Obama meets Spelling Bee winner Kavya Shivshankar

President Obama met with 2009 Scripps National Spelling Bee winner Kavya Shivashankar in the Oval Office on Thursday. Obama congratulated Kavya on her extraordinary achievement and reiterated the importance of a top-flight education for success in the 21st century economy. He also wished Kavya's sister, Vanya, good luck as she competes in the 2011 Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Image: Kavya Shivshankar, Kavya's sister Vanya, Kavya's mother, Sandhya, Kavya's father, Mirle Shivashankar and Tim King, VP of EW Scripps Company meet President Barack Obama.

Photograph: Courtesy White House