Igniting student potential through the power of poetry

Mia Martinelli, 2023 Champion, performs her poem for the Poetry Out Loud Finals.

Local Poet Paul Guffin is owed a big thank you for organizing the Poetry Out Loud program and igniting the interest of our students.

Here is his article that explains and describes the 2024 competition.

Around 40 people gathered in the Sierra City Community Hall on Wednesday, February 7, for the Poetry Out Loud County Finals. They were there to enjoy the performance of five students, representing both of the county’s high schools, in the recitation of poems — and to contest for the county championship. Poetry Out Loud is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts, administered in our state by the California Arts Council, and in our county by the Sierra County Arts Council. It is a program for high school students that involves memorization and recitation of poetry. Poems are selected from an anthology of over 1,200 poems, found on the national Poetry Out Loud website (poetryoutloud.org). The students’ efforts are judged on physical presence, voice and articulation, interpretation, evidence of understanding, overall performance, and accuracy. This was the sixth year that Sierra County students have participated in the program, even though it has been ongoing nationally and statewide since 2005.

This year’s Sierra County champion is Isaac Andaluz, a senior at Loyalton High School. His two poems were “Zoom!”, by Simon Armitage, and “The Light of the Stars”, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He will now go on to the State Poetry Out Loud Finals in Sacramento, March 17-18, and must also now add a third poem to his repertoire. All expenses for that stay, for Isaac and a chaperone, will be paid between the Sierra County Arts Council and the California Arts Council. Additionally, he received an award of $250 for his first place finish at the County Finals.

The runner-up position went to Sienna Larrucea, a freshman at Loyalton High School, with her recitations of “Ah! Why Because the Dazzling Sun”, by Emily Bronte, and “Words”, by Pauli Murray. She received $150 for her effort, and, in the case that the county champion should not be able to attend the State Finals, would then represent the county at that event. Third place went to Abigail Sainsbury, a senior at Downieville High School, who recited “Dawn”, by Ella Higginson, and “Among Women” by Marie Ponsot. She received a check for $100. The other two student participants were Lily Antrim, a Downieville High School sophomore (who recited “Confessions”, by Robert Browning, and “Abandoned Farmhouse”, by Ted Kooser), and Kaydance Stringer, a Downieville High School freshman (who recited “If We Must Die”, by Claude McKay, and “Dream of the Raven”, by Ada Limón).

Thank-you’s for this year’s event go to a whole host of people. BJ Jordan, Executive Director of the Sierra County Arts Council, serves as the partnership link with the California Arts Council, and writes the grant that funds the poetry program locally. English teachers Amber Baca-Sainsbury at Downieville High School and Rebekah Perez at Loyalton High School provided encouragement, direction, and support to the students. Without the individuals who agree to serve as official at the event, it just wouldn’t happen. They include Criteria Judges Carl Butz, Jill Makoutz, and Teresa Taylor; Accuracy Judge Mindy Strine; Scorekeeper Mike Taylor; and, Prompter Laura Marshall. Also thank-you to Jill Makoutz, who shared some of her own poetry with the audience.

Of course, our overwhelming gratitude goes to the five students who participated. Through their efforts, they once again proved to us all that poetry is powerful, as well as entertaining, and that great courage can be found in a young person standing in front of a group, interpreting a poem for the benefit of the listeners. We can well declare that all five of these young people — Abigail, Isaac, Kaydance, Lily, Sienna — are champions in our county.