The 20th National Geographic Bee was held in Washington, D.C., on May 21, 2008, sponsored by the National Geographic Society. The final competition was moderated by Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek. The winner was Akshay Rajagopal of Lincoln, Nebraska, who won a $25,000 college scholarship and lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society. The 2nd-place winner, Hunter Bledsoe of Alabama, won a $15,000 scholarship. The 3rd-place winner, William Lee of Joyce Middle School in Woburn, Massachusetts, won a $10,000 scholarship.
State champions Alabama – Hunter Bledsoe, 8th Grade, Hewitt Trussville Middle School, Trussville Alaska – Thomas Long, 8th Grade, Kodiak Middle School, Kodiak Arizona – Adam Schilperoort, 7th Grade, Greater Prescott Area Homeschoolers, Prescott Valley Arkansas – Eli Westerman, 6th Grade, Fountain Lake Intermediate School, Hot Springs California – Nikhil Desai, 8th Grade, Challenger School, Newark Colorado – Autumn Hughes, 8th Grade, Christian Home Educators of Colorado, Colorado Springs Connecticut – Thomas Denham, 5th Grade, Tokeneke Elementary School, Darien Delaware – Daniel Keiser, 8th Grade, Corpus Christi School, Wilmington Department of Defense – Forrest Kamperman, 8th Grade, Ramstein Middle School, Germany District of Columbia – Benjamin Geyer, 8th Grade, British School of Washington Florida – Shiva Kangeyan, 6th Grade, Archimedean Middle Conservatory, Miami Georgia – Alexander Krupp, 7th Grade, Chamblee Middle School, Chamblee Hawaii – Alexander Fager, 6th Grade, Trinity Lutheran School, Wahiawa Idaho – Michael Reynolds, 8th Grade, Taylorview Junior High School, Idaho Falls Illinois – Gideon Ticho, 7th Grade, Aveny Coonley School, Downers Grove Indiana – Erik Troske, 8th Grade, Barker Middle School, Michigan City Iowa – Caleb Olson, 8th Grade, Chariton Middle School, Chariton Kansas – Trevor Eggenberger, 5th Grade, Central Christian Academy, Wichita Kentucky – Matthew Vaughan, 8th Grade, Jefferson County Home Educators, Louisville Louisiana – Barrett Pratt, 6th Grade, St. Joseph Catholic School, Thibodaux Maine – Kristopher Kohles, 8th Grade, William S. Cohen School, Bangor Maryland – Michael Morris, 8th Grade, Roberto Clemente Middle School, Germantown Massachusetts – William Lee, 8th Grade, Joyce Middle School, Woburn Michigan – Yunchen Tian, 8th Grade, Hillside Middle School, Northville Minnesota – Cody DuBois, 7th Grade, Emerson Spanish Immersion Learning Center, Minneapolis Mississippi – Mamadou Fadiga, 6th Grade, Hayes Cooper Center, Merigold Missouri – Isaac Pasley, 8th Grade, West Junior High School, Columbia Montana – Joseph Perea, 8th Grade, Lincoln County Home Educators, Eureka Nebraska – Akshay Rajagopal, 6th Grade, Lux Middle School, Lincoln Nevada – Alexander Wade, 5th Grade, Sarah Winnemucca Elementary School, Reno New Hampshire – Milan Sandhu, 8th Grade, Ross A. Lurgio Middle School, Bedford New Jersey – Christopher Deritis, 8th Grade, St. Rose Grammar School, Belmar New Mexico – Elijah Canderlario, 8th Grade, Annunciation Catholic School, Albuquerque New York – Jason Leehow, 8th Grade, Andries Hudde Middle School, Brooklyn North Carolina – Taylor Morris, 8th Grade, Charles D. Owen Middle School, Swannanoa North Dakota – Syed Hyder, 8th Grade, Wachter Middle School, Bismarck Ohio – Jonathan Meckler, 8th Grade, Hawken School, Lyndhurst Oklahoma – Nicholas Vandivort, 8th Grade, Carver Middle School, Tulsa Oregon – Sam Flecker, 5th Grade, Ainsworth Elementary School, Portland Pacific Territories – Vinni Orsini, 8th Grade, Grace Christian Academy, Northern Mariana Islands Pennsylvania – Joey Zou, 8th Grade, Carson Middle School, Pittsburgh Puerto Rico – Sergio Mundo, 8th Grade, Saint John's School, San Juan Rhode Island – Daniel Katz, 7th Grade, Jewish Community Day School, Providence South Carolina – Justin Hunt, 7th Grade, Gettys Middle School, Easley South Dakota – Changlin Ke, 8th Grade, George S. Mickelson Middle School, Brookings Tennessee – Jake Simons, 7th Grade, Harding Academy, Nashville Texas – Matthew Thomas, 6th Grade, Mary Martin Elementary School, Weatherford Utah – Kirk Earl, 8th Grade, Oak Canyon Junior High School, Lindon Vermont – Giovanni Fusco, 8th Grade, Bishop John A. Marshall School, Morrisville Virginia – Christopher Miller, 7th Grade, Blue Ridge Middle School, Purcellville Virgin Islands – Muta Abiff, 8th Grade, Addelita Cancryn Junior High School, St. Thomas Washington – Zachary Reshovsky, 8th Grade, Griffin Bay Parent Partner Program, Friday Harbor West Virginia – Sam McClung, 6th Grade, John Adams Middle School, Charleston Wisconsin – Christian Bakken, 8th Grade, Magellan Middle School, Appleton Wyoming – Hunter Collins, 8th Grade, Jackson Hole Middle School, Jackson
References
External links National Geographic Bee Official Website