Colorado students compete in national poetry competition |
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DENVER, (February 22, 2007) – On February 27, the Colorado Council on the Arts hosts the Colorado finals of the Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest. The event takes place at the Lakewood Cultural Center, 470 South Allison Parkway, at 6:00 p.m. Eleven Colorado high school students will compete for a place in the 2007 National Finals which will be held in Washington DC in May. In addition to the expense-paid trip to Washington DC, the Colorado champion will be awarded $200, with an additional $500 given to their school to purchase poetry books. The runner-up will receive $100, plus $200 for their school. The emcee for the evening is Reggie Rivers, columnist and sportscaster on Channel 4 (CBS).
Students from the following schools are participating:
Career Education Center Middle College of Denver
Cherry Creek High School
Colorado Academy
Contemporary Learning Academy
Fountain Valley High School
Gateway High School
George Washington High School
Lincoln High School
Long View High School
Swink High School
Thornton High School
Last year, Passion Lyons from Gateway High School won the Colorado state finals. Accompanied by her teacher, Shawn Roloff, Passion went on to Washington, D.C. to recite “Beautiful Black Men” by Nikki Giovanni, and “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou. Passion is competing in the Colorado finals again this year.
The National Endowment for the Arts, the nation’s largest annual funder of the arts, and the Poetry Foundation, the nation’s largest literary nonprofit, partner with The Colorado Council on the Arts, a state agency, to present Poetry Out Loud. The program builds on the recent resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, and encourages the nation’s youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance, which help students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about our literary heritage.
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