Pranathi Jammula, a 7th grader at Kealing Middle School in Austin ISD, claimed the championship at Austin’s first Scripps Regional Spelling Bee, held March 25 at the ZACH Theatre. Correctly spelling the word “coriaceous,” which means “leathery,” Jammula took the trophy after 12 rounds of competition.
Before this year, students in the Austin area had to travel to Houston for the nearest regional spelling bee. Thanks to the West Austin Chamber of Commerce, Austin now has its own event. Jammula will represent Austin at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, DC, at the end of May. Austin is also home to the 2016 National Co-champion, Nihar Janga.
Seventh grader Pranathi Jammula will represent Austin in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May.
Photo by Sara Erensoy.
