High School Students Will Compete in Poetry Competition Saturday

The Benicia Poet Laureate Program has partnered with The National Endowment for the Arts, The California Arts Council, The Solano County Arts Council, The  Poetry Foundation and to present , a National Recitation Contest for high school students.

and are participating in this event. Benicia's two high schools are the only schools in Solano County to compete thus far. Ronna Leon, Benicia’s Poet Laureate, is proud to have achieved her goal of bringing such an important national event to Benicia.  was Lindsey Blackie.  This is the in Benicia.

“Learning great poetry by heart develops the mind and imagination,” said Dana Gioia, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. “It isn’t just an arts program. By immersing themselves in powerful language and ideas, the students will develop their ability to speak well, especially in public. This is a skill they will use in the workplace and the community for the rest of their lives.”

Judges from Benicia are: , Superintendent, Benicia Unified School District; Larry Miller, President, Toastmasters Benicia; Lynne Price, Adult Literacy/ESL Program; and Juanita J. Martin, Poet Laureate of Fairfield. The Accuracy Judge is Mary Eichbauer, President of the Library Board. The Lead Teachers for Poetry Out Loud are Kim Thompson for Benicia High School and Geri Leonardis for Liberty High School.

Each winner at the state level will receive $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC, to compete for the national championship. The state winner’s school will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. One runner-up in each state will receive $100, with $200 for his or her school library. Poetry Out Loud will award a total of $50,000 in scholarships and school stipends at the National Finals, with at least a $20,000 college scholarship for the Poetry Out Loud National Champion.