2025 Santa Cruz County Spelling Bee Winners
Congratulations to local winners of the 2025 Santa Cruz County Spelling Bee, Elementary Division Grades 4-6. Pictured here: Horace Dong of Scotts Valley Middle School – 2nd place, Emerson Brunner of Scotts Valley Middle School – 1st place, and Cooper Slavich of Boulder Creek Elementary School – 3rd place.
More results from the Santa Cruz County Office of Education:
In the Junior Division, Lovina Wildermuth-Reyes, of Nature Academy (San Lorenzo Valley Charter School), claimed first place. Aria Menon, of Pacific Collegiate School, earned second place, while Samarth Singh, of Scotts Valley Middle School, finished in third.
First- and second-place finishers in both divisions advance to the California State Spelling Championship, scheduled April 26, 2025, at the Great Wolf Lodge in Manteca.
“Congratulations to this year’s winners and to all the incredible students from across Santa Cruz County who took on the challenge of the Spelling Bee!” said Barbara Huebner, multilingual achievement coordinator at the Santa Cruz County Office of Education. “Competing in the Spelling Bee takes hard work and confidence, and we are proud of every student who participated and showcased their passion for language and learning.”
Hosted by the Santa Cruz County Office of Education, the Spelling Bee is an annual, academic competition with two divisions: elementary (grades 4-6) and junior (grades 7-9).
Competitors first participate in school spelling bees, with the top two finishers in each division advancing to the countywide event. Students from schools that did not host a spelling bee are able to apply to participate on an at-large basis, selected by lottery.
Photo courtesy of the Santa Cruz County Office of Education
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