School is back in session and along with homework, fall sports and exam prep, students across New Hampshire are gearing up for the 2019 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud program.

Each year, up to 45 high schools and high school groups register to participate in the months-long program, giving approximately 10,000 students the opportunity not only to learn great poems by master poets, but also to sharpen their public speaking and presentation skills, making them stronger candidates for positions both in higher education and the workforce.

Competitions begin at the classroom level and advance to school championships, which are followed by four regional semi-finals in late winter and the state championship at the N.H. State House in March. National finals, with one competitor from each state, are held in Washington, D.C.

While thousands of students participate and not everyone advances to the next round of competition, students consistently report that learning and reciting poetry is an experience that changes their lives.

There is no cost to students or schools to participate in Poetry Out Loud, which is organized by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, and led in New Hampshire by the N.H. State Council on the Arts. A map of schools that participated in the 2018 program is available from the Poetry Out Loud section of the NHSCA’s website, nh.gov/nharts.

To learn more about 2019 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud, including how high schools and school groups can register, visit nh.gov/nharts. For additional information, contact Julianne Gadoury, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts at 603-271-0791, julianne.gadoury@nulldncr.nh.gov.