14-year-old brilliant girl emerges first-ever African American to win spelling bee competition, bags multiple scholarships

A 14-year-old gifted child has become the first African American to ever win the National Spelling Bee competition and has been offered scholarships by numerous colleges around the nation.

The student, Zaila Avant-Garde, from Harvey, Louisiana, made history when she spelled the word “Murraya,” a kind of tree, correctly in the final round.

After defeating 208 competitors from 5 different nations, Zaila won the competition. After that, she started getting full-ride scholarships from numerous prestigious universities one after another.

“Zaila Avant-garde @basketballasart performed at the highest level in the National Spelling Bee. Your academic performance reflected scholarship first! You modeled intellectual excellence. @LSU_Honors awaits. I write to offer you a full scholarship to attend LSU. Here for you!” Louisiana State University President William Tate also wrote on Twitter

Louisiana Community and Technical College System posted on its Facebook page, “In celebration of her incredible performance at the National Spelling Bee, LCTCS is proud to offer Zaila Avant-garde a full scholarship to any Louisiana community and technical college. We believe our programs, such as aerospace technology, would be a great fit for you,”

Southern University President Ray L. Belton took to Twitter, “I am pleased to announce that @Southernu_BR is offering #ZailaAvantgarde a full scholarship and “#Zaila Day” at SU, part of the nation’s only #HBCU system. Our student leaders, faculty, and alumni look forward to meeting with you. We welcome you to the #JaguarNation!”

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