Arvind Mahankali (Speller 163) spelled “tokonoma” and “knaidel” correctly, smiling and nodding as he did. He is the winner of the Bee, and the first male champion since 2008. Knaidel is a German-derived Yiddish word. Arvind, who finished third in each of the past two Bees, has gotten out on German words. “The German curse has turned into a German blessing,” he said. Arvind said the words were extremely hard, and there were several he didn’t know — particularly “melocoton,” the word that eliminated fellow four-time competitor Grace Remmer (Speller 39).
The New York eighth grader studied six hours on Sundays, but 30 minutes other days of the week. He said he plans to stop studying spelling and begin studying physics. “It means that I am retiring on a good note,” he said.
Arvind hoisted the trophy over his head, with his parents and brother joining him on the stage. Before the finals, Arvind — who was the only competitor to return from last year’s finals — said he was feeling “pretty happy with my performance.” “Right now, it’s just fun,” he said.
For spelling his words correctly, he gets:
*From Scripps, a $30,000 cash prize and the Scripps National Spelling Bee engraved trophy
*From Merriam-Webster, a $2,500 U.S. savings bond and a complete reference library
*From Encyclopedia Britannica, $2,000 of reference works including the Britannica Global Edition, 2013 Encyclopedia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD-ROM, and a three year membership to Britannica Online Premium
Arvind Mahankali : 2013 Spelling Bee Champion
Arvind loves math and science and hopes to one day pursue a career as a physicist. That explains his choice of role model and the person he would most like to meet (Albert Einstein), but doesn’t explain his favorite song (“I Believe I Can Fly”). A speaker of Telugu and Spanish, Arvind enjoys tennis, basketball and drama, and counts Novak Djokovic and Shaquille O’Neal among his favorite athletes. Arvind is making his fourth consecutive trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. He placed ninth in 2010 and finished in third place in both 2011 and 2012. Of all the words he’s seen and spelled, his favorite so far is sardoodledom.
In this heart-breaking report about the Baby Box, follow a man who’s dedicated his life to saving South Korea’s unwanted babies. With hundreds of them being abandoned every year, why has the government ordered him to stop?
Up to 18 babies a month end up in pastor Lee Jong Rak’s Baby Box, a box attached to his house for women to leave their unwanted children in. “The babies that come here are the ones who’d otherwise die,” he says. The shame of having a baby out of wedlock leaves many women feeling desperate. But some say the Baby Box encourages mothers to abandon babies without registration, slowing down the adoption process. Pastor Lee’s been ordered to shut down his facility, but remains defiant: “There is nothing illegal about saving someone’s life.”
Lao American refugee Nor Sanavongsay is looking to print between 500 to 1,000 copies of his children’s book Xieng Mieng: A Sticky Mess. Here’s more about the story:
Xieng Mieng: A Sticky Mess is the comedic origin story of one of the most beloved folk heroes of Laos. A young monk keeps getting in trouble with the head of the monastery who think the boy can’t do anything right. Finally, the young boy decides to turn the tables with the help of a chicken and a little bit of a sticky snack called mieng. What happens next has become the stuff of legend for over 600 years! This is the hilarious tale of cleverness and ingenuity for children aged four and up. This will be the first of 5 stories in the making. The stories will be in English with some Lao words in English phonetics.
As an established and successful artist and designer, he’s looking to raise $3,000 to print the book in softcover, 6″ x 9″, 32 pages, and black and white. If he can reach his stretch goal of $10,000, he’s doing it in color. (What kid doesn’t want their storybook in color?) Did you know after 40 years since first coming to the US as refugees, there are still less than 40 books by Lao Americans regarding their heritage, their journey and culture. This is a key step to address that.
No matter how big or small our families are, it is important to share quality time and make priceless memories with them. This Chinese New Year, let’s try to remember that it’s not so much about the feast, but more about the precious time we spend together with our families. Put A Smile On Your Parents Face for your family reunion dinner. Go Home: Word.
In the documentary “The Education of Michelle Rhee“, FRONTLINE examines the legacy of one of America’s most admired & reviled school reformers. FRONTLINE was granted unprecedented access to Michelle Rhee (former chancellor of the Washington, DC public schools) during her tumultuous three-year tenure as she attempted to fix a broken school system. As Rhee returns to the national stage, FRONTLINE examines her legacy in Washington, DC, including her battles with the teachers’ union and her handling of a cheating scandal in the District. The debate over how to improve K-12 public education in America has long been highly charged and contentious, but in recent years, it’s taken on a polarizing either or mentality. While Rhee made national headlines from the start of her appointment, most notably as a young Korean American without prior experience running a school, she received even more attention over her policies on teacher evaluations and accountability. Under a new evaluation system that tied teacher performance to student test scores, Rhee fired 241 teachers in July of 2010, a move that teacher unions called too harsh while supporters agreed it was the right course. The conflict worsened when enormous gains in student achievement raised questions about cheating.
There were many unexpected surprises in 2012 for Asians and Asian Americans in entertainment. We saw both tears of sadness and joy. Our hearts were broken in early 2012 with the story of Janet Liang as well as school yard bullying caught on tape. We witnessed global phenomenons from Jeremy Lin and PSY along with the long-awaited and often-feared K-Town Reality Show. Thanks to all the fans, followers, supporters, the people we interviewed and the people behind the scenes of channelAPA.com. Here’s a recap of the top videos for 2012 on our site.
In June 2012, she found a match and by September, she got her bone marrow transplant. A week later, Janet Liang passed away. We’re saddened by the lose, but she opened our eyes to the importance of Asian American bone marrow registration. In mid-September 2012 along with other Asian American site, we launched a bone marrow donor cyberdrive.
2. Linsanity
In his rookie season, Jeremy Lin didn’t get too much play time with the Golden State Warriors and was send to the D-League several times. December 2011 was probably the worst time for him after being waived by the Golden State Warriors, then picked up and waived by the Houston Rockets, the picked up by the New York Knicks. In February 2012, we witnessed what became known as Linsanity as Jeremy Lin played against the New Jersey Nets. Some of his better known highlights during his run include the spin move against Los Angeles Lakers’ Derek Fisher and the game winning 3 pointer against Toronto. Needless to say Linsanity caused a major spike on channelAPA.com. Listen to Jeremy Lin’s testimony about Linsanity for his first had account of that magical run.
3. K-Town Reality Show
Two years since, channelAPA.com broke the story about revealing the cast of the K-Town Reality Show. The long awaited show made it’s debut online with a slight change in casting with not one, but two seasons. K-Town Reality Show Season 1 revolved around Joe and the crew helping him promote a big club event, while Season 2 focuses on the cast helping to plan Young’s wedding. K-Town Reality Show started at 10 minutes an episode in Season 1 and doubled to about 20 minutes an episode in Season 2. If you haven’t seen the series yet, you’re missing out on lots of drama, drinking, and more drama. Drinking begats more drama. Get to know Violet Kim, Scarlet Chan, Jasmine Chang, Young Lee, Steve Kim, Joe Cha, and Jowe Kyu.
6. Wedding : Impossible with Gail Kim x Robert Irvine
WWE Diva Gail Kim married chef Robert Irvine (Restaurant Impossible) over the summer. The Food Network Special Wedding :Impossible showed the highlights of their Napa Valley wedding with Irvine leading the charge and his chef friends contributing special dishes. Lots of wonderful dishes and surprises for everyone.
7. Seoul Sausage wins the Great Food Truck Race Season 3 Seoul Sausage entered Season 3 of the Great Food Truck race to win their dream truck and cook full time. The first-generation trio of Korean Americans Yong, Chris and Ted sold their signature Korean-style sausages along with other Korean inspired dishes at each leg of their journey. They made their way from the west coast to the east coast to eventually take the win on The Great Food Truck Race Season 3. Seoul Sausage has won the keys to their dream food truck and $50,000 to start their business.
8. I’m Not Perfect by Cheesa x Charice
Singer Cheesa x Charice collaborated on the single “I’m Not Perfect“. Cheesa appeared on “The Voice” Season 2 with Team Cee Lo and is part of the group A2C, while Charice needs no introduction. The two powerhouse singer combine for a special duet to inspire those who have been underestimated and bullied.
10. Sullivan and Sons
Comedian Steve Byrne brought his sitcom Sullivan and Son to TBS. Much like his own HAPA background, he created a show with a very diverse ethnic mix. His character buys a neighborhood bar from his Irish-American father, Jack Sullivan (Dan Lauria – The Wonder Years), and Korean mother, Ok Cha (Jodi Long – Beginners). Meanwhile, he has an ongoing sibling rivalry with his younger sister Susan (Vivian Bang). What can possibly go wrong running a family business? The show has been renewed for a second season, so look for more Sullivan & Son in 2013.
Some of these moments were captured in YouTube Rewind Style
Each year since we’ve started channelAPA.com, we’ve seen bigger and bigger accomplishments from our community. We expect more unforgettable moments in 2013. We leave you with the DJ Earworm Mashup “United State of Pop 2012 (Shine Brighter)” featuring Bruno Mars, PSY, and more
