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Twin Cities students miss out on regional competition when funding dries up

The best spellers in the Twin Cities can toss aside their dictionaries and word lists.

The students won't get a chance to c-o-m-p-e-t-e in a regional event that determines who goes to the national spelling bee. It's a matter of money, not talent.

The Star Tribune, which had sponsored a metro spelling bee since 2004, stopped funding it this year.

As a result, some schools and districts discontinued their spelling bees.

The Burnsville-Eagan-Savage school district held its district bee Dec. 10, even though the winner has no shot at nationals. In the neighboring Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan district, a competition never took place.

"I think it's sad," said David Burr, a Metcalf Junior High language arts teacher who runs the Burnsville spelling bee. "It's really giving these kids a disservice. The national spelling bee gets so much attention."

Laura Garbe, last year's Burnsville district winner and runner-up this year, said she feels mostly disappointed.

"It would be fun if there was one," said Garbe, a seventh-grader at Eagle Ridge in Savage. "I could go back to see if I can do better."

Her mom, Christine Garbe, added, "It's a bummer."

Burr contacted the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press, as well as three local weekly newspapers about sponsorship, but most did not respond or declined, he said.

"We're not able to make the required commitments on such short notice, but we'll consider it next year," said Pat Effenberger, the Pioneer Press communications manager.

No other corporate sponsors have stepped up, and one is needed by Jan. 6 for any students in the seven-county metro area to be able to qualify for the national bee, said Paige Kimble, director of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

A sponsor typically spends anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000 for the costs of holding a qualifying bee and to send students and parents to the national contest in Washington, D.C., Kimble said.

The Star Tribune backed out after Scripps organizers began charging each school a $99 fee, said Ben Taylor, the newspaper's senior vice president of marketing and communications. The sponsor would then get $15 per school, which could be used to offset the cost of sponsoring the qualifying bee.

"It was just a philosophical situation," Taylor said. "We want to benefit the school and not take money from them."

The sponsors could have given the money back to the school, however.

"We love the spelling bee, but under those rules we did not feel comfortable (sponsoring the event)," Taylor said.

The national spelling bee operates as a nonprofit organization, and despite increased support for the national bee, the group runs on a small budget and decided to charge a fee, which other academic competitions like the National Geographic Bee and Odyssey of the Mind also do, Kimble said.

Competitors from all 50 states, Canada, Guam, Puerto Rico and even New Zealand will travel to Washington in May to vie for the title of top speller. The Mankato Free Press and the National Joint Powers Alliance, a service co-operative based in Staples, Minn., are each sponsoring a student.

"This region is one of the most significant pockets of schools without sponsorships," Kimble said.

In 1981, when Kimble won the national bee, 120 students competed, but nearly 290 students are expected to compete in D.C. after spelling their way through classroom, school, district and regional level competitions.

Documentaries and films helped spur the popularity of spelling bees by focusing on spelling phenoms and the intensity of the tournaments. ABC televised the 2007 national bee during prime time in June.

States can send an unlimited number of candidates to the national bee, but each contestant needs his or her own sponsor. Newspapers are the most common sponsors.

The Star Tribune sponsored Jonathan Liu at the 2007 national bee, where the Eden Prairie boy advanced to the fourth round.

This isn't the first time the Twin Cities bee faced sponsorship troubles.

In 2003, no sponsor existed until a last-minute donor stepped up to fund the competition.

"Spelling and writing are part of everybody's life," Burr said. "You need to know how to spell. It's an important deal."

Bao Ong can be reached at bong@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5435.

http://www.twincities.com/ci_7765440