By BSU Marketing & Communications—
MUNCIE, IN—Craig Ulrey, a seventh grader from Heritage Hall Christian School in Muncie, is the champion of the 2023 Ball State PBS Regional Spelling Bee.
Ulrey’s winning word was “condensation.”
The competition, involving 37 spellers from 29 area school systems, lasted 19 nerve-racking rounds.
The first runner-up is Joshua Thorpe from East Washington Academy in Muncie. The second runner-up is TaMerra Edwards from Lee L. Driver Middle School in Winchester.
Spellers competed at Sursa Hall on March 11 in an event that will be broadcast on Ball State PBS at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, March 18, and at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 23. It will also be streamed on the Ball State Public Media mobile app and the PBS App.
Felicia Gray, an educator from Burris Laboratory School and the 2019 PBS KIDS Early Learning Champion, served as the pronouncer for the competition.
The judges—tasked with tracking every word and verifying spelling accuracy—were: Kamna Agarwal, a past spelling bee coach and occupational therapist; Stephanie Wiechmann, IPR managing editor and host; and Alesya Rathinasamy, former Ball State PBS Regional Spelling Bee Champion. Spellers studied “Words of the Champions,” the 4,000-word list provided by the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
“Ball State PBS is proud to present the 2023 Regional Spelling Bee. This is just one example of us living our mission to connect people to educational experiences and trusted stories,” said Dr. Phil Hoffman, general manager for Ball State Public Media. “Congratulations to all our spellers for being so splendiferous, prodigious, ingenious, and otherwise stupendous.”
Ulrey advances to compete in the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee this Summer near Washington, D.C. The semifinals on May 31 and the finals on June 1 will be televised on ION and Bounce.
In addition to qualifying for the national competition, Ulrey won these prizes:
- The Samuel Louis Sugarman Award is a 2023 United States Mint Proof Set provided by Jay Sugarman, chairman and CEO of iStar Financial, in honor of his father. Ulrey will receive the prize in the Summer.
- The Britannica Online Premium is a one-year subscription for the premier online resource from Encyclopædia Britannica.
- The Merriam-Webster Unabridged Online is a one-year subscription for the official word source for all levels of competition for the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
- Ball State PBS Spelling Bee Champion Trophy, Ray Ban Sunglasses with case from Family Vision Care, $50 Visa gift card, hat and T-shirt from Sam Pierce Chevrolet, $25 gift card from Dave’s Video Muncie, $25 cake gift certificate from Baskin Robbins of Muncie, $10 gift certificate from The Clubhouse Muncie, and a Ball State University Teachers College prize pack.
Ball State PBS has sponsored the regional spelling bee event for seven years. The competition encourages the exploration of words and lifelong curiosity, with a focus on helping students set goals and dedicate time to study and prepare. Participation in the bee program also provides students the opportunity to gain experience in public speaking and poise under pressure.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee provides the list of words for the regional competition. The Bee reaches millions of students across the country and other parts of the world with the classroom materials it provides to enrolled schools.
The Ball State PBS Regional Spelling Bee is presented by Family Vision Care. The school fees sponsor is Ball State University Teachers College. The T-shirt sponsor is Navient Community Fund. The Championship word sponsor is Muncie Optimist Club.
Additional support was provided by Avila Orthodontics, The Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities, Sam Pierce Chevrolet, Scott E. Trout DDS, and Wilhoite Family Dental.
About Ball State
Founded in 1918 and located in Muncie, Ball State University is one of Indiana’s premier universities and an economic driver for the state. Ball State’s 20,000 students come from all over Indiana, the nation, and the world. The 790-acre campus is large enough to accommodate first-rate facilities and 19 NCAA Division I sports, but our welcoming and inclusive campus is small enough to ensure the friendliness, personal attention, and access that are the hallmarks of the University. Destination 2040: Our Flight Path establishes Ball State’s ambitious goals for our second century. We Fly!
