More than 100 students are set to compete in the 48th annual San Diego County Spelling Bee on Thursday, when they will vie for a spot in the national event outside Washington, D.C.
Those taking part at the San Diego Hall of Champions will be in grades 6- 8 from public and private schools throughout the area.
The competition will be led by a new spelling bee master, Dr. Timothy Randell. He takes over from David Hay, who retired in 2016 after 35 years.
Both are professors at the University of San Diego — Randell in practice of careers and internships in the Department of English. Hay, who will be on hand to assist Randell, is an adjunct research associate teaching Shakespeare and dramatic literature.
Ella Peters, a seventh-grader at Notre Dame Academy in Carmel Valley, won San Diego’s spelling bee last year, when the winning word was “phlegm.” She correctly spelled two words in the national competition but failed to advance to the finals.
In 2012, Snigdha Nandipati of Francis Parker School in Linda Vista won the national spelling bee. Anurag Kashyap, of Poway, won seven years prior.
—City News Service