Three students standing with certificates of their accomplishments at the Spell Off.

Case Studies

Big Words, Bright Futures at the Scripps Spell Off

Students from across Fresno County participated in the annual Scripps Spell Off, a competition that challenges spelling skills while emphasizing focus and composure under pressure. The top honor for the Elementary Competition went to Warren Li of Fugman Elementary-Clovis Unified (center), who finished in first place after a strong performance across seven rounds. Luke Bustinza (right) of Sutter Middle School-Fowler Unified earned the second-place title and Sofia Mancero (left) of Centerville Dual Language Academy-Sanger Unified placed third.

The winners of the Junior High Competition were Rishi Pillai of Granite Ridge Intermediate-Clovis Unified for first place, Aarya Sodha of Quail Lake Environmental Charter-Sanger Unified came in second place, and third place was Arden Guenthner of Rafer Johnson Junior High-Kingsburg Elementary Charter. The top two winners of each category will compete at the state competition.

The Fresno County competition culminated with the top two winners of each category competing to represent the County at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C., and the winner was… Warren Li!  

The event was made possible in part by the generous support of sponsors, including EECU, ERC, and Chevron, whose contributions help sustain educational opportunities and academic enrichment in the community.