Nine Compete to be Nevada Poetry Out Loud Champion

By Jennifer Rey

Nine high school poets from across the state will take center stage at the 14^th annual Nevada Poetry Out Loud State Finals on Saturday, March 16 in Reno .The State Finals start at noon at KNPB Channel 5 Public Broadcasting’s studios, 1670 N. Virginia St., in Reno. The event is free, open to the public and media.

“The talent and confidence we see in students who get on stage and make these works their own is just really remarkable,” said Maryjane Dorofachuk, arts learning specialist for the Nevada Arts Council, a sponsor of the program. “These teenagers inspire and they learn that words matter.”

One winner from the nine finalists will be selected to represent Nevada at the National Poetry Out Loud competition in Washington, D.C., April 30 to May 1.

District Finalists competing for the state title include:

• Carson City: Marion Haffey, Junior, Carson High School
• Clark County: Vanessa Aponte, Senior, Legacy High School
• Douglas County: Shannon Bunn, Senior, Douglas High School
• Elko County: Mikayla De Guzman, Senior, Elko High School
• Lincoln County: Trevor Frank, Junior, Lincoln County High School
• Lyon County: Haylie Mikkelsen, Junior, Yerington High School
• Storey County: Shiann Loncar, Virginia City High School
• Washoe County: Noemi Valdez, Senior, Sparks High School
• White Pine County: Kaelyn Roman, Freshman, White Pine High School

The annual Poetry Out Loud competition started at the local level during the fall of this school year and followed with district competitions in recent weeks. Hundreds of high school students from around the state participated.

Poetry Out Loud is a program of the Nevada Arts Council, presented in partnership with National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. For more information on the state finals, contact: Maryjane Dorofachuk, at (702) 486-3738, [email protected] or visit http://www.facebook.com/NevadaPoetryOutLoud.