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

BURLINGTON, N.J. and ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Franklin Electronic Publishers announced today that Hyun Soo Kim, representing South Korea, is the grand prize winner of its Second Annual Global SpellEvent Championship, which was held on Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at New York City's Jumeirah Essex House Hotel.

The Global SpellEvent Championship, which is conducted entirely in English, culminated with "judicial" being the grand prize winning word!  Twelve 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 24 finalists qualified in local and regional finals held in Argentina, Chile, China, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Senegal, South Korea, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.

Hyun Soo Kim, the Grand Prize winner, 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 24 participants were awarded a Franklin Speaking Spelling Bee and a Franklin handheld version of Merriam-Webster's Electronic Speaking Dictionary.  All participants, along with a parent or guardian, enjoyed an all-expense-paid trip to New York to participate in this annual event.

"The SpellEvent program has become a truly inspirational and rewarding experience not only for all the participants and their families but for all us at Franklin too!  The 24 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 is delighted to announce that Hyun Soo Kim has become this year's SpellEvent Champion!  This experience marks an historic moment for Hyun Soo, one that she will never forget," said Barry Lipsky, president and chief executive officer.

Franklin partnered for this event with Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc. (TESOL), the global association of English language educators, and their network of 100 affiliate organizations around the world.  

"TESOL congratulates Hyun Soo Kim, and all the students who competed in this year's championship," explains Rosa Aronson, Executive Director of TESOL.  "The association has always supported English language education throughout the world, and partnering with Franklin Electronic Publishers for its Global SpellEvent has helped bring new English language education techniques and opportunities to different countries.  The association especially appreciates Franklin's commitment and all the support provided by TESOL's affiliates in making the Global SpellEvent 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 SpellEvent Championship.  Mr. Peter Sokolowski, Editor-at-Large for Merriam-Webster, was the official SpellEvent pronouncer.  The judges for the SpellEvent were Mrs. Rosa Aronson, PhD, CAE, Executive Director of TESOL and Mr. Mark Algren, 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

Incorporated in 1966, Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc. (TESOL) is a global association for English language teaching professionals, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia in the United States.  TESOL encompasses a network of over 55,000 educators worldwide, consisting of approximately 12,000 individual members and an additional 45,000 educators within the 100 plus TESOL affiliate associations.  Representing a multifaceted academic discipline and profession, TESOL offers members serial publications, books, and electronic resources on current issues, ideas, and opportunities in the field of English language teaching.  TESOL also conducts a variety of workshops and symposia, including an annual convention, regarded as the foremost professional development opportunity for English language educators worldwide.  TESOL's mission is to develop and maintain professional expertise in English language teaching for speakers of other languages worldwide.

SOURCE Franklin Electronic Publishers