The Pilot News - PHS’ Jung to compete at state poetry contest

The student crowned State Champion will receive a $200 cash prize and an all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C. to compete at the National Finals April 26 to 28, 2009. The National Championships feature competitors from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The State Champion’s school will receive a $500 stipend to purchase poetry books.
“This has been really exciting for me and something really new,” said Angelina. “I really had never been exposed to poetry before except in English class. It’s really kind of ironic that we’re studying poetry in English class right now.”
Her coach, PHS English teacher Kyle Coffman, is a little more familiar with poetry, but this is his first year of being involved with the competition.
“Charlotte Tyree had done it in previous years and when they asked for a volunteer to do it this year I was happy to,” said Coffman. “My background is English education but I have written some poetry of my own in my spare time.”
Jung has chosen work to recite that was written by Queen Elizabeth I.
“One of the poems is really difficult to add movement and gestures,” she said. “It’s a very heavy piece.”
“Poetry is difficult for students because the most complex ideas are stated in the simplest words,” said Coffman. “Angelina has chosen some very difficult work and she is doing very well with it.”
Indiana is in its fourth year of participation in the Poetry Out Loud program. The National Poetry Out Loud competition began in 2005. The program, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), is designed to encourage youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance, which helps students master public speaking skills, build self-esteem, and internalize an appreciation for American literary heritage.
In 2008, more than 200,000 students participated nationwide in preliminary competitions which begin at the classroom level, advance to regional competitions, and finally state championships. Finalists for the National Campionship will compete for scholarship prizes totaling $50,000, with the National Championship claiming $20,000 in scholarship funding and the opportunity to recite at the historic rededication of the Lincoln Memorial.