Matt Arthur Elementary student wins spelling bee for Houston County District

HOUSTON COUNTY, Georgia (KBTV)- Matt Arthur Elementary School student, Colby Hollar, won the Houston County School District’s 2022 Spelling Bee on January 28. He was the top speller out of 28 contestants, winning with the correct spelling of the final word, “paisley.” Quail Run Elementary School student, Castiel Flores, won second place.

Colby and Castiel, both fifth graders, will compete at the Georgia Association of Educators (GAE) District 6 Bee. This regional bee is currently scheduled for February 26 and the District 6 winner will compete at the on-line State Spelling Bee on March 18.

Each school sent a student to the county competition. The full list of Houston County School District Spelling Bee participants is listed below.

·         Cooper Calhoun, Bonaire Elementary

·         Charlotte White, Bonaire Middle 

·         Olivia Biddle, Centerville Elementary 

·         Lucas Batista, David Perdue Elementary 

·         Casey Junaidi, Eagle Springs Elementary 

·         Joy Okparume, Feagin Mill Middle 

·         Rylan Gary, Hilltop Elementary 

·         Claire Bizzell, Huntington Middle 

·         Kaden Lopez, Kings Chapel Elementary 

·         Briana Pham, Lake Joy Elementary 

·         Jacob Gonzalez, Langston Road Elementary 

·         Zabian Whitaker, Lindsey Elementary 

·         Colby Hollar, Matt Arthur Elementary 

·         Christian Phillips, Miller Elementary 

·         Kylan Fluellen, Morningside Elementary 

·         Ethan Routier, Mossy Creek Middle 

·         Madelyn Jones, Northside Elementary 

·         Yousif Sami, Northside Middle 

·         Ariana Eaton, Parkwood Elementary

·         Taylor Parker, Pearl Stephens Elementary 

·         Kyleigh White, Perry Middle 

·         Castiel Flores, Quail Run Elementary 

·         Franklin Shelley, Russell Elementary 

·         Talib Ndiaye, Shirley Hills Elementary 

·         Jaylen Jessie, Thomson Middle 

·         Jayce Sablan-Solis, Tucker Elementary 

·         Callista Smith, Warner Robins Middle

·         Ja’Leyah French, Westside Elementary

In addition to spelling words, students participated in a vocabulary round which aligns with region and state spelling bees. The state spelling bee procedures, rules and regulations were followed. The Houston County Spelling Bee coordinators are Dr. Kasandra King and Yolanda Felder of Morningside Elementary School. Brooke Herndon, media specialist at Morningside Elementary, called out the words.

The local spelling bee is sponsored by the GAE through the local Houston Association of Educators. For more information, please contact Language Arts Coordinator Amanda Yoh or Dr. Amy Fouse at 478-988-6200.