The African proverb, “It Takes a Village to Raise a Child,” proved to be true over the last two years of the annual Mansfield City School District 3rd Grade Spelling Bee.
This year we celebrated the 2nd annual Spelling Bee at the Mansfield Senior High School’s auditorium. Eleven schools and 130 3rd graders registered for the event. The community’s supportive environment made it possible for all children to take pride in their classmates, school, and most importantly themselves.
Each participant received a gift bag of donated goods and wore a t-shirt designed by Erica Johnson, a former Mansfield Senior High School student. The top three winners received trophies for their schools and homes. It is my greatest hope that the spelling bee helped to unite families and the community closer together.
The Spelling Bee is also geared towards preparing third grade children for their transition to the fourth grade, and to help improve standardized test scores.
Due to the academic nature of the spelling bee funding comes directly from community donations. Over the last two years local businesses, retailers, restaurants, churches, foundations, clubs, organizations, libraries, USW local 169, banks, credit unions and individual citizens donated refreshments, entertainment, prizes, and gift bags for the event, while simultaneously solidifying the children’s integral role for our community’s future.
The Spelling Bees would not have been possible without volunteers who supported the Spelling Bee Committee. North Central State College (fiscal holder), Mansfield City School District (host), community members, and professionals filled the roles of judges, runners, round keepers, food preparers, servers, and entertainers to make this event a continued success.
I have the deepest gratitude for those who supported me and the Spelling Bee Committee with their time, effort, and resources. Without our “Village” the annual spelling bee would not be possible.
Thank you, Mansfield!
Linda Burrage,
Spelling Bee Coordinator
Mansfield, Ohio
