Brawley School sixth-grader wins I-SS spelling bee

Posted on by Mike Fuhrman
The Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education honored district spelling bee winners on Monday night. Pictured (from left) are first place spelling bee winner Rishidharan Jayakumar; runner-up Sahana Barua; and school board vice chairman Todd Carver.

BY KARISSA MILLER

The word i s “beguile.”

Meriam Webster’s Dictionary defines it as leading by deception.

For The Brawley School sixth-grade student Rishidharan Jayakumar, the word meant victory. Rishidharan took first place as he was the last competitor standing during the 2021 Iredell-Statesville Schools District Spelling Bee.

Sahana Barua, a fifth-grade student at Woodland Heights Elementary, was runner-up.

Kelly Hinson, director of Gifted Learning, International Baccalaureate and online programs for I-SS, recognized these spelling bee winners during the March 1 Board of Education meeting.

This year’s Spelling Bee lasted nine rounds. The competition took place on February 4 at Mac Gray Auditorium in Statesville.

Rishidharan will represent the district at the Regional Spelling Bee on March 21 at Carolina Panthers Stadium in Charlotte.