Poetry Out Loud
Poetry Out Loud is a partnerships between the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation, and the state and jurisdictional arts agencies. The program encourages the nation's youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. The program starts in the classroom/school or at the local level with an area organization. Students memorize and recite poems they select from an anthology of classic and contemporary poems. Winners then may advance to a regional and/or state competition, and ultimately to the National Finals. Since the program began in 2005, more than 4.5 million students and 85,000 teachers from 21,000 schools and organizations across the nation have participated in Poetry Out Loud. For more information about Poetry Out Loud and how to participate in the 2025–2026 program, visit PoetryOutLoud.org.
2025 Poetry Out Loud National Finals
From left to right: Second place winner Teonna Randle (SD), National Champion Isavel Mendoza (PA), and third place winner Kaitlyn Lubega (NM). Photo by James Kegley
Isavel Mendoza, a 12th grade student at Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is the 2025 Poetry Out Loud® National Champion! After reciting poems by Keith S. Wilson, Kabir, and E.E. Cummings, Mendoza was named champion during last night’s National Finals, hosted by National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Mac Barnett in Washington, DC. As National Champion, Mendoza receives a cash prize of $20,000.
The second-place 2025 Poetry Out Loud winner Teonna Randle, a 12th grade student at Jefferson High School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, receives a $10,000 prize. The third-place winner Kaitlyn Lubega, a 12th grade student at the United World College – USA in Montezuma, New Mexico, receives a $5,000 prize.
Study on Impact of Poetry Out Loud
Line by Line: Transforming Student Lives and Learning with the Art of Poetry presents findings from an evaluation of Poetry Out Loud that involves data collection from ten sample schools assessing the program’s impact on poetry appreciation and engagement, social and emotional development, and academic performance. A fact sheet summarizing the results is also available.
