SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Students across San Diego County are preparing for the 54th annual San Diego County Scripps Regional Spelling Bee, which takes place at 9 a.m. this Thursday.
More than 90 sixth, seventh, and eighth-grade students will compete for the chance to participate in the National Scripps Spelling Bee competition. The regional bee will be emceed by ABC 10News anchors Jared Aarons and Melissa Mecija.
To reach the county-level competition, each student had to win their school's spelling bee. This includes Ahmad Farzad, an eighth-grader at Montgomery Middle School, who won his school's spelling bee.
Farzad, whose first language is Farsi, said he studied a lot at home, which paid off.
"That feels really good, like you accomplished a lot!" he said after winning his school's competition.
Despite not expecting to place in the top three, Farzad took first place, which he said was an unexpected accomplishment.
"I didn't even think I was going to get top three, so when I got first place, I didn't believe it," he said.
School administrators said even in the age of texting abbreviations and spell check, spelling proficiency remains important.
"Spelling is really important; it's part of our literacy here at Montgomery Middle School," said one administrator.
The diverse population of the school, with students from 31 different ethnicities and 18 recognized languages, makes the accomplishment of second-language learners like Farzad even more significant, the administrator said.
Farzad said he learned that even when you lose, you should continue to persevere, as he did after placing second last year and first this year.
