Poetry Out Loud Announces High School Student Winners
The Poetry Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, managed in California by the California Arts Council and regionally, by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture in association with Write Out Loud, presents Poetry Out Loud, a national poetry recitation competition for high school students. San Diego Regional Finals took place this year on February 4 at 5 p.m. The event was free, and the public was encouraged to join our student participants and their families at the Neil Morgan Auditorium at San Diego Central Library.
The 2025 Poetry Out Loud winner is Malakas Schlater-Julian from Valley Center High School who will go on to compete at the State finals in Sacramento on March 16 and 17, 2025. The 2025 Poetry Out Loud runner up is Ixchel Roman Medina from Academy of Our Lady of Peace.
Poetry Out Loud encourages high school students to learn about great poetry—both classic and contemporary—through memorization, performance, and competition. Since the program began in 2005, more than four million students across the country have participated in Poetry Out Loud. For the 2025 Poetry Out Loud, students will present their recitations of works selected from the Poetry Out Loud Anthology of more than 1,100 poems. Performances are judged on criteria including voice and articulation, evidence of understanding, and accuracy. The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation have created free, standards-based curriculum materials to support Poetry Out Loud including a teacher’s guide, lesson plans, an online anthology, posters, and video and audio on the art of recitation. Write Out Loud offers in person and virtual poetry examination and performance workshops for students
The Poetry Out Loud competition has been administered locally by Write Out Loud since 2014. Under Write Out Loud’sdirection, the program has grown from serving one school to four schools this year. Students compete at the school and/or organization level and regional finalists compete for a chance to represent San Diego at the California State Finals.
At this year’s Regional Finals, poems were presented by finalists representing Academy of Our Lady of Peace, Canyon Crest Academy, Pacific Ridge High School, and Valley Center High School.
Judges for Poetry Out Loud include Poet/Creative Writing teachers Brandon Cesmat and Gina M Jackson, San Diego luminaries Paola Capó-Garcia, Jane Muschenetz, and Michael Klam, as well as North Coast Repertory Theatre Associate Artistic Director Brian Mackey.
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