“P-a-r-a-t-a-c-t-i-c”; Middle Schoolers Spell, Champion Crowned, SLU Hosts Scripps Regional Spelling Bee
Maggie Rotermund
Senior Media Relations Specialist
maggie.rotermund@slu.edu
314-977-8018
Reserved for members of the media.
ST. LOUIS - Khusi Dahal, a student at Wildwood Middle School, won the 2026 Scripps Spelling Bee Regional event, held at Saint Louis University on Saturday, March 7.
The School of Education hosted the event which brought together St. Louis area elementary and middle school students to compete for a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May.
In the 19th round, Dahal won the event by spelling “paratactic” correctly.
Other competitors included:
- Kwame Owusu-Adom, Dubray Middle School
- Myah Alemu, Visitation Academy
- Matt Bain, North Kirkwood Middle School
- Luke Barton, Holy Spirit School
- Russell Brown, Betty Wheeler Classical Junior Academy
- Gabrielle Clark, Steam Academy Middle School
- Makhi Curtis, Carr Lane Visual and Performing Arts Middle School
- Pearl Curtis, Saint Paul Lutheran School
- Pranitha Dulla, Parkway West Middle School
- Tudor Vazquez Guillamet, Reed Elementary School
- Yusha Junaid, Governor French Academy
- Hannah Marstall, Ascension School
- Molly Marston, Mckinley Classical Middle School
- Ansh Mehta, Crestview Middle School
- Ezra Murphy, Lafayette Preparatory Academy - Middle
- Savyaharan Rakhesh Nambiar, Francis Howell Middle School
- Carson Navales, Saeger Middle School
- Robert-Thomas Novy, Zion Lutheran School
- Pritika Prasanth, Christ Prince Of Peace School
- Adhvikaa Raghul, Pheasant Point Elementary
- Audrey Ripoll, Wentzville South Middle School
- Zara Sharif, South Middle School
- John Shaw, Halls Ferry Elementary School
- Kevin Shi, Ladue Middle School
- Saanvi Singh, Rockwood Valley Middle School
- Ananya Reddy Tangatur, West Middle School
- Elizabeth Teague, Saint Charles Borromeo School
- August (AJ) Toennies, Castlio Elementary School
- Aidan Tran, Brentwood Middle School
- Harrison Ude, Discovery Ridge Elementary School
- Elizabeth Weilert, Holy Infant School
- Mariam Zaid, Mary Institute and Saint Louis Day School
Dahal will represent St. Louis in May at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee is the nation’s largest and longest-running educational program, having launched in 1925. By inspiring the exploration of words, the Bee illuminates pathways to lifelong curiosity, celebrates academic achievement, and enriches communities.
About Saint Louis University
Founded in 1818, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious Catholic research institutions. Rooted in Jesuit values and its pioneering history as the first university west of the Mississippi River, SLU offers more than 13,300 students a rigorous, transformative education that challenges and prepares them to make the world a better place. As a nationally recognized leader in research and innovation, SLU is an R1 research university, advancing groundbreaking, life-changing discoveries that promote the greater good.