Congratulating the champion, finalists, and all other participants in the 83rd Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1494) congratulating the champion, finalists, and all other participants in the 83rd Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, I now yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise in support of H. Res. 1494, a resolution congratulating the champion, finalists, and all other participants in the 83rd annual Scripps National Spelling Bee.

H. Res. 1494 was introduced by our colleague, the gentlewoman from Ohio, Representative Betty Sutton, on June 30, 2010. It was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which ordered it to be reported favorably by unanimous consent on September 23, 2010. The measure enjoys the support of over 50 Members of the House.

Mr. Speaker, the Scripps National Spelling Bee is a 2-day competition held in May or early June each year here in Washington, D.C. Students from around the country and around the world compete in local and regional spelling bees for a chance to take part in this highly competitive event.

The participants compete for prizes, including scholarships, savings bonds, reference materials and cash; but this and other spelling bees serve the greater purpose of encouraging students to improve their vocabularies, spelling, and appropriate grammar usage. As the largest and longest running educational promotion in the country, the competition gets national coverage on cable and network television, further promoting its educational ideals to millions of viewers.

This year's winner was Anamika Veeramani, an eighth grade student at Incarnate Word Academy in Parma Heights, Ohio, who won the bee with the word ``stromuhr,'' defined as a tool that measures the speed of blood through an artery. And I dare Members of Congress to try to spell the word.

Mr. Speaker, let us now take a moment to congratulate this remarkable young student and all of the other participants in the 83rd annual Scripps National Spelling Bee through the passage of H. Res. 1494. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as she may consume to our colleague from Ohio, the sponsor of the bill, Representative Betty Sutton.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Anamika Veeramani of North Royalton, Ohio. Anamika is a resident of the 13th Congressional District of Ohio, which I am so honored to represent. Anamika won the 83rd Scripps National Spelling Bee championship on Friday, June 4, 2010, and she brings back to Ohio the first national spelling bee title since 1964.

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is the largest and longest-running educational promotion in the United States and is administered by the E.W. Scripps Company located in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Anamika put in the hard work necessary to achieve this great accomplishment. By working hard, students learn that anything is possible, including spelling difficult and complex words. She won the Plain Dealer Cuyahoga County Scripps Spelling Bee on March 6 for the second year in the row. By winning the spelling bee in northeast Ohio, Anamika advanced to the national competition here in Washington, D.C.

To win the title, Anamika correctly spelled the name of a tool that measures the speed of blood through an artery called ``stromuhr.''

With opportunities like the Scripps National Spelling Bee, children are given the chance to learn and succeed and build the confidence that they need moving forward. By winning the bee, she won $30,000 and a trophy from Scripps, a $5,000 scholarship from Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation, a $2,500 savings bond from Merriam-Webster, and more than $3,500 worth of reference material from Encyclopedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster.

These winnings will help her reach for her dream of attending college and one day becoming a cardiovascular surgeon, and perhaps she will have a head start on her colleagues, knowing how to clearly say and spell ``stromuhr.'' With the kind of hard work and dedication she showed in this competition, anything is within her reach. I would like to congratulate Anamika on this terrific achievement.

I would also like to recognize all the finalists, Adrian Gunawan, Elizabeth Platz, Shantanu Srivatsa, Laura Newcombe, Lanson Tang, Joanna Ye, and Andrew Grose. And congratulations are due to all the students who participated in the spelling bee.

I want to applaud also all of the teachers, parents, and students for their commitment to this great program.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1494.

Our nation's future rests on the shoulders of our youth, and the exceptional dedication and intelligence displayed by all of the students who took part in the 84th Scripps National Spelling Bee earlier this year gives me great confidence that our future will be a bright one.

As the largest and longest-miming educational promotion in the United States, this year's Scripps National Spelling Bee brought together 273 spellers from all over the United States and across the world. The rigorous preparation and diligence required by these students to compete at this international level is truly incredible.

I would specifically like to recognize Shantanu Srivatsa, a student at Cheney Middle School in West Fargo, North Dakota, for tying for second place in this competition. This was Shantanu's third consecutive appearance at the Spelling Bee, and I was impressed to learn that his favorite subject in school is in fact mathematics, and that in addition to his participation in the spelling bee, he also represents his school at regional and state mathematics competitions.

When reviewing the words Shantanu correctly spelled to make it to the highest levels of the competition, I am astounded by his command of the English language. Though I represent a state with a large sugar beet industry, I must admit that I did not know that a cossette was part of the sugar refining process--and I certainly did not know how to spell it. Thanks to Shantanu, I now know that it is cossette, C-O-S-S-E-T-T-

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the participants in the Scripps National Spelling Bee and to particularly congratulate my constituent, Mr. Lanson Tang of Potomac, Maryland, who tied for fifth place in the competition.

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is the nation's oldest educational promotion, now in its 83rd year. Through spelling, students increase their vocabularies and improve English usage, skills that will stay with them throughout their lives.

I congratulate all the participants, especially my constituent, Lanson Tang, a homeschooled student from Potomac, Maryland. Lanson made it to the seventh of nine rounds in the competition, correctly spelling words like ``rhabdomyoma,'' ``obelisk,'' and ``flabellum.'' He has made our community proud. I also want to thank the Fourth Presbyterian School in Potomac for hosting the Montgomery County Regional Spelling Bee for the second year in a row this year.

All of the spellers this year should be proud of their outstanding accomplishments. I urge my colleagues to join me in extending congratulations to these terrific students.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today in support of H. Res. 1494, and ask for support of the bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.