On April 24, senior Jasmine Kabira will represent Connecticut at the national level of the Poetry Out Loud competition. She will analyze and perform three poems at the final round of the competition in Washington, D.C. Kabira was the first place winner of the school-wide competition, advised by English teachers Kaitlin McIntyre and Lauren Gallucci. Freshman Natalie Wong and sophomore Rafaela Kottou competed against Kabira on January 24 at the school competition.

“Since joining Poetry Out Loud, I’ve taken a lot of interest in slam poetry because my favorite recitations are the powerful and passionate ones. I even revolved my senior independent study project around the relationship between spoken-word poetry and societal change byholding a school-wide poetry slam, combining my love for literature with my passion for social justice,” Kabira said.

Kabira first discovered Poetry Out Loud during her freshman year, and her past experience with poetry writing motivated her to get involved.

Prior to the contest, the participants worked after school to analyze their selected poems in order to understand the meaning of the poem, and the intention that they should keep in mind when reciting them. It was important that the students developed personal connections to the poems they were reading, as it helped to understand the position that the author was in.

“The most difficult part of the process was definitely choosing a poem because there’s so many good ones out there, and you need to make sure you find a poem that you somehow relate to,” Kottou said.

The winner of each participating school-wide contest in Connecticut competed for the State Champion title on March 3 at Manchester Community College in Manchester, Connecticut. Kabira competed against 35 students and received the title of Runner-Up. Because the firstplace recipient in Connecticut is not able to compete on the date of the national finals, Kabira has been selected as Connecticut’s representative.

In Manchester, Kabira recited three poems, including “If They Should Come For Us” by Fatimah Asghar and “Bereavement” by William Lisle Bowles in front of an audience of parents, teachers, and community members. Judges critiqued her performance based on voice and articulation, physical presence, evidence of understanding, as well as other criteria. The national finals will be held April 24 through April 25. During the first day of the national competition, regional semi-finals will take place.

The winners of each regional semi-final will compete the next day for the title of 2018 National Poetry Out Loud Champion.

“I think poetry has not only kept my appreciation for the art form alive but built my confidence and presence in front of others through recitation. I hope to continue working with poetry, on paper and out loud, throughout college and wherever I am taken after that,” Kabira said.