MCPA Hosting Poetry Out Loud Semifinal

(From the Marathon Center for the Performing Arts)

Marathon Center for the Performing Arts will host the Northwest Ohio Poetry Out Loud Regional Semifinal, beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 14. Students from the following schools will be participating, Toledo Early College and Millstream Career Center. Participants will be reciting poems in two rounds and one will be selected to move on to the Ohio Poetry Out Loud Finals in Columbus on February 7, 2025. The event is free and open to the public.

Poetry Out Loud encourages students to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about literary history and contemporary life. Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is administered in partnership with the State Arts Agencies of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Teachers, librarians, or administrators register their high schools each year with the Ohio Arts Council and organize contests with one class, several classes, or a whole school. Contests, workshops, and multimedia program materials, including curricula, are free. Poetry Out Loud is aligned with Common Core and NCTE standards.

This is the ninth year that Marathon Center for the Performing Arts has served as the Northwest Ohio Regional Partner for this program which is sponsored by the Ohio Arts Council.