“We’re here in the spirit of poetry, something we all share and love,” Sheila McDermott-Sipe, the sponsor of Poetry Out Loud at South, said while giving opening remarks at yesterday’s third annual Poetry Out Loud competition.

The competition consisted of two rounds judged by poets from the community. Each student recited one poem from memory per round that they picked from the official Poetry Out Loud poem anthology.

Madeline Kinnarney, Shelby Newland, and Lia Sokol competed. Newland came in first place, with Sokol following as the runner up.

Newland will move on to the state competition held in Indianapolis on Feb. 20, where she will recite her poems again for the chance to move on to the national competition in May. The prize for winning at the national level is $20,000.  
“I’ve witnessed students watch other students, they never knew what a poem could be until they heard someone who was really good at it, they fall in love with poetry,” McDermott-Sipe said.