South Jersey Teen Headed to National Spelling Bee

Glen Landing Middle School eighth-grader Preet Raval headed down to Washington, DC, with his parents, Saumil and Sapana, and his little sister, Ria this weekend.

It marked the family's first visit to our nation's capital. While they may get to fit in a little bit, sightseeing is not the Ravals' top priority.

Preet, 13, will become the first-ever Gloucester Township Public Schools (GTPS) student to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, when he and 274 other youngsters from around the globe enter preliminary-round competition with a written test Tuesday morning.

"I'm proud I knew enough words to get there. I'm proud to be representing my school and my district in nationals," Preet said Thursday during an interview at Glen Landing.

Preet knows the competition this week will be stiff. Two of the 275 spellers—Laura Newcombe and Joanna Ye—were finalists last year.

"I don't really like to start at the top (with a goal), because if I don't make it, then I kind of get disappointed," he said. "I like to start (with a goal) that's not too hard. If I make it there, I try to get one level higher or so. I just want to make it to the top 50 spellers right now. "

Preet actually finished fourth in the Glen Landing spelling bee in February, according to Maura McGarvey, head of the school's Language Arts Department and its spelling-bee organizer.

That finish was good enough for Raval to advance to the Camden County competition, held at Camden's Octavius V. Catto Community School on March 9.

The fourth-place finish at Glen Landing also apparently served as all the motivation the 13-year-old needed.

"I think he was a little surprised, but I think it also motivated him to study harder for the county bee," McGarvey said. "We talked to him about, 'When you get to the county bee, make sure, don't be afraid to ask to repeat the question, ask for the definition,' because he wasn't asking any questions."

Raval finished first in the Camden County bee, correctly spelling "bobbejaan" and finally championship-winning "wedel" to take the title and earn the trip to DC.

"My hope was always there that he would win, but until he won ..." Sapana Raval said. "I was so excited at the time. I had tears in my eyes."

When he's not busy reading or studying the book of 10,000 words his father, Saumil, gave to him, Preet enjoys hanging out with his friends and playing hockey. He aspires to be either an actor or to work in finance, like his father, whom he calls his role model.

Rounds two and three of the preliminaries will air live online at ESPN3 from 8 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. Wednesday.

The semifinals will be broadcast live on ESPN from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday and the finals from 8:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday.

"I'm very proud of him now. I always want him to win. I am confident in him. He'll make it," Sapana said.

McGarvey credited the Ravals with encouraging Glen Landing in the fall to become a Scripps National Spelling Bee member school—a first for GTPS.

In addition to being proud of Preet for advancing to the National Spelling Bee, Glen Landing can boast it is home to the top four finishers in the 2011 Camden County spelling bee, McGarvey said. Finishing second through fourth behind Preet were seventh-grader Bisma Nasir, seventh-grader Yailyn Nunez and sixth-grader Connor Bolinski.