Shaker Heights Student Wins 2011 Ohio Poetry Out Loud Contest, Advances to Nationals
by Amy McKay
Ohio’s sixth annual Poetry Out Loud state competition was held Saturday, March 12 at the Matesich Theatre at Ohio Dominican University. Caira Lee, a junior at Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, won the competition with her recitations of I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud, by William Wordsworth; And Soul, by Eavan Boland; and Celebration for June 24, by Thomas McGrath. As the winner of the state finals, Lee received a $300 prize, her school gets $500 for the purchase of poetry books, and she will receive an all-expense-paid trip (with a chaperone) to compete in the Poetry Out Loud national finals in Washington, D.C., on April 29, 2011.
More than 8,000 students from 50 schools around Ohio participated in Poetry Out Loud competitions this year. After classroom-level and then school-wide contests, 39 students competed in the final event. They performed classic and contemporary poems for a five-person panel of poetry and performance experts. Students were awarded points for accuracy, physical presence, voice and articulation, level of difficulty and other criteria.
This year’s Poetry Out Loud state competition was hosted by Dionne Custer from the Wexner Center for the Arts. Special guest First Lady Karen Kasich attended the finals with her twin daughters and joined Ohio Arts Council Board Chair Jakki Nance and Executive Director Julie Henahan to pass out awards to the top six finalists. Each finalist received plaques from Passion Works Studio in Athens and an autographed book of poems by Terry Hermsen, the 2009 Ohio Poet of the Year. The top three students also received cash prizes.
Runner-up Lynsay Strahorn, a senior from Chaminade Julienne High School in Dayton, received $200, with $200 for her school library, and the second runner-up, Kevin O’Donnell, a junior from Kettering Fairmont High School in Kettering, received $100 with $50 for his school library. Three other students received honorable mentions: Kaitlin Kinney, a senior from Beavercreek High School in Beavercreek; Mallory Kassoy, a sophomore from Bexley High School in Bexley; and Jordan Martin, a senior from The Arts and College Preparatory Academy in Columbus.
A total of $50,000 in scholarships and school stipends will be awarded to the winners at the Poetry Out Loud national finals, including a $20,000 cash prize for the national champion. Ohio has an outstanding track record of competition at the national level. Ohio champion Jackson Hille was the first national Poetry Out Loud winner in 2006. And in 2009, Ohio champion Mido Aly was among the top five national finalists.
Poetry Out Loud is presented by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation in partnership with the Ohio Arts Council. Poetry Out Loud is a program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization, performance and competition. Through Poetry Out Loud , students can master public-speaking skills, build self-confidence and learn about their literary heritage.
Visit www.poetryoutloud.org for more information on this national program and the Ohio Arts Council website for more information on the Ohio program.
About the National Endowment for the Arts:
The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts—both new and established—bringing the arts to all Americans, and providing leadership in arts education.
About the Ohio Arts Council:
The Ohio Arts Council is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences to strengthen Ohio communities culturally, educationally and economically.
Image information: Ohio Arts Council Executive Director Julie Henahan, Chair Jacquelyn Nance, Caira Lee and First Lady Karen Kasich.
Complete list of student participants:
Victoria Krumholtz, Archbishop Alter High School, Kettering
Jordan Martin, Arts and College Preparatory Academy, Columbus
Anna Claire Gall, Athens High School, Athens
Kaitlin Kinney, Beavercreek High School, Beavercreek
Mallory Kassoy, Bexley High School, Bexley
Conner Miller, Canal Winchester High School, Canal Winchester
Emily Carnevale, Centennial High School, Columbus
Annie Schiferl, Chagrin Falls High School, Chagrin Falls
Lynsay Strahorn, Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School, Dayton
Grace Herman-Holland, Columbus Alternative High School, Columbus
Dylan Jones, Dublin Coffman High School, Dublin
Taylor Mitchell, Eastmoor Academy, Columbus
Shelby Brown, Garfield High School, Akron
Sam Horne, Girard High School, Girard
Zachary C. Davis, Rutherford B. Hayes High School, Delaware
Elizabeth Dickerson, Huntington Christian School, Wellington
Katelyn Thompson, Ironton High School, Ironton
Kevin O’Donnell, Kettering-Fairmont High School, Kettering
Rachel Riggs, Logan High School, Logan
Margaret Gonzalez, The Lyceum, Cleveland
Amy Cockerham, Madison Junior-Senior High School, Middletown
Heidi Loos, Medina High School, Medina
Amber Rose, Milford High School, Milford
Ericka Lynn, Milton-Union High School, West Milton
Yodit Aseffa, Northmont High School, Clayton
Rosie Glass, Olney Friends School, Barnesville
Maikah Pender, Premier Academy, Columbus
Aria Brice, Purcell Marian High School, Cincinnati
Caira Lee, Shaker Heights High School, Shaker Heights
Matthew Toro, Stow Munroe Falls High School, Stow
Michael Grund, Tallmadge High School, Tallmadge
Bethany Goff, Tecumseh High School, New Carlisle
Arielle White, Toledo Early College High School, Toledo
Renika Williams, Trotwood Madison High School, Trotwood
Yeonwoo Jang, Upper Arlington High School, Upper Arlington
Bethany Kaylor, Ursuline Academy, Cincinnati
Simon Dallas, Walnut Hills High School, Cincinnati
Chase Wilson, Westerville Central High School, Westerville
Joanna Asuncion, Thomas Worthington High School, Worthington
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