2014 New Jersey Poetry Out Loud State Finals Set for NJPAC, 3/14

The New Jersey Poetry Out Loud State Finals will be held on Friday March 14, 2014, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Victoria Theater at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

This year more than 365,000 students, 2,200 schools, and 8,800 teachers participated in POL nationwide.

Top Five States for Student Participation
1. California
2. New Jersey
3. Massachusetts
4. Washington
5. Georgia

Top Five States for School Participation
1. California
2. New Jersey
3. Pennsylvania
4. Massachusetts
5. New York and North Carolina (tied!)

Top Five States for Teacher Participation
1. New Jersey
2. Georgia
3. Massachusetts
4. Washington
5. New York

Come out to the 9th Annual New Jersey Poetry Out Loud State Finals, part of the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Program and Contest for students in grades 9-12. Join us to cheer on the 10 New Jersey Regional Champions from high schools across the state.

To reserve your free ticket, email your request (4 ticket limit per person) to njpoetryoutloud@gmail.com.

Live Webcast! Can't attend in person? Tune in to http://jerseyarts.com/pol/! Our live webcast will allow schools, friends and family around the state and the nation to cheer on our 10 Regional Champions as they compete for a chance to attend the National Finals!

For more information about NJ Poetry Out Loud, visit JerseyArts.com/POL.

New Jersey Poetry Out Loud is made possible through the funding and leadership of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Poetry Foundation. The New Jersey State Council on the Arts supports the year-long New Jersey Poetry Out Loud program in partnership with Playwrights Theatre of NJ, ArtPride NJ Foundation, Bergen County Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs, Rutgers Camden Center for the Arts, Mayo Performing Arts Center; Two River Theater Company and South Orange Performing Arts Center. Support for the New Jersey Poetry Out Loud State Finals is provided, in part, by the Horizon Foundation for New Jersey and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

The winner and runner-up will receive cash awards and stipends provided by the NEA and the Poetry Foundation for the purchase of poetry books by their schools. The State Champion will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Washington, DC to compete against 52 other State, District of Columbia and U.S. Territory Champions in the National Finals in April for prizes totaling $50,000 in awards and school stipends. All monetary prizes are provided by the NEA and the Poetry Foundation.

This year, CavanKerry Press has generously donated books of poetry to all participating schools and a special award for the teacher of the State Champion - tuition and lodging to attend the Frost Place Conference for Teachers this June in New Hampshire.

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