Region 4 Finals of Student Poetry Out Loud Contest Set for MPAC, 2/12

The Region 4 Finals of the New Jersey Poetry Out Loud Competition will take place at Mayo Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, February 12 from 10 am through 1 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

Region Four comprises Hunterdon, Morris, Sussex, Union, and Warren counties. Students from 17 schools will compete in the oral recitation competition.

Two finalists will go on to the state finals on March 14. The New Jersey champion will go on to the national competition in Washington, D.C. in April.

This is the fourth year that MPAC has served as a regional host.

Students representing the following schools are scheduled to compete:
Thomas Jefferson Arts Academy (Elizabeth)
Delaware Valley Regional High School (Frenchtown)
St. Mary of the Assumption High School (Elizabeth)
Blair Academy
Jonathan Dayton High School (Springfield)
Trinity Christian School (Montville)
Sparta High School
Vernon Twp. High School
Morris County School of Technology
Bruriah High School for Girls, JEC (Elizabeth)
Morristown High School
Plainfield Academy of Arts and Advanced Studies
Madison High School
Montville High School
Shepard Preparatory Academy (Morristown)
Shepard School (Kinnelon)

Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation program for all public, charter, parochial school and home school students grades 9-12. Now in its ninth year, the program encourages the nation's youth to learn about great works of classic and contemporary poetry through memorization and recitation. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.

Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is implemented by state arts agencies across the country, including the District of Columbia, the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. In New Jersey the program is supported by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts in collaboration with a growing list of partners.

Mayo Performing Arts Center, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, presents a wide range of programs that entertain, enrich, and educate the diverse population of the region and enhance the economic vitality of Northern New Jersey. The 2013-2014 season is made possible, in part, by a grant the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as support received from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, F.M. Kirby Foundation and numerous corporations, foundations and individuals. The Mayo Performing Arts Center has been designated a Major Presenting Organization by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

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