15th National Geographic Bee

{{Short description|2003 American academic competition}}

{{Spelling bee

| name = 15th National Geographic Bee

| caption =

| date = May 21, 2003

| location = Washington, D.C.

| winner = James Williams

| age = 14

| residence = Vancouver, Washington

| word =

| contestants = 55

| moderator =

| Preceded by = 14th National Geographic Bee

| Followed by = 16th National Geographic Bee

}}

The 15th National Geographic Bee was held in Washington, D.C., on May 21, 2003, sponsored by the National Geographic Society and ING. The final competition was moderated by Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek.{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/05/130522-national-geography-bee-alex-trebek-2013-jeopardy/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617182006/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/05/130522-national-geography-bee-alex-trebek-2013-jeopardy|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 17, 2013|title=Alex Trebek: On Hosting the National Geographic Bee|author=Melody Kramer|work=National Geographic}} The winner was James Williams, a homeschooled student from Vancouver, Washington, who won a $25,000 college scholarship, lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society, and a trip to a Busch Gardens/Sea World Adventure Camp. The 2nd-place winner, Dallas Simons of Martin Luther King Magnet School in Nashville, Tennessee, won a $15,000 scholarship. The 3rd-place winner, Sean Rao of St. Gabriel School in Hubertus, Wisconsin, won a $10,000 scholarship.{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/05/0520_030521_geobee2003.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030628034047/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/05/0520_030521_geobee2003.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 28, 2003|title=Washington State Eighth Grader Wins National Geographic Bee|author=Jennifer Vernon|work=National Geographic News}}