Spelling for a spell
Special section covers next weekend’s competition for the state’s elite spellers
Students from around the state will converge on Sandia Preparatory School March 23 for the 2019 Albuquerque Journal New Mexico Spelling Bee.
The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 9 a.m. in the school’s theater, 532 Osuna NE. The top speller will win, among other things, an expenses-paid trip to participate in Bee Week and compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May.
Karen Trujillo, secretary of the New Mexico Public Education Department, will speak at the bee.
Matthew Evans, 24, remembers well the thrill of the competition.
“It is an experience you just don’t forget,” he said.
Evans, who was homeschooled and then went on to earn an undergraduate degree in marketing and a MBA from the University of New Mexico, competed in spelling bees from the time he was in first grade until be became ineligible at age 14.
He won the trip to Washington five times and after that helped his younger sister, Hannah, keep the state spelling trophy in the family for an additional two years.
“One of the biggest things you get from (participating in) spelling bee is you learn a lot about working hard for a big goal,” he said.
He says having to think on your feet and retaining composure is great practice for life.
Evans says before the competition even begins in Washington, D.C., there is Bee Week to bring spellers and their families together for meals and other social events.
“This is where spellers make new friends and when it’s time for the competition, everyone is pulling for each other to do their best … it is a competition, but most everyone looks at a competition with themselves and their preparation” because the words are the luck of the draw.
Evans says that’s not the only thing he took away from his years preparing for and competing in spelling bees.
“All that study of linguistics has WHAT: 2019 Albuquerque Journal New Mexico Spelling Bee
WHEN: 9 a.m. Saturday, March 23 WHERE: Sandia Preparatory School theater, 532 Osuna NE
Free come in handy with my current job,” he said. Evans works as an audio editor for Albuquerque-based Faith Comes By Hearing, an international audio Bible recording company. It is run by a not-for-profit organization and has audio Bibles available in more than 1,000 languages.
The 53 participants for 2019 — ages 9 to 14 — hail from all points of the compass from the smallest villages and towns to the biggest cities in New Mexico.
This year’s entrants include 14 spellers who have been to the state spelling bee previously; five spellers who are attending their third bee and one who has participated in four previous bees.
Last year’s winner, Akansha Nanda of Santa Fe, placed 42nd at the 2018 Scripps National Spelling Bee and is back this year.
In their applications, contestants listed their ambitions, which include author, interior designer, “professional soccer player,”