Illinois Times will host a regional spelling bee in February, giving students from central Illinois a chance to compete with other top spellers at the Scripps National Spelling Bee held in Washington, D.C.
Kate McKenzie is the CEO of Local Journalism Matters, a nonprofit organization that oversees Illinois Times, Springfield Business Journal and several niche publications.
“The spelling bee promotes literacy and academic achievement, and I thought it was a wonderful way for us to give back to our community,” a key goal for the recently formed nonprofit, she said.
Scripps National Spelling Bee encouraged Illinois Times to be a regional partner and launch a spelling bee for the area, with the winner earning a spot to compete in the national competition. There’s been no contestant from central Illinois in the Scripps National Bee since 2015.
Elementary and middle school students are eligible to participate.
“The schools I’ve talked to are largely looking at fifth-, sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders, but if they have a fourth-grade champion, let’s bring them on,” McKenzie said.
Illinois Times is hosting the contest with support from the Horace Mann Educators Foundation.
“The Horace Mann Educators Foundation is proud to support bringing the spelling bee back to central Illinois,” said Horace Mann president Marita Zuraitis in a statement. “It is a great opportunity to strengthen literacy and celebrate students’ academic achievements.”
Lincoln Land Community College, another partner in the endeavor, is hosting the event and donating refreshments.
LLCC sociology professor Colin Suchland will be the official pronouncer for the spelling bee.
For its first year hosting the spelling bee, Illinois Times invited schools located in its circulation area to participate: Christian, Lincoln, Logan, Macoupin, Menard, Morgan and Sangamon counties.
Schools can sign up via the Scripps National Spelling Bee website and have until Jan. 29 to enroll.
The enrollment fee is $199 until Nov. 30. The registration fee is waived for Title 1 schools. Also, financial assistance is available to schools through the Horace Mann Educators Foundation.
The regional spelling bee is scheduled for Feb. 20 at Lincoln Land Community College. The winner of the competition will be flown to Washington, D.C., along with a guardian for the national spelling bee in May and provided with a hotel stay and a stipend for expenses.
“The hope is to make it an annual event where we can send someone to the national competition, support our schools, grow participation every year and make it a new tradition for Illinois Times to host a spelling bee,” McKenzie said.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee’s connection with newspapers stems from its founding when the Courier-Journal in Louisville invited newspapers to organize spelling bees and have their respective winners compete in a national spelling bee.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2025. Preliminary rounds and semifinals are live-streamed and the finals are televised on outlets owned by E.W. Scripps Company, a media organization based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
