2025 Celebrity Spelling Bee Recap

The 6th Annual Celebrity Spelling Bee at The Second City was not only hilarious, but deeply impactful. With the help of host TJ Shanoff, an incredible roster of celebrity spellers including WGN’s Micah Materre, Chris Witaske from the FX hit show The Bear, Miss Illinois USA Grace Rodi, Alderman Timmy Knudsen (Ward 43) and NYT-bestselling author Kate Kennedy, and through the generosity of more than 200 guests, we had a record-breaking night that grossed over $160,000 for our free, one-to-one tutoring program for students facing financial barriers.

The impact from the Bee will be felt throughout Chicago’s communities as we work to serve more students in more places across our great city. Thank you to everyone who came out to support Tutoring Chicago! We are already looking forward to the 2026 Spelling Bee!