Student Reaches National Spelling Bee Again

Rithvi Balajee, an eighth grader from San Ramon, has qualified for the Scripps National Spelling Bee for the second straight year. (patch.com) Balajee advanced through the San Ramon Valley Rotary Club’s regional competition after finishing among the top spellers on March 29. The Rotary Club’s 2026 regional winners list names him alongside three other students moving on from the area. (sanramonvalleyrotary.com) Last year, Balajee competed at nationals as a seventh grader representing the San Ramon Valley Rotary Club in Danville. Scripps lists him as age 13 and tied for 89th place in the 2025 national results. (spellingbee.com) The national competition is scheduled for May 26, May 27 and May 28, 2026. Scripps says the full competition schedule will be posted beginning May 1. (spellingbee.com) The Bee has been running since 1925, when nine newspapers launched the first national contest. Scripps says millions of students now take part in classroom, school and regional bees each year. (spellingbee.com) Regional partners are the groups that organize local qualifying contests and send champions to nationals. Scripps says those partners can be community organizations, colleges or businesses, and in Balajee’s case the sponsoring group is the San Ramon Valley Rotary Club. (spellingbee.com, spellingbee.com) Balajee’s return also extends a recent run of Tri-Valley students reaching the national stage. Local coverage from the 2025 Bee said three students from the area finished in the top 100 among 243 contestants. (danvillesanramon.com, spellingbee.com) For Balajee, the next stop is the national stage outside Washington, where last year’s appearance now becomes a second shot in as many years. (patch.com, spellingbee.com)