2009 California State Elementary Spelling Bee
Sixty of the state’s top elementary school spellers met in Northern California on Saturday, May 16, 2009 to compete in the 29th Annual California State Elementary Spelling Championship. These students, representing 34 California counties, had already won school, region, and county spelling bees. Each county’s first- and second-place spellers were eligible to compete in this state event coordinated by the Sonoma County Office of Education.
The 2009 California State Elementary Spelling Bee competition was completed in 20 rounds. Santa Barbara County’s Quinn Hensley, an 11-year-old sixth-grader from Washington Elementary School, won the top prize by correctly spelling ichthyologist, then sacrosanct. He received a trophy and a $1,000 U.S Savings Bond. His school received a wall clock commemorating his achievement.
Placer County’s Savitri Asokan, a 10-year-old fifth-grader from Excelsior School, earned the second place trophy and a $500 U.S. Savings Bond. Eleven-year-old sixth-grader Carina Kan, from Los Angeles County’s Palos Verdes Intermediate School, earned third place and a $250 U.S. Savings Bond. Elijah Armstrong, an 11-year-old fifth-grader from Marin County’s Manor Elementary School, placed fourth and received a $100 U.S. Savings Bond. Arthur Wilkie, an 11-year-old sixth-grader from Lake County’s Lucerne Elementary School, earned fifth and a $100 U.S. Savings Bond. Twelve-year-old sixth-grader Ameet Braganza, from Santa Barbara County’s Monte Vista Elementary School, earned the sixth place trophy and a $100 U.S. Savings Bond.
Dr. Carl Wong, Sonoma County Superintendent of Schools, welcomed participants and guests to the event, then showed a video greeting from State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell. Patricia Ehrmann, a teacher at Rancho Cotate High School in Rohnert Park, served as spell master. The competition was judged by Guerneville School teacher Leslie Howell (lead judge); Mark Rasmussen, Napa area captain of the California Highway Patrol; and Sonoma County Office of Education assistant superintendent Dr. Don Russell.
The California School Employees Association sponsored the 2009 spelling championship, which was held at Evert B. Person Theatre on the Sonoma State University campus in Rohnert Park. Buzzard’s Gulch @ Cloverleaf and radio station Froggy 92.9 in Santa Rosa served as partner agencies. The competition venue featured an old west town, campfire, festive balloons, and a virtual tour of Buzzard’s Gulch, an old west town in Santa Rosa.
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