UMFK hosts regional round for National Spelling Bee

2 months ago

FORT KENT, Maine – The University of Maine at Fort Kent hosted the Aroostook County Spelling Bee competition for middle school students on February 11.

Maine School Administrative District 27 sponsored the 2025 competition under the supervision of Travis Lynn, grade 7 English teacher at the Valley River Middle School in Fort Kent.

Valley Rivers Middle School seventh-grader Claire Thorsnes earned top honors in the Aroostook County spelling bee February 11 at the University of Maine at Fort Kent. Thorsnes qualified for the state competition at Bowdoin College in Brunswick on March 22. (Courtesy of UMFK)

Sixteen students who competed were winners and runner-ups from the first round of the spelling bee from the following Aroostook County schools: Ashland District School; Easton Junior/Senior High School; Fort Kent Elementary and Valley Rivers Middle School; Greater Houlton Christian Academy; Madawaska Elementary and Madawaska Middle High School; Mill Pond School and Hodgdon Middle High School; SAD 33; and Woodland Consolidated.

The county champion is Claire Thorsnes, a seventh-grader who attends the VRMS. Her winning word was “centipede.”

The winner will continue on to the state of Maine competition to be held at Bowdoin College in Brunswick on Saturday, March 22. 

The spelling bee was free, and open to the public.