The 2025 Eleuthera District Inter-School Spelling Bee championship, hosted at Worker’s House in Governor’s Harbour on Thursday morning, January 30th, had 22 young spellers from 11 schools across The Eleutheras taking part. In addition to the spellers – the event was well supported, by classmates, parents, coaches and officials managing the day’s competition.
Each school had two or three students slated to participate in the championship spell-off. The young spellers included; Jus’Sky Taylor and D’Aijah Sands from Emma E. Cooper Primary; Omarrionn Knowles and Andam Williams from Tarpum Bay Primary; Aurora Knowles and Damian Russell from Samuel Guy Pinder All Age; Cordesha Pierre and Bria Curry from Wellington Preparatory School; Khandi Brown from The Learning Nook; Harmonie McCardy and Janoah Penn from P.A. Gibson Primary; Diajah Braynen and Ryley Alcent from Harbour Island All Age; Gabriel Fox, Eliana Green and Audriana Olburn from Emily G. Petty Primary; Shaliyah Romer, Frandeleine Pierre and Savannah Wood from North Eleuthera High; Cholaine Frederic and Ajanaye Bethell from Central Eleuthera High; and Bryton Ward from Rock Sound Primary.
Notably, not seen in this year’s match-up of spellers were students from Preston Albury High, Green Castle Primary, The Harbour Island Green School, James’ Cistern Primary, Wemyss Bight Primary, and Deep Creek Primary.
After a competitive set of spelling rounds, 2024 Eleuthera Spelling Champion, Bria Curry of Wellington Preparatory, captured the win, and held on to her Eleuthera Champion title. The final overall standings were: Bria Curry of Wellington Preparatory in 1st, Eliana Green of Emily G. Petty Primary in 2nd, and Aurora Knowles of Samuel Guy Pinder in 3rd.
Bria, as well as Eliana will now have the opportunity to represent the island of Eleuthera during the 28th Annual Bahamas National Spelling Bee Final Competition, slated for Sunday afternoon, March 16th, 2025.
The official panel of judges, who offered their service to help make Thursday morning’s spelling competition possible, included: chief judge, Mrs. Marie Galanis; pronouncer, Mr. Stephen Galanis; assistant judges, Mrs. Emily Petty and Mrs. Lashelle Ingraham; dictionary consultant, Mrs. Karen Crean; and scorekeeper/timekeeper, Mrs. Alvene Sands.
Coaches, who spent many weeks practicing with their students in preparation for the competition, included, Ms. Gaynell Higgs and Ms. Jessica Turnquest of Emma E. Cooper primary; Mr. Barry Ward of Rock Sound primary; Mr. Bevil Clarke of Samuel Guy Pinder All Age; Mrs. Karen Knowles-Culmer of Tarpum Bay primary; Mrs. Andrea Robinson of Harbour Island All Age; Ms. Carlin Dean-Knowles of Emily G. Petty primary school; Mrs. Olive Sterling-Johnson and Ms. Sharon Singh of North Eleuthera high; Mrs. Sophia Sturrup-Smith of Central Eleuthera high; Ms. B. Cartwright of P.A. Gibson primary; and Ms. Ashley Knowles of Wellington Preparatory.
The winning coach, Ms. Ashley Knowles reflecting on her student’s win, and the circumstances of this year’s preparation shared, “Last year, our preparation was intense since we didn’t know what to expect; it was her first spelling bee and our first time in the national qualifier. This year, I coached Bria in the mornings and after school a few days. I reminded her not to be overly confident, but also not to lack confidence. I reminded her that a spelling bee is a gamble. She learned this last year when she got the word “coccidiosis” while another contestant received a 4-letter word.”
Ms. Knowles continued, “Sitting in the audience during this year’s spelling bee felt even more surreal. As the contestants dwindled down, I didn’t want to celebrate too early, but in the back of my mind, I kept saying we were so close to doing this again. When the announcer called her last word, I knew she had it. As her coach, I was aware of every word she struggled with and every word she felt confident about. After spelling “astonish” correctly, her championship word was “attempt.” Once she added the double T, I knew we had it! She did it again!
“I ran out of the hall and called the school with my voice shaking! They screamed and cheered, dropped everything, and decorated with congratulatory posters! We were greeted with music, cheers, and school paraphernalia, along with cheerleaders.”
Ashley added, “We would also like to highlight her remarkable teammate, Cordesha Pierre, who secured 4th place among 22 contestants, despite being only in 5th grade. The students, staff, and entire school community are immensely proud of our talented spellers, and we eagerly anticipate Bria’s performance at Nationals.”
