Lena-Winslow student wins spelling bee at Highland Community College

FREEPORT — Mason Coulthard, a sixth-grader at Lena-Winslow School district, was the winner of the 41st annual Carroll, Jo Daviess and Stephenson Regional Spelling Bee conducted by Regional Office of Education 8 on Tuesday at Highland Community College.

Coulthard spelled “versatile” in the concluding round.

Zaydan Schoonhoven-Hussain, a seventh-grader at Lena-Winslow, was the runner up.

Coulthard qualifies for the Scripps National Spelling Bee, May 28-June 3 in Washington, D.C. He was awarded a gift card, a subscription to Merriam-Webster Online, the Samuel Louis Sugarman award of a U.S. Mint proof set, and a subscription to Britannica Online Premium.

The runner up gets a gift card, Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary and Nautical Words Topical List by Hexco Academic.