Forty-Two Schuylkill County students will compete this weekend in the Regional Spelling Bee.
The 2025 Northeast PA Manufacturers & Employers Council (NEPA MAEC) Regional Spelling Bee is set to take place on Saturday, March 8, 2024, at 9:00 AM in the auditorium of DHH Lengel Middle School, located at 1541 Laurel Blvd, Pottsville, PA 17901.
The event, coordinated by Schuylkill Technology Center, will feature forty-two spellers and twenty alternates representing public school districts and non-public institutions across Schuylkill County.
The competition will be led by Ms. Karen Durkin, who will serve as the pronouncer. A panel of judges includes Cynthia Mensch of Alvernia University, Devina Singh, a former National Spelling Bee competitor, and Joshua Sophy of Coal Region Canary. The event will be documented by Ashley Hess of Schuylkill Intermediate Unit 29, who will serve as recordkeeper.
Additional key officials include Cathy Bronakowski as the appeals judge and Shannon Brennan of Schuylkill Technology Center as the emcee.
The event is sponsored by the Northeast PA Manufacturers and Employers Council, with Darlene Robbins and Courtney Fasnacht presenting awards to the winners. The Pottsville Area School District has donated the use of the DHH Lengel Middle School auditorium at no cost.
The winner of the NEPA MAEC Regional Spelling Bee will move on to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May 2025. In addition to earning a spot in the national competition, the regional champion will receive a custom-designed trophy constructed by students in the Precision Machine Trades Program at Schuylkill Technology Center and a $50 gift card provided by the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society.
The trophy awarded to the winner is a product of the skill and dedication of students enrolled in the Precision Machine Trades Program at Schuylkill Technology Center’s South Campus. Bradley Kostishak, a senior from Minersville School District, and Chase Zeigenfuss, a senior from Tamaqua School District, proudly display the trophy they helped design and construct.
School Champions Competing Include:
- Grace Andrescavage - Grade 7 - Assumption BVM
- Ava Applegate - Grade 8 - Schuylkill Haven High School
- Kace Bach - Grade 6 - Williams Valley Elementary
- Eli Bencivengo - Grade 4 - Pine Grove Elementary
- Owen Borger - Grade 5 - Blue Mountain Elementary West
- Braxton Bowers - Grade 5 - Saint Clair Elementary/Middle
- Mikayla Burke - Grade 7 - North Schuylkill Jr./Sr High
- Rowena Cresswell-Blickley - Grade 7 - Blue Mountain Middle
- Emma Deiter - Grade 7 - Williams Valley Jr./Sr. High
- Alyana Dely - Grade 7 - Saint Clair Area Elementary/Middle
- Damien Earhart - Grade 5 - Tamaqua Elementary
- Eli Fisher - Grade 4 - Blue Mountain Elementary East
- Morgan Frank - Grade 4 - Schuylkill Haven Elementary
- Bryce Frymoyer - Grade 7 - Pine Grove Area Middle
- Grayson Hess - Grade 7 - Schuylkill Haven Middle
- Philippa Hoffman-Long - Grade 6 - Tri-Valley Jr./Sr. High
- Riley Jordan - Grade 7 - DHH Lengel Middle
- Allison Knecht - Grade 6 - Mahanoy Area Elementary
- Delaney Kramer - Grade 4 - Blue Mountain Elementary East
- Alivia Kroh - Grade 5 - Shenandoah Valley Elementary
- Avery Lieberman - Grade 4 - Schuylkill Haven Elementary
- Renee Machamer - Grade 7 - Williams Valley Jr./Sr. High
- Madilynn Marko - Grade 4 - Pine Grove Area Elementary
- Liam McGowan - Grade 5 - Assumption BVM
- Liam McShaw - Grade 6 - DHH Lengel Middle
- Kayda Monberger - Grade 8 - North Schuylkill Jr./Sr. High
- Chase Moyer - Grade 5 - West Penn Elementary
- Riley Nguyeno - Grade 5 - Schuylkill Haven Middle
- Faith Nova-Reyes - Grade 6 - North Schuylkill Elementary
- Oscar Oravec - Grade 6 - Williams Valley Elementary
- Gage Penkauski - Grade 8 - Pine Grove Area Middle
- Aurelia Poss-Frankel - Grade 4 - Blue Mountain Elementary West
- Abigail Rhode - Grade 7 - Blue Mountain Middle
- Isobel Roehl - Grade 5 - Tri-Valley Elementary
- Quintin Rucker - Grade 8 - Mahanoy Area Jr./Sr. High
- Jeffrey Salcedo - Grade 6 - Mahanoy Area Elementary
- Viola Shannon - Grade 6 - Shenandoah Valley Elementary
- William Sidleck - Grade 8 - Schuylkill Haven High
- Cameron Smith - Grade 8 - Mahanoy Area Jr./Sr. High
- Dennis Snyder - Grade 5 - Tri-Valley Elementary
- Caleb Stine - Grade 6 - North Schuylkill Elementary
- Deklan Zettick - Grade 6 - Tri-Valley Jr./Sr. High