Fort Smith Public Schools (FSPS) proudly announces that one of its elementary students participated in and won the 2023 Arkansas State Spelling Bee!  

In February 2023, Woods Elementary student Zeeshan Anowar competed in and won the Sebastian County Spelling Bee before advancing to the State Spelling Bee competition, held in Little Rock, AR. 

Zeeshan became interested in spelling as an adolescent. He recalled, “I am a good speller because, at a young age, we started spelling words. In the summer, my mom and I studied words on a website that let you use practice words.” Zeeshan spoke about how his family helped him enjoy learning how to spell difficult words.  “My brother really inspired me. He was in a lot of spelling bees. I enjoy it, and also, my parents help a lot.”  

This year, students at the state Bee competed so intensely they exhausted the official word list. Consequently, the judges implemented a written spelling test to determine a winner. After his big win, Zeeshan commented, “It was a grand moment. It is a big responsibility to represent the state of Arkansas.”  

In May, Zeeshan heads to National Harbor, Maryland, to represent Arkansas and FSPS at the Scripps National Spelling Bee. FSPS wishes Zeeshan the best of luck and will be cheering him on!  Congratulations again Zeeshan!