February 13 , 2007—A pair of Shaker brothers has earned top honors in local National Geographic Bee competitions. Evan Seballos, a fifth grader at Woodbury Elementary School, and Spencer Seballos, a seventh grader at Shaker Heights Middle School, won their respective schools’ geography bees in January.

Evan’s victory in the Woodbury competition came by naming Panama as the Central American country that borders Colombia, while his brother was asked to name a West African nation that is in OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and is a major producer of oil. Spencer’s answer—Nigeria—made him the Middle School champion.

Evan and Spencer are the children of Raul and Sandra Seballos.

“We’re really excited for both of them,” said Mrs. Seballos of the children’s success.

To prepare for the competition, the brothers read atlases, study guides, and National Geographic magazine.

After becoming school-level Geographic Bee champions, both Evan and Spencer took state competition qualification examinations. They will find out in March if they are to advance to the next round in Mansfield, also to be held that month. State winners will compete at the national level in Washington, D.C. in May.

Sponsored by the National Geographic Society, the competition is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their classrooms, spark interest in the subject, and increase public awareness about geography.

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