MITCHELL, S.D. – Amanuel Gemechis, a 14-year-old student at George S. Mickelson Middle School in Brookings, will represent South Dakota in the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington.
The eighth-grader out-spelled 27 other elementary and middle schoolers on Saturday at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell. The winning word: meringue.
"I love the spelling bee," Amanuel said afterward. "It helps me learn a lot. And at the national spelling bee I'll just show my skills, and I hope to do my best."
This was his third trip to the state bee and the first time he won it. His older brother was also a competitor, which influenced him. And he's been practicing every day after school.
Nina Purushottam from Saint Elizabeth Seton Central School in Rapid City took second place. Lyla Vanderboom from Black Hills Christian Academy in Spearfish and Joel Reppe of Deuel School in Clear Lake tied for third.
This is the 100th anniversary year of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, America’s longest-running educational competition.
Spelling no longer required at many schools
South Dakota News Watch, Dakota Wesleyan University and the South Dakota Humanities Council sponsored this year's state bee for the first time as many schools no longer require spelling tests as part of the curriculum.
That's unfortunate, said Tressa Wede, assistant professor of education at DWU, who teaches two courses related to reading and writing.
"Spelling is more than just memorizing words," she said. "It helps students understand that words are made up of distinct sounds that can be blended, segmented and manipulated.
"It is a key component of reading instruction that helps students decode words by applying spelling patterns and letter-sound correspondences. Through phonics, learners develop the ability to read and spell unfamiliar words, leading to greater reading fluency and comprehension."
Spelling bees support those skills by helping students recognize spelling patterns and understand etymology and morphology, which helps them understand word structure and meaning, Wede said.
While school curriculums change, the Scripps National Spelling Bee reaches millions of students globally with the classroom materials it provides to schools enrolled in the yearlong program.
Participation in regional bees also provides an opportunity for students to gain experience in public speaking, develop confidence and inspire a love of learning and connection with their peers.
Memory that lasts a lifetime
Paul Lloyd-Davies fondly remembers his first and only participation in a spelling bee. The 72-year-old was in middle school at Sacred Heart Elementary in Aberdeen and entered the contest on a whim.
"They started slinging the words out and it narrowed and narrowed until there was this gorgeous brainiac in the class and me. We went a few rounds and we got to a word I think was volcano," he said, recalling that he believes he added an "e" on the end.
"And, boom, I was out of it."
Bart Pfankuch
Lloyd-Davis, who worked in several journalism jobs and for the U.S. Forest Service during his career and is retired in Great Falls, Montana, said he never did anything like it again, despite being a voracious reader and doing phonics flash cards at the direction of his mother.
But the experience gave his young, introverted self a boost of confidence and helped him overcome what today would be considered a learning disability.
"I got this incredible sense of skill and accomplishment and worth out of ending up in that final round with her," Lloyd-Davies said of his schoolmate. "To go against what I would consider one of the most talented girls in my class gave me a lot of positive esteem."
Schools that sent a student to the state bee
- Black Hills Christian Academy, Spearfish
- Brandon Valley Intermediate School, Brandon
- Calvary Christian School, Rapid City
- Challenge Center Elementary School, Sioux Falls
- Cornerstone School, Sioux Falls
- Deuel School, Clear Lake
- Estelline Junior High
- Ethan School
- Florence School
- Garretson School
- George S. Mickelson Middle School, Brookings
- Good Shepherd Lutheran School, Sioux Falls
- Holgate Middle School, Aberdeen
- Hot Springs Elementary School
- Hot Springs Middle School
- Milbank Middle School
- Piedmont Valley Elementary School
- Platte-Geddes Elementary School
- Robert Bennis Elementary School, Brandon
- Saint Elizabeth Seton Central School, Rapid City
- Saint Martin Lutheran School, Watertown
- Saint Thomas More Middle School, Rapid City
- Saints in the Making Homeschool, Rapid City
- Scotland Middle Senior High School
- Sharon F. Delzer Elementary School, Estelline
- Stagebarn Middle School, Summerset
- Sturgis Elementary School
- Vermillion Middle School
- Waverly South Shore School
- Webster Elementary School, Yankton
This story was updated with the winner.
This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit organization. Read more stories and donate at sdnewswatch.org and sign up for an email to get stories when they're published. Contact Carson Walker at carson.walker@sdnewswatch.org.
