Poetry Out Loud Competition
We are looking for high school students (9th-12th) to participate in this year’s Region 1 Poetry Out Loud Competition!
Poetry Out Loud is a national arts education program that encourages the study of great poetry by offering free educational materials and a dynamic recitation competition for high school students across the country. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about literary history and contemporary life. Poetry Out Loud is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation, and the state and jurisdictional arts agencies. Since 2005, Poetry Out Loud has grown to reach more than 4.1 million students and 68,000 teachers from 17,000 schools and organizations in every state, American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The Region 1 competition will be held Friday, February 3rd at the Alabama Contemporary Art Center.
The competition categories are broken down as follows:
Anthology Poem Competition
Two poems total, picked from the POL Anthology– one written before 1900, one that is 25 lines or less, or one poem that satisfies both requirements. Must be memorized for competition.
Original Poem Competition
Two poems total, of the student’s own creation – one must be 25 lines or less. Must be memorized for competition.
Social Issue Competition
One poem total, of the student’s own creation – addressing topical, societal challenges they identify as relevant. Does not have to be memorized for competition.
Anthology Link: https://www.poetryoutloud.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/08/List-of-POL-Print-Anthology-Poems.pdf
Only currently enrolled students in grades 9-12 are eligible, with an exception made for 8th-grade students participating in a 9th- through 12th-grade class. A student may not advance to the state finals without competing in a lower-level competition.
If you are an educator or student in Baldwin, Butler, Clarke, Choctaw, Conecuh, Covington, Escambia, Marengo, Mobile, Monroe, Washington, & Wilcox counties, contact Sydney Cramer, Region 1 Poetry Out Loud Coordinator, with any questions.
The registration form should be filled out by the individual student planning to compete in the regional competition on February 3rd, 2023 no later than January 27th, 2023 at 11:59 p.m.