NPR’s The Takeaway Features Regional Spelling Bee Champ

Congratulations, Cana Gerald-Hasan!

Meet Cana: a volunteer, a robotic engineer, a crafter, a scientist, and a proud member of the BTS Army. She is all of these things and more. This year, she added “Regional Spelling Bee Champion” and “Scripps National Spelling Bee Finalist” to her titles. You can learn more about her here on her Speller Profile!

Recently, she was featured on NPR’s The Takeaway, titled “Black Girl Magic at the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee.” She spoke about her experience preparing for a virtual spelling bee, devoting her time to studying (not void of distractions,) and the lessons she learned from this year. Also featured is her mother, Dr. Gerald, assistant professor of Environmental, Earth, and Geospatial Sciences at our neighboring university, North Carolina Central University.

In a year of uncertainty, it’s been a great pleasure to enjoy these moments of celebration. Thanks to the Scripps National Spelling Bee for providing this opportunity to our young people. Thank you to the schools across Durham and Orange County for participating this year in our regional bee. Thanks to the Geralds for sharing your stories. And thank you, Cana, for your dedication, passion, and brilliance. We look forward to your journey ahead!


The Bee’s Purpose:

Our purpose is to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabularies, learn concepts and develop correct English usage that will help them all their lives.

To learn more about the Scripps National Spelling Bee, check them out below!


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