LSU and Southern Offer Full Ride to our Spelling Bee Champ
It has been an awesome week for our spelling bee champion, Zaila Avant-garde.
Zaila, who is 14 years old and from Harvey, LA, won the Scripps National Spelling Bee last week and quickly became a household name. She became the first African American to ever win the contest in it's 93-year history. She also became the first winner from Louisiana.
Obviously, we're ecstatic for her here in Louisiana, but it has been so fun to see the support she has garnered from all over the world. We're so proud to have her representing out great state.
Things have continued to go well for Zaila this week, as she has now been offered full rides to two top-notch Louisiana universities. After her stunning victory catapulting her to worldwide stardom, LSU president William Tate took to Twitter to not only congratulate her, but also possibly change her life forever.
He wrote, "Zaila Avant-garde @basketballasart performed at the highest level in the National Spelling Bee. Your academic performance reflected scholarship first! You modeled intellectual excellence. @LSU_Honors awaits. I write to offer you a full scholarship to attend LSU. Here for you!"
That's not all. Joining in on the celebration of one of our own, and the offering of scholorships, Southern president Ray Belton tweeted the following; "I am pleased to announce that @Southernu_BR is offering #ZailaAvantgarde a full scholarship and "#Zaila Day" at SU, part of the nation’s only #HBCU system. Our student leaders, faculty, and alumni look forward meeting with you. We welcome you to the #JaguarNation! #WeAreSouthern"
We're so happy for Zaila and cannot wait to see what she does next and beyond.