On Friday, WFMJ Regional Spelling Bee champion, Joey Constantine, was honored for his big win by the Youngstown Kiwanis Club. 

The 8th grader from the Lakeview School District is a 3-time winner of the regional competition. This year the winning word was "aughts," defined as "the decade between 2000 and 2009."

Constantine is preparing for the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C. on May 26, where he will be representing the Mahoning Valley. In 2022, he placed 32nd at the national bee, and tied for 22nd place in 2023.

"It gets more and more exciting each year just because I know I get to have the experience again," says Constantine of getting to represent the Valley in D.C. "It feels new every year."

Constantine also says it takes a lot of effort and memorization to be prepared for competition. He uses a myriad of study techniques, including an app provided by the national spelling bee and also studying root words. However, Constantine says the most helpful part of preparing is utilizing his natural gifts. 

"I have a photographic memory so I see words and it's like seeing them on the paper in my head whenever I'm spelling a word," he says. 

The Kiwanis Club presented him with a Barnes and Noble gift card so he can keep studying.