Centerville middle school student Aurora Spisak repeats as champ of Wright State Regional Spelling Bee, qualifying for national competition

Aurora Spisak, an eighth grader at Watts Middle School, will return to the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee after winning Wright State’s Regional Spelling Bee. (Photos by Erin Pence)

Aurora Spisak, an eighth grader at Watts Middle School in Centerville, repeated as the champion of the Wright State University Regional Spelling Bee on March 7.

Wright State’s Regional Spelling Bee lasted 33 rounds, attracting 41 students from Clark, Darke, Greene, Miami, Montgomery and Preble counties.

Aurora’s winning word was broch, a prehistoric circular stone tower found in Scotland. She advanced to compete in the 100th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee from May 27–29.

Aurora, 14, also won Wright State Regional Spelling Bee in 2024, the first year the university hosted the competition, earning a place in the 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee. While she was knocked out of the national competition, Aurora’s team won the Rule the Word Challenge, a separate, bee-related contest.

Spellers studied “Words of the Champions,” the 4,000-word list provided by the Scripps National Spelling Bee, to prepare for the competition.

The competition encourages the exploration of words and lifelong curiosity, with a focus on helping students set goals and dedicate time to study and prepare. Participation in the bee program also provides an opportunity for students to gain experience in public speaking and poise under pressure.

From left: Wright State Regional Spelling Bee finalists were Katherine Harsch from Saint Luke School in third place; Matthew Corner from Ridgewood School in second place; and Aurora Spisak from Watts Middle School in first place.

Launched in 1925, the Scripps National Spelling Bee is the nation’s largest and longest-running educational program. Visit spellingbee.com for more information about the Scripps National Spelling Bee, which is administered on a not-for-profit basis by The E.W. Scripps Company.