VIKRAM GODDLA WINS REGIONAL SPELLING BEE
A year after being runner-up, the eighth-grader took home the trophy
Chalk one up for persistence. Vikram Goddla, an eighthgrader at Detroit Country Day School, won the Oakland Schools Scripps Regional Spelling Saturday, a year after he was runner-up in the competition.
Goddla said he studied for the bee with a classmate, out-spelling more than 80 other contestants to win the regional bee.
As winner, he automatically qualifies for the Scripps National Spelling Bee, held near Washington, D.C. in late May.
He correctly spelled “gelatigenous,” which means “producing or yielding gelatin,” to win the regional competition.
He said he likes “the kids and the competition” at the regional bee.
The runner-up in this year’s regional bee, held at the Oakland Schools Main Campus in Waterford Township, was Tyler Bredernitz, an eighth-grader at St. Matthew Lutheran School in Walled Lake. Goddla, the son of Vijay Goddla and Roja Ramisetty of Bloomfield Hills, also attended the national bee last year.
The regional and national bees are open to students in grades five through eight.
The regional event was videotaped and will be shared after March 7, in accordance with a new rule from the national bee. Visit the Oakland Schools Education Foundation’s website, https://osedfoundation. org/, for a link to view it.