ENROLLED
2017 Second Extraordinary Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 7
BY REPRESENTATIVE SMITH
A RESOLUTION
To commend Cierra Wilson for winning first place in the Louisiana Children's Discovery
Center 2017 Regional Spelling Bee and for representing Louisiana in the Scripps
National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.
WHEREAS, Cierra Wilson is an eighth-grade student at McKinley Middle Academic
Magnet School in Baton Rouge, and on Saturday, March 25, 2017, Cierra won first place in
the Regional Spelling Bee held by Louisiana Children's Discovery Center; and
WHEREAS, Cierra's first-place win in the Regional Spelling Bee gave her the
opportunity to join four other Louisiana students to represent the state in the Scripps
National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., which was held May 28-June 3, 2017; it was
Cierra's first time on the national spelling bee stage; and
WHEREAS; two hundred ninety other students from across the nation and six other
countries joined Cierra in the Scripps competition; in round two, she correctly spelled
coscinomancy, which is a form of divination founded in ancient Greece that utilized a sieve
and shears to determine the guilty party in a criminal offense or to find answers to questions;
in round three, she spelled webisode; and
WHEREAS, in round one, a written vocabulary test was taken by all competitors;
combined with scores from rounds two and three, the top forty performers would advance
to the final rounds; Cierra's exceptional performance tied for forty-first place; and
WHEREAS, Cierra Wilson's participation in competitive spelling began in the
second grade when she won second place in the East Baton Rouge Parish District Spelling
Bee; she also won fourth place in the Regional Spelling Bee when she was in the fourth
grade and second place in the Regional Spelling Bee when she was a fifth grader; Cierra is
a straight-A student, was named Student of the Year at her elementary school, and was a top-
five finalist for Student of the Year for the East Baton Rouge Parish school district; and
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WHEREAS, Cierra's passion for spelling is matched by her passion for people; she
led a school supplies drive for needy children; assembled Christmas gift baskets for the
elderly and disabled in nursing homes and group homes; Cierra Wilson has participated each
year in St. Jude's Walk-A-Thon to raise money for children with cancer; and she participates
in food drives to feed the homeless; and
WHEREAS, despite having lost almost everything she owned in the August 2016
flood, including spelling bee preparation index cards she had accumulated, Cierra triumphed
over the huge disruption to her life in 2016 to become the 2017 Louisiana Children's
Discovery Center Regional Spelling Bee champion and represent the state at the Scripps
National Spelling Bee, and it is fitting to congratulate Cierra Wilson on her orthographic
achievements.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commend Cierra Wilson for winning the Louisiana
Children's Discovery Center 2017 Regional Spelling Bee and representing the state at the
Scripps National Spelling Bee and does hereby express best hopes and wishes for continued
success in her future endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to Cierra Wilson.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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