LHS Student Heads to State Poetry Finals
Natasha Mukuka, left, Katherine Cognard-Black, and Sydney Grossman will compete in the state Poetry Out Loud finals March 18 at the Baltimore Museum of Art.
Leonardtown High School’s Katherine Cognard-Black earned second place in the regional Poetry Out Loud competition in Leonardtown.
Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation contest. On Feb. 11, 13 students from Montgomery, Calvert, Prince Georges, Howard, and St. Mary’s counties competed in the Poetry Out Loud competition at the College of Southern Maryland’s Leonardtown Campus.
A three-judge panel awarded first place to Natasha Mukuka of Wootton High School in Montgomery County. Ms. Cognard-Black came in second, and Sydney Grossman of Centennial High School in Howard County captured third place.
Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is administered in partnership with the state arts agencies of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. By encouraging high school students to memorize and perform great poems, Poetry Out Loud invites the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word, and theater into the English class. This exciting program, which began in 2005, helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.
Poetry Out Loud starts at the classroom level. Winners advance to a schoolwide competition, then to a regional and/or state competition, and ultimately to the national finals. Each winner at the state level receives $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip with an adult chaperone to Washington, DC, to compete for the national championship. The state winner’s school receives a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. The first runner-up in each state receives $100, with $200 for his or her school. A total of $50,000 in awards and school stipends is awarded annually at the national finals.
All three winners of the Feb. 11 competition in Leonardtown will compete in the state finals at 1 pm Saturday, March 18, 2017, at the Baltimore Museum of Art. Nationals will be held April 24 through 26 at Lisner Auditorium in Washington, DC. Click here for more information about the program.
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