Poetry Out Loud Finals Announced

Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and Honolulu Theatre for Youth announce the state finals for Poetry Out Loud. The competition, presented in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is part of a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization, performance, and competition. On Sunday, March 1, 2020 ten high school students from high schools representing 4 islands will participate in the Poetry Out Loud state finals at [LOCATION].

Poetry Out Loud starts in the classroom with winners advancing to a school-wide competition, then to the state competition, and ultimately to the national finals in Washington, DC. At the [STATE] finals, contestants will recite works they selected from an anthology of more than 1,100 classic and contemporary poems. The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation provide free, standards-based curriculum materials which teachers may use in their classrooms, including an online poetry anthology, a teacher's guide, lesson plans, posters, and video and audio on the art of recitation. Schools are welcome to download these resources at poetryoutloud.org. Since the program began in 2005, more than 3.8 million students and 60,000 teachers from 16,000 schools across the country have participated in Poetry Out Loud.

"This program not only enhances memorization skills and a deepens understanding of poetry past and present, but also strengthens vital 21st Century skills: communication and public speaking skill. As young people are flown from all over the state to participate in the state finals, they also are provided an opportunity to meet fellow people their age engaged in similar interests- the art of poetry and presentation, which develops a sense of belonging and community. We welcome all to celebrate the hard work of the young people at State Finals." -Jonathan Johnson, Executive Director, Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts

The event is free and open to the public, no tickets needed. For more information on the state finals, contact Tamara Smith at Honolulu Theatre for Youth at edadmin@htyweb.org or visit poetryoutloud.org.

The winner of the Hawai'i Poetry Out Loud finals will receive $200, and the winner's school will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry materials. The first runner-up will receive $100, with $200 for his or her school library. The state champion of the Hawai'i Poetry Out Loud final will receive an all-expenses-paid trip (with an adult chaperone) to compete in the national finals in Washington, DC, on April 28-29, 2020. The Poetry Out Loud national finals will present a total of $50,000 in awards and school stipends, including a $20,000 award for the Poetry Out Loud National Champion. The Poetry Foundation provides and administers all aspects of the monetary prizes awarded and travel arrangements to the Poetry Out Loud National Finals.

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