Portsmouth Student Competing In National Poetry Contest In Washington, D.C.

PORTSMOUTH, RI — A junior at Portsmouth Abbey School will represent Rhode Island in Washington, D.C., for the 2024 Poetry Out Loud National Finals from April 30 to May 2.

Representing the Ocean State is Jennifer Shon, who won the Rhode Island Poetry Out Loud State Championship with the recitation of "Say Grace" by Emily Jungmin Yoon.

At the national competition, Shon will join state winners from throughout the U.S. to compete in regional semifinals. The winners of the regionals advance to the finals.

"We wish Jennifer the best of luck and thank her for all of the hard work and hours of preparation she put in to represent our state," Rhode Island State Council on the Arts Executive Director Lynne McCormack said. "RISCA is proud to partner with the NEA and the Poetry Foundation for this venerable arts education program, which inspires a life-long appreciation of great classic and contemporary poems."

A total of $50,000 in awards and school or organizational stipends will be awarded during the finals, including $20,000 for the Poetry Out Loud National Champion, and $10,000 and $5,000 for the second- and third-place finalists.

Beginning at the classroom level, winners advance to a school-wide competition, then to the state championships, and ultimately to the national finals in Washington, D.C. Since its inception, 3.6 million students from 14,000 high schools nationwide have participated in Poetry Out Loud.

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