02/09/2017
SOLANO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL ANNOUNCES POETRY OUT LOUD COUNTY FINALS. FEB. 11 Civic Center Library in Fairfield CA . 1:30 - 1150 Kentucky St, Fairfield, CA 94533
High school students from five (5) high schools in Solano County will compete in national poetry recitation contest.
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 Feb. 11 high school students from five (5) Solano County high schools will participate in the Poetry Out Loud County finals. Poetry Out Loud is a national arts education program that encourages the study of great poetry by offering educational materials and a dynamic recitation competition to high schools across the country. Poetry Out Loud uses a pyramid structure. Beginning at the classroom level, winners advance to a school-wide County competition, then to the state competition, and ultimately to the National Finals in Washington, DC. More than 315,000 students from 2,300 high schools took part in the 2015–2016 Poetry Out Loud programs.
At the Civic Center Library in Fairfield, contestants will recite works they selected from an anthology of more than 900 classic and contemporary poems.
The winner of the CA state champion of the 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 25–26, 2017. The Poetry Out Loud National Finals will present a total of $50,000 in awards and school stipends, with a $20,000 award for the Poetry Out Loud National Champion.
Solano County Poetry Out Loud finals will take place on Feb 11 at 1:30 at Fairfield Civic Center Library. The event is free. For more information contact The Solano County Arts Council – Carmen -707-712-3321 [email protected]
Dana Gioia California’s state Poet Laureate. Appointed by Governor Jerry Brown in December, 2015 will be visiting Solano County to appear with the winner of the County Poetry Out Loud competition. Gioia serves as the state advocate for poetry and literature in libraries, classrooms and boardrooms across California. An award-winning poet, Gioia is the author of Can Poetry Matter?, which is credited for helping revive poetry’s role in American public life. He is also the former Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts where he championed arts education. As state laureate, Gioia will work to inspire a new generation of writers and celebrate California’s great literary legacy.
About the National Endowment for the Arts Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. For more information, visit arts.gov. About the Poetry Foundation: the Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture. It exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience. The Poetry Foundation seeks to be a leader in shaping a receptive climate for poetry by developing new audiences, creating new avenues for delivery, and encouraging new kinds of poetry through innovative literary prizes and programs.
