2022 NH Poetry Out Loud Championship

 High school students from across the state to compete at the 2022 NH Poetry Out Loud Championship

 On March 11, students from across New Hampshire – each of whom has spent months selecting, memorizing and bringing to life some of the best-known and respected poetry ever written – will convene at the State House in Concord to compete in the 2022 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud Championship. The event begins at 5 p.m.

At the competition, eight students will vie to represent the Granite State in the national championship. All eight will prepare to recite two poems from the Poetry Out Loud anthology; four who receive the highest scores will then recite a third poem. Students must choose at least one poem written before the 20th century and one with 25 lines or fewer.

Students from 26 high schools and school groups participated in 2022 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud. Competitions began at the classroom level, advanced to school championships and then to a virtual semi-final round.

The Poetry Out Loud is designed to help participants develop public speaking skills, build self-confidence and learn about literary history. Students consistently report that learning and reciting poetry is an experience that changes their lives.

The New Hampshire state championship will be livestreamed on the N.H. State Council on the Arts’ Facebook account, facebook.com/NHArtsCouncil.

Poetry Out Loud is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. In New Hampshire it is led by the N.H. State Council on the Arts.

New Hampshire’s Poetry Out Loud supporters include the New Hampshire Learning Initiative and the Putnam Foundation – a donor-advised fund of the N.H. Charitable Foundation. Other partners include Brightspot Consultants, Currier Museum of Art, Granite State Ambassadors, New England College, New Hampshire Public Radio, the Poetry Society of New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Writers Project and Slam Free or Die.

To learn more about 2022 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud, visit nh.gov/nharts.

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts is a division of the New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. It began in 1965 with legislation designed “to insure that the role of the arts in the life of our communities will continue to grow and play an ever more significant part in the education and welfare of our citizens.” Funding for programs is provided through state appropriations, a partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Conservation License Plate fund. Learn more about the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts at nh.gov/nharts.

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Finalists for the 2022 N.H. Poetry Out Loud championship are:

• Jessica Birnbaum, Bow High School 
•  Daniel Courtine, Kearsarge Regional High School (Sutton)
• Savannah Davis, The Derryfield School (Manchester)
• Annalise Locke, Hopkinton High School
•  Emily Matos, Kingswood Regional High School (Wolfeboro)
•  Kellye Lam Nguyen, Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro)
•  Grace O'Brien, Laconia Christian Academy
•  Ella Weinmann, Conant High School (Jaffrey)