The Vermont Poetry Out Loud Awards for Original Poetry
Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation competition, administered in Vermont by the Vermont Arts Council. In 2020, the Council added an original poetry writing component to our annual Poetry Out Loud activities. In partnership with the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center’s Scholastic Writing Awards, we launched the first annual Vermont Poetry Out Loud Awards for Original Poetry in 2020. This year, teaching artist workshops are available to support students in the creative process.
Last year, we received poems from twelve schools participating in Poetry Out Loud, and nearly twenty students submitted poems. Submitting original poetry can be very personal, and we appreciate the courage and initiative that these students showed in submitting their work. We selected three poems and student poets to recognize in 2020.
The 2020 Original Poetry Award Winners (left to right): Samantha Aikman, Sophie Leggett, and Aaron Brown.
2020 Winners
- Samantha Aikman from Mt Mansfield Union High School for her poem, "The Way the Flood Rises"
- Aaron Brown from Vermont Academy for his poem, "Freckles"
- Sophie Leggett from Woodstock Union High School for her poem, "Heartstrings (In Short)"