Adairsville Middle Student Advances To State Spelling Bee

BARTOW COUNTY, GA — Eight words of wisdom. That's all it took to help Ethan Rollax, 13, to do what no other Bartow County Schools student has done before: win the regional spelling bee and advance to state.

“My mom and my grandma told me this, ‘forget about the past. Think about the present.’ And
that is what I did,” Ethan said.

Ethan, an eighth-grade student at Adairsville Middle School, is a two-time district spelling bee
winner. Last year, he competed in the regional competition, which was held virtually due to
COVID-19 concerns. However, the outcome was not the one he was looking for.

“When I did the region spelling bee on the digital platform last year, it had automatically
submitted without me doing anything, with 15 minutes on the clock,” Ethan said.

2022 proved to be Ethan’s year, though, as he won the right to say he is now one of the top 20
spellers in the state of Georgia.

“After I finished, I just sat at my seat,” Ethan said. “I felt relief through my body, and I was
hoping that I would win. When the time reached 10:42 a.m., my mom received an email and it
said that I would do the state spelling bee. I was so happy, I felt like going outside and yelling
out that I won.”

Success did not come without preparation. Ethan researched Scripps National Spelling Bee
winners and the tools they used to prepare for competition.

“I use a program called SpellPundit, the official Scripps Spelling Bee app called Word Club, the
online Unabridged Merriam-Webster dictionary, the Words of the Champions list, an app called
Spelling Notebook, Blooket, and Quizlet,” Ethan said.

Ethan is utilizing those same resources to prepare for the state spelling bee on March 18.
It will be a virtual event once again.

“I feel amazed, but I won't make my amazement stop me,” said Ethan. “I feel like I can surpass
the top 20 spellers.”

Ethan is an excellent student who is driven by academics and loves the spelling bee, Adairsville Middle Principal Tony Stanfill said.

"He works very hard in every class, and he strives for straight As every year," Stanfill said. "I'll never forget how excited he was when eighth-grade students received their magnet program acceptance letters. He found me at 8 in the morning to let me know he had been accepted to all three programs. Obviously, he is a bright student, but really, it's his smile and positive attitude that make him such a great kid. He's so polite and happy every day, and if you've ever seen his smile, I don't have to tell you how contagious it is.”

The 2022 Scripps National Spelling Bee will take place at the Gaylord National Resort and
Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, during the week of Memorial Day.