On Saturday, March 12, 2016, Wenmimareba Klobah Collins (a 12^th-grader from University High School, at the University of Puerto Rico-Río Piedras) was named the Poetry Out Loud champion of Puerto Rico. On May 3-4, she will compete at the national championship to be held in Washington, D.C. Forty-nine students competed in the statewide event in PR. Joining her is another Caribbean contestant—Irvin Mason, Jr. (All Saints Cathedral School in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas) who is the winner for the U.S. Virgin Islands. Our most heartfelt congratulations for the winners, and best of luck in the semi-finals and finals. The times for the semi-finals and final are listed below:

May 3, 2016
9:00am-12:00pm: Region 1 Semifinal—East Central and Northeast: ME, VT, NJ, MD, MA, NH, SC, NY, OH, RI, WV, NC, USVI, VA, CT, PA, DE, DC

1:00-4:00pm Region 2 Semifinal—Midwest and South Central: TN, IA, NE, IN, PR, LA, WI, AL, MO, FL, IL, OK, KS, MI, MS, GA, AR, KY

5:00-8:00pm Region 3 Semifinal—Upper Northwest and West: CA, OR, AK, NM, HI, AZ, MN, WY, ID, CO, MT, NV, ND, SD, UT, TX, WA

May 4, 2016: 7:00 – 9:15 pm National Finals, Lisner Auditorium

Poetry Out Loud: The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation have partnered with U.S. state arts agencies to support Poetry Out Loud, a contest that encourages the nation’s youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.

For more information, see http://www.poetryoutloud.org/about

See the list of statewide winners here: http://www.poetryoutloud.org/competition/state-finals