Negandhi is the first Indian-American to host the bee telecast. The bee has produced Indian-American champions for eight consecutive years, and 13 of the past 17 a run that began in 1999 with Nupur Lala, who was featured in the documentary "Spellbound."
Negandhi became the first Indian-American on-air personality at a national sports network when he joined ESPN in 2006. His parents are immigrants from Mumbai. He grew up in the Philadelphia suburbs.
This year's bee will be held May 24 to 26, with the finals broadcast in prime-time on ESPN.