From left: Kinley Pickett, Citizens Bank’s CeeBee, and Abel Minor
Seventh-grader Kinley Pickett out-spelled seventeen other competitors from eight area schools to become the 2026 Independence County Spelling Bee winner on Tuesday, February 10. This year’s Bee lasted fifteen rounds, and the winning word was “contraband.” Pickett is a student at Southside Junior High School and is now qualified to compete in the Arkansas State Spelling Bee in Little Rock on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
Citizens Bank is the sponsor of the Independence County Spelling Bee. The University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville hosted the event in Independence Hall, with 18 competitors from area schools ranging from third to eighth grade competing in the Bee.
Abel Minor, a sixth-grade student from Batesville Junior High School Charter, was the runner-up.
Kinley and Abel received $50 and $25 gift cards, respectively, courtesy of Citizens Bank, and trophies courtesy of the UACCB Foundation. Citizens Bank’s CeeBee and Ashley Davis were on hand to present the awards.
Image via UACCB
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