Nineteen students from 11 county schools made it to this year’s regional bee, which took place at the University of Maine at Fort Kent’s Fox Auditorium.
Pelletier, a seventh-grader at Madawaska Middle / High School, outspelled fellow seventh-grader Jessica Quint from Greater Houlton Christian Academy in that final round. In all, the pair battled through six head-to head rounds before a winner was declared.
Pelletier is the son of Stacie and Bruce Pelletier. Quint is the daughter of Cherie and Barrett Quint.
Graham Berry, grade 8, of Ashland District School, Savanna Hanlin, grade 7, of Wisdom Middle High School, Quint and Pelletier were the only students to make it past the first two rounds.
“The first two rounds were brutal,” said grade 9 principal at Fort Kent’s Community High School.
Caron, who brought the regional bee to Fort Kent when he was at the local elementary school, said there were some words even he was doubtful he would have spelled correctly.
“I like to think of the spelling bee as a sporting event for the brain, it involves discipline, practice and strategy,” said FKES Head Librarian Deanna Potter, who helped organize this year’s spelling bee.
Students get to the county bee by having classroom and school competitions which determine the winner and runner up to represent their schools.
This year’s Bee Master was Christine Nunemaker, the associate dean of student success at UMFK.
