2008 Poetry Out Loud Finals

State Finals

Competing among eleven students from schools throughout Delaware, Tonisha Jones from Middletown High School became the winner of the state Poetry Out Loud contest held at the Schwartz Center for the Arts on February 28. Her recitation of Still I Rise by Maya Angelou, A Fixed Idea by Amy Lowell, and Revenge by Letitia Elizabeth Landon earned her high marks with the judges. The second place winner was Conor McGiffin from Dover High School, and the third place winner was Jonathan Duerr from Polytech High School.

For her winning presentation, Tonisha Jones receives $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip with a chaperone to Washington to compete for the national championship on April 28-29, 2008. Middletown High School receives a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. The Poetry Foundation will be awarding up to $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. The second place finalist Conor McGiffin will receive $100, with $200 for Dover High School library.

The state Poetry Out Loud competition, sponsored by the Delaware Division of Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is part of a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization, performance, and competition.