Warsaw, IN – Warsaw Community Schools (WCS) held its annual Elementary Spelling Bee last night, January 28, 2024, at the Lakeview Middle School Auditorium. The event brought together top 5th and 6th grade spellers from each elementary school to compete for the championship.
Aimee Lunsford, Chief Academic Officer, served as the pronouncer, while Kristin Sederberg, principal of Claypool Elementary, oversaw the event. The judges included Cheri Sleighter, principal of Washington STEM Academy; Nate Polston, principal of Leesburg Elementary; and Kyle Carter, Chief Accountability Officer.
Sixteen spellers took the stage after advancing from preliminary rounds where they competed against more than 1,000 other 5th and 6th graders.
District-wide participants included:
Claypool: Elizabeth Alexander (Building Winner, Grade 5), Renesme Cobaxin (Runner-Up, Grade 6)
Eisenhower: Elliana Moore (Building Winner, Grade 6), Bianca Hodorek (Runner-Up, Grade 6)
Harrison: Ezra Suarez (Building Winner, Grade 5), Abigail Chrisopher (Runner-Up, Grade 6)
Jefferson: Rick Migranyan (Building Winner, Grade 5), Carson Neata (Runner-Up, Grade 5)
Leesburg: Rene Rodriguez (Building Winner, Grade 5), Isaiah Bradfield (Runner-Up, Grade 5)
Lincoln: Rahil Patel (Building Winner, Grade 6), Raven Burton (Runner-Up, Grade 5)
Madison: Sidanth Umesh Kumar Chinnachan (Building Winner, Grade 5), Siddarth Reddy Chamala (Runner-Up, Grade 5)
Washington: Aarav Jena (Building Winner, Grade 6), Caleb Watson (Runner-Up, Grade 5)
After 14 rounds and 45 minutes, Elliana Moore, a 6th grader from Eisenhower Elementary, won the spelling bee with the winning word “linden.” Sidanth Umesh Kumar Chinnachan, a 5th grader from Madison Elementary, took the runner-up spot.
Kyle Carter shared, "Our spelling bee is one of the many ways WCS empowers students to showcase their strengths, build confidence and celebrate a love of learning. We are incredibly proud of our students as they demonstrate their hard work and determination in such a meaningful event."
Next Steps
Elliana will take the Regional Qualifier Online Test between February 7 and February 14, 2025. Top performers from the online test will advance to regional spelling bees, where winners will represent Indiana at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.
Congratulations to all the spellers for their hard work and effort!
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Photo Provided (left to right): Jenna Moree, Eisenhower Elementary Principal; Spelling Bee Champion, Elliana Moore; Runner-Up Sidanth Umesh Kumar Chinnachan; Francesca Hoffmann, Madison Elementary Principal