Bennett Represents Mackinac Island in Poetry Championship

Onaca Bennett of Mackinac Island Public School will compete in the fifth annual Poetry Out Loud state poetry recitation competition Saturday, March 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the State of Michigan Library and Historical Center in Lansing. Miss Bennett, a freshman, is being coached by teacher Lance Greenlee.

High school students from 24 schools across Michigan will participate. The winner will be named Michigan’s Poetry Out Loud representative for the national competition. The national competition will be in Washington, D.C., April 25 through April 27. State finalists will also be invited to participate in the Michigan Youth Arts Festival May 13 through May 15 in Kalamazoo.

The state winner will receive $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip to the national competition. The winner’s school will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. The runner-up in the Michigan competition will receive $100, along with $200 for their school library.

Poetry Out Loud is a partnership of the Michigan Humanities Council, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Poetry Foundation, the Michigan Youth Arts Association, and the Library of Michigan.