Behind every great student is a great teacher. These teachers make spelling and vocabulary fun. They serve as spelling coaches, moderators and judges, but more often than not, they are simply motivators who encourage the students to be the best they can be. In the "Teacher Feature," we celebrate the men and women who educate the youth of our country.
If you want to win the regional spelling bee in Guam, you don’t have to study with Sister Mary Jeanette Leon Guerrero, although it would certainly be recommended based on her students’ past successes.
Sister Mary Jeanette, a member of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, has been a fixture with the Guam spelling bee program since 1981. That year, while teaching at St. Anthony Catholic School, she was asked to train students for the local spelling bee. She agreed, and one of her students went on to win the regional spelling bee.
Since then, Sister Mary Jeanette has taught at both St. Anthony and Santa Barbara Catholic Schools, producing regional spelling bee winners in 1981, 1986, 1991-1995, 1999-2004, and 2014.
As you can imagine, traveling roughly 8,000 miles from Guam to Washington, D.C. is not an easy journey, but Sister Mary Jeanette gladly made the trip with her first 12 regional champions (she could not attend in 2014 due to health issues).
Although now retired from teaching, Sister Mary Jeanette continues to work with the Santa Barbara Catholic School spelling bee program. She trains the school winner every year for the regional competition, proudly stating that the spelling bee is in her blood.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee thanks Sister Mary Jeanette for her lifelong dedication to the spelling bee program in Guam.
If you'd like to nominate a teacher for an upcoming teacher feature, let us know. Fill out your contact information at the link, then nominate the teacher on the following page.