9-year-old double bee champ

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A 9-year-old Portales student took the win for not only the junior division of the Roosevelt County spelling bee but also came out of the senior division victorious after out-spelling junior high students.

Alyssa Neighbours of Valencia Elementary championed both divisions, taking two $25 Barnes & Noble gift cards and a $500 scholarship to Eastern New Mexico University.

Correspondent photo: Ronnie Cain

Alyssa Neighbours, 9, receives a plaque from ENMU Languages and Literature Department Chair Carol Erwin Friday afternoon after the bee. On top of $50 in Barnes & Noble gift cards, Neighbours will also have a $500

scholarship waiting for her at ENMU.

Neighbours, who won the bee after correctly spelling the championship word “clapboard,” was “very nervous” during the event but correctly spelled almost every word that was presented to her.

She said the most difficult word for her to spell was yacht, because “I forgot if it has a ‘u.’”

In order to prepare for spelling multiple words, Neighbours said that she practiced while she was at home.

She practices words while her father is “making dinner or doing something. That way, it’s kind of like multi-tasking, and I’ll say the word, and then I’ll spell it, and he’ll tell me if I got it right.”

She also said that her Barnes & Noble gift cards will go towards non-fiction books.

Languages and Literature Department Chair Carol Erwin, who coordinated the spelling bee, said that the event is important for many reasons.

“Obviously, English professors think spelling is valuable, but there are two reasons why we think spelling is valuable. One of them is because good spellers make good, articulate adults who can communicate their thoughts well,” Erwin told contestants at the start of the event. “The second thing is that most good spellers are also avid readers; they love reading, and scientific research has shown that readers are more empathetic people. They understand how to see from another person’s perspective.”

The three judges for the bee were former high school educator Carol Singletary, ENMU Alumni Director Robert Graham and Roosevelt County resident Betty Williamson.

The event was split into two divisions, junior and senior. The junior division included seven students while the senior had nine, including Neighbours, who chose to compete after winning the junior.

The bee’s announcer, Tawna Luscombe, prepared the competitors in the junior division with a deep breath.

Luscombe, who served as announcer for the first time, mentioned that she was “extremely nervous,” but she had a good time and will be back if she can.

The junior division ended with Neighbours winning with the word “bugle,” followed by 10-year-old Floyd fifth grader Jose Jimenez, who won a plaque and a $15 Barnes & Noble gift card.

In the senior division, Neighbours took the final round with the word “clapboard,” beating 13-year-old Portales Junior High student Parker Yi.

Neighbours will be representing Roosevelt County at the New Mexico State Spelling Bee in March in Albuquerque.