington.

The D.C. Grand Hyatt? I guess that means it is BYOB - Bring Your Own Bottle-rockets.

The ABC Television Network will provide live coverage of the championship rounds from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., EDT, on Thursday, May 31. Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts will host the ABC broadcast.

Semifinal rounds of the bee will air live earlier in the day on ESPN from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. SportsCenter anchor Chris McKendry will host the ESPN broadcast.

If it's on ESPN, this event must be for those who don't get enough adrenaline rush from NASCAR, right?

2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee Begins May 30 in Washington D.C. | Huliq: Breaking News

Set your Tivos, it's Spelling Bee time again!

Once again, Sig Ep is a major sponsor of the National Spelling Bee.

WASHINGTON, May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee will begin Wednesday, May 30, in Washington D.C., featuring top spellers from across the U.S. and including competitors from Europe, Guam, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, The Bahamas, American Samoa, Canada and New Zealand.

The 286 champion spellers, ranging in age from 10- to 15-years-old, will be competing for the Scripps National Spelling Bee Championship, which will be determined during the semifinal and championship rounds of the competition Thursday, May 31.
[...]
The national champion [...] receives an engraved loving cup, a $5,000 cash award from Franklin Electronic Publishers, a $5,000 cash award from LeapFrog Enterprises Inc., a $5,000 scholarship from Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation; from Merriam-Webster, a $2,500 U.S. Savings Bond, a reference library, and a $5,000 cash award and 50 reference works to the school or library of the champion's choice; and from Encyclopedia Britannica, reference materials valued at more than $3,800.

Don't miss a single nerve-wracking moment of this edge-of-your-seat live action drama!

The ABC Television Network will provide live coverage of the championship rounds from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., EDT, on Thursday, May 31. Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts will host the ABC broadcast.

Information about the 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee can be found online at http://www.spellingbee.com/

2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee begins May 30 in Washington D.C.