2008 Spelling Bee Champion

The 34th annual Richmond Times-Dispatch Spelling Bee was held on March 1 at the Library of Virginia. The 33 spellers ranged from grades 3 through 8 and from counties across Virginia. At the start of round 8, five spellers remained: Yaser Qazi of Colonial Heights, Mary Beith of Essex County, Coly Elhai of Henrico County, Batiyah Coleman of Lancaster County, and Torey Jackson of Private Schools. Round 8 was a tough round with all of the spellers being eliminated except Torey, who went on to spell the championship word, "contrapuntal" and win the bee. A tie breaker was held between the 4 students eliminated in round 8 in order to secure a second place winner. Mary Beith properly spelled "megalopolis" in order to win the round and finish second.

Torey and her family will be traveling to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. at the end of May. She and her family will be guests of The Times-Dispatch for all the activities during the week surrounding the bee. Torey will also receive a $1500 scholarship when she enters college.