Franklin Electronic Publishers Announces the Winner of Its Third Annual SpellEvent® Championship

BURLINGTON, N.J. and ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Franklin Electronic Publishers announced today that Yeo Jin Jung (age 12), representing South Korea, is the grand prize winner of its Third Annual Global SpellEvent Championship, which was held today, Wednesday, August 17, 2011 at New York City's Marriott Marquis in Times Square.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110817/NY54223 )

The Global SpellEvent Championship, which is conducted entirely in English, culminated with "repetitious" being the grand prize winning word!  Fifteen countries were represented at this unique global competition specifically designed for non-native English speaking students who are learning English as an additional language.  These 15 finalists qualified in local and regional finals held in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Senegal, South Korea, Spain, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.  

Yeo Jin Jung of South Korea, this year's Grand Prize winner, makes this the second consecutive year that South Korea has won first place, following Argentina at the competition's inaugural event.  Yeo Jin Jung received the SpellEvent Global Championship trophy and scholarship check of $10,000.  The second through fourth place winners received award plaques and cash scholarships.  All participants, along with a parent or guardian, enjoyed an all-expense-paid trip to New York City to participate in this event.

"The Global SpellEvent Championship has become a truly inspirational and rewarding experience not only for all the participants and their families but for all of us at Franklin too!  The 15 students each displayed such pride and enthusiasm for learning the English language and are just so proud to be here representing their families and countries.  Franklin Electronic Publishers, while delighted for all the students that have participated in this event, offers its warm congratulations to Yeo Jin Jung, this year's Global SpellEvent Champion!  This experience is one I am sure that she will never forget," said Barry J. Lipsky, president and chief executive officer.

Franklin partnered for this event with TESOL International Association (TESOL); the global association of English language educators, and their network of 100 affiliate organizations around the world.  

"TESOL congratulates Yeo Jin Jung, and all the students who competed in this year's Global SpellEvent Championship," stated Rosa Aronson, Executive Director of TESOL.  "The association advances English language teaching throughout the world, and partnering with Franklin Electronic Publishers for its Global SpellEvent Championship has helped bring new English language education techniques and opportunities to different countries.  We especially appreciate Franklin's commitment and all the support provided by TESOL's affiliates in making the Global SpellEvent Championship such a success."

Ms. Tamara Kirson, the New York Times® ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) Teacher of the Year 2009, hosted this year's Global SpellEvent Championship.  Mr. Peter Sokolowski, Editor-at-Large for Merriam-Webster, was the official pronouncer.  The judges this year were Mrs. Rosa Aronson, PhD, CAE, Executive Director of TESOL and Mr. Brock Brady, Past-President of TESOL.

For a complete list of student finalists and winners, or to learn more details about the Global SpellEvent Championship, please visit: www.spellevent.org.

About Franklin

Franklin Electronic Publishers Incorporated is a world leader in electronic handheld information, having sold approximately 42,000,000 electronic books.  Current titles available directly or through partners number more than 116,000 in sixteen languages, under license from world-class publishers such as Merriam-Webster, Oxford University Press, Larousse, Langenscheidt, PONS, and HarperCollins, and are focused in four areas: language expansion, language learning, reading enhancement, and writing enhancement.  The Company also licenses its underlying technology to partners, which include Adobe and Sun Microsystems. Franklin's products are available at 49,000 retail outlets worldwide, through catalogs, and online at www.franklin.com.

About TESOL

Founded in 1966, TESOL International Association (TESOL) is a professional community of educators, researchers, administrators and students committed to advancing excellence in English language teaching for speakers of other languages worldwide. With more than 12,000 members representing 156 countries, TESOL fosters the exchange of ideas, research and peer-to-peer knowledge, and provides expertise, resources and a powerful voice on issues affecting the profession. Through professional development programs, its international conference, special interest groups and publications, TESOL engages tens of thousands of professionals to collaborate globally and create a world of opportunity for millions of people of all ages who want to learn English.

SOURCE Franklin Electronic Publishers