Jibril Kyser from John F. Kennedy High School is the winner of the 2014 Sacramento County Poetry Out Loud competition and will now represent Sacramento County in the California State Finals, March 23-24 in Sacramento. Kyser took first place from a field of 13 during the Sacramento County Finals, held February 6 at Rosemont High School in Sacramento. Taylor Tuers from Rio Linda High School was runner-up. Sacramento Poet Laureate Bob Stanley served as master of ceremonies at this year's County competition.
The Sacramento County Poetry Out Loud program encourages high school students to learn about poetry through memorization, performance, and competition. Poetry Out Loud provides students with the opportunity to perform poetry in English classes. Competitions are modeled after the National Spelling Bee, beginning in high school classrooms with winners advancing to school-wide, then regional competitions. The program has grown annually with more than 375,000 students competing across the country this school year.
Each winner at the State level receives $200. They (along with an adult chaperone) also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to compete for the National title. The State winners' schools will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books and the first runners-up will receive $100, with $200 for his/her school library.
This year's Poetry Out Loud National Finals will take place April 28-30, 2014 with a total of $50,000 in awards and school stipends being given.
2014 Poetry Out Loud Participants
- Nicole Canon, Capital Christian High School
- Paul Yegorov, Center High School
- Karissa Elliott, Del Campo High School
- Zhaohao Zhu, Elk Grove High School
- Angel Ford, Heritage Peak Charter School
- Safa Qasmi, Inderkum High School
- Jibril Kyser, John F. Kennedy High School
- Dominique Harrell, Luther Burbank High School
- Harnoor Gill, Monterey Trail High School
- Diana Kvach, Natomas Charter School
- Carinn Candelaria, Pleasant Grove High School
- Hannah Oldfield, Rio Americano High School
- Taylor Tuers, Rio Linda High School
Sacramento County's Poetry Out Loud program is supported by the Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE), California Poets in the Schools, and the Poetry Foundation. This activity is funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, as well the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.