Raleigh, N.C. - Some 50 wordsmiths are sharpening their study skills as they prepare for the AARP National Spelling Bee in Wyoming next month, and some of them are sharing tips for those who want to compete. Most contestants say they spend time with their noses in the dictionary, and returning 2009 champ Michael Petrina Jr., from Arlington, Virginia, describes how he creates a study guide at the same time.

"I copied down all of the words that I thought I needed to know on index cards. I've been basically reviewing those index cards with some supplemental lists."

While some contestants spend all year studying, others rely on their lifetime of learning for the competition, and Petrina says there have been winners in the past who admit they don't do extra studying at all.

Scott Firebaugh of Knoxville, Tennessee, placed second last year. He's competed several times, and each year, he says, his study list grows longer.

"And this year, it's about 8200 words, a little more, on my list. My daughter went to national spelling bee twice, and she gives me the words orally, which helps, because sometimes when you hear it it's hard to know."

Kate Karp in Long Beach, California, has competed twice before, and has won a spelling bee for adults in Southern California.

"I look at foreign language names. I look at the new words on Merriam-Webster. And then, I print out a sheet every night and browbeat my friends into quizzing me."

Dr. Bill Long in Portland, Oregon, also scans the dictionary to create a study guide.

"I'm writing down words that are either really difficult words, or words that I think may cause a problem if you hear 'em cold."

Registration is open until the day of the event, to be held June 18-19, for spellers age 50 and over. So far, people from 21 states have signed up, including North Carolina spellers. Spelling bee words come from the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition. More than $1000 worth of gifts and prizes will be awarded.

The spelling bee will be held at Little America Hotel and Resort in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Entry fee is $30 until June 11. Walk-in registration is $40. Register at aarp.org/spellingbee


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Special state funding for mental health staff at Michigan public schools during the pandemic is ending this year, leaving schools scrambling to find ways to keep the professionals in the building.

The $240-million grant started in 2021, as students coped with challenges, from virtual learning and canceled sports to losing a loved one to COVID. Now, districts are seeking alternatives.

Diane Golzynski, deputy superintendent of business, health and library services for the Michigan Department of Education, said the options include a program known as the School Mental Health Apprenticeship Program to encourage people to choose mental health careers by giving them financial support.

"To pay folks who need to do their supervised practice internships in order to go into this field; it's to give them a small wage, so they can actually do that," Golzynski explained.

She pointed out districts can also apply for Medicaid matching funds for all their eligible work is eligible and use those dollars to keep mental health providers in schools.

Golzynski stressed the goal is to build a comprehensive school mental health system.

"We don't want to just put professionals in the schools, we want to put professionals in the schools that the schools need, because there's different types of professionals," Golzynski noted. "It might be a psychologist, it might be a counselor, it might a social worker, it might be a school nurse."

She emphasized her department is also working with the districts on how to best use their mental health staffers.

Critics might counter it is parents' responsibility to take care of their children's mental health needs. But Golzynski countered it is often in school where these issues are flagged or acknowledged.

"It's the schools partnering with the families to help support this child, so that the child can be the best learner possible," Golzynski asserted.

Golzynski added another school mental health funding program on the table offers a per-pupil allocation to each district.


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School districts around Washington and elsewhere may have celebrated School Lunch Hero Day on Friday, a salute to cafeteria workers - but food service employees are asking for more than just a pat on the back. They're asking for a wage that keeps up with inflation.

Washington State has about 6,500 school food service workers who make the average full-time equivalent of just over $54,000 a year.

Paul Buse-Bing is kitchen manager at Pine Lake Middle School in Sammamish.

"All the positions in the school district are important, and everybody works hard. But students who don't have a proper meal aren't getting nutritious food, then they're not capable of participating to their fullest extent in their school day. And so what we do is very important," he said.

This year, lawmakers denied a request from Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdahl to give paraeducators a $7/hour pay raise; in his re-election campaign he has said he intends to seek a more broad-based increase for classified workers next year.

Buse-Bing said as the cost of living has gone up, the relatively low wages are making it hard to find enough staff.

"We go through the school year a lot of times understaffed, and we don't have substitutes or other people to fill in when people get sick or go on vacation, and a lot has to do with the pay wage. Especially with the inflation," he added.

Many school districts say they are strapped for funding and need more state resources in order to
recruit and retain qualified workers.


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It's Teacher Appreciation Week, and there's some mixed news when it comes to how well South Dakota is compensating its teachers.

According to the National Education Association's annual Rankings and Estimates report, the national average teacher salary increased about 4% to nearly $70,000 a year between the 2021 and 2022 school years.

But adjusted for inflation, teachers still make 5% less than they did a decade ago.

President of the South Dakota Education Association Loren Paul noted that teachers there saw one of the highest salary increases across the country this year - a more than 5% jump.

"And the last three years, we've seen more than what is required by the state," said Paul. "So, hopefully we can continue that trend."

Despite the increase, South Dakota didn't shake its national salary rank of 49th, at just over $53,000.

The last time the South Dakota Legislature enacted a law to increase teacher pay was in 2016, when it raised the state's sales tax by $0.005.

South Dakota's highest ranking in the report of 27th was for its starting salary, which averages $43,000. Paul said that helps bring in new educators, but doesn't do much to retain them.

"Overall salary increases are tied to retention," said Paul, "and if you're losing them off the top faster than you can bring them in the bottom, raising the average is what's important, not just the starting salary."

He said teacher retention and shortages remain nationwide issues. North Dakota and Wyoming, which both rank higher, use state revenue from the fossil fuel industry to help pay teachers.