North Carolina Student Lands Spot In Scripps National Spelling Bee

A fourth grade student from North Carolina is heading to the Scripps National Spelling Bee, where he will represent the Tar Heel State in the prestigious spelling competition.

Frank Dumas, a student at Bethesda Elementary School in Durham, will take part in the Scripps spelling bee on June in Washington, D.C., joining 200 other youngsters from around the country, per WRAL. Bethesda Principal Dr. Shaneeka Moore-Lawrence told Dumas that he advanced to the national competition following his win at a school-wide spelling bee in February and his win in the Duke Regional Spelling Bee.

"Frank is extremely hard-working, always putting 100 percent into his work," said his teacher Nicole Thompson. "He really is a team player. He wants everyone to do well together."

Dumas' mother said he and his twin sister, Ana, enjoy studying languages and looking up unknown words and their spellings, the news outlet reports.

"He doesn't like to mess up so he will put in a lot of effort to study and come up with strategies that help him reach his goals," she said. "He's always seeking to find out how he can overcome any challenges that he faces so he can be successful."

The fourth grader even earned a shoutout from Gov. Roy Cooper who wished him luck in the prestigious competition.

"C-o-n-g-r-a-t-u-l-a-t-i-o-n-s, Frank! Good luck — we're rooting for you here in North Carolina," he said in a tweet on Thursday (April 7).

The Scripps National Spelling Bee will take place June 2.