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Lillie Young, an eighth grader from Robbins Elementary School in Scott County, won the 2008 News Sentinel Southern Appalachian Regional Spelling Bee. Lillie’s winning word was zoanthropy, meaning a disorder in which a person believes himself to be transformed into an animal and behaves as such.

As the Regional Champion, Lillie received a $150 cash prize, $100 savings bond, a champion medal and T-shirt and a copy of Webster’s Third New International Unabridged Dictionary. The News Sentinel funds travel for the champion to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

Lillie Young wins the 2008 News Sentinel Southern Appalachian Regional Spelling Bee.
Photo by Clay Owen/News Sentinel

The path to Scripps National Spelling Bee
2008 Spelling Bee
2009 Spelling Bee

Schools and home school associations in 36 counties in East Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia are eligible to participate. Schools and associations must first register with the Scripps National Bee on their web site, spellingbee.com.

Once registered, each school/home school group conducts a spelling bee and then each school system/home school association conducts a bee for the winners. The champions of the school system/home school association bees then progress to the News Sentinel Southern Appalachian Regional Bee. The winner of the Regional Bee goes on to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

List of counties covered:

NC
Haywood

TN
Anderson
Blount
Campbell
Carter
Claiborne
Cocke
Cumberland
Fentress
Grainger
Greene
Hamblen
Hancock
Hawkins
Jefferson
Johnson
Knox
Loudon
Monroe
Morgan
Pickett
Putnam
Roane
Scott
Sevier
Sullivan
Unicoi
Union
Warren
Washington
White

VA
Dickenson
Lee
Scott
Washington
Wise

May 29 and 30, 2008 - Scripps National Spelling Bee

Information will be posted soon regarding registration, event dates and deadlines. In the meantime, please contact Kim Askey at 865-342-6872 or askeyk@knews.com if you have questions.