Making her third appearance at the Scripps National Spelling Bee, Harini Logan correctly spelled griot and polyschematist along with correctly identifying the definition of cytoplasm to advance to the quarter-finals.
The journey to becoming a national speller began in 2013. Harini and her family were watching TV and it just so happened that the Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals were on. Harini instantly fell in love with the competition. She was always intrigued by writing and words and the thought of this type of tournament brought her love of words to a whole new level. Harini began to study and as a fourth and fifth-grader, Harini won the San Antonio Express News Spelling Bee and made her first and second appearances at the national level. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the competition was canceled in her sixth-grade year.
Harini spends at least an hour or two a day studying words. She creates lists or sets of words that are similar and studies roots and language patterns. Her mom, Priya, reviews the sets with Harini until Harini feels that she has mastered them. “It is not an option to not study,” Harini said. “Even if I have homework or have to work on my other extracurricular activities I still find time in the evening to study.”
On June 15, in the quarter-finals, Harini competed in another two rounds of competition by successfully spelling canicule and giving the proper definition of plaintive; however; in the sixth round, Harini misspelled panicle and finished tied for 31st. Great job Harini, MSSA is proud of you.