Bucks County Community College is calling on creative young minds to enter the 37th annual Bucks County High School Poet of the Year contest for the chance to win $300.
Students have until Friday, March 15, to submit three original poems, according to Dr. Ethel Rackin, director of the Bucks County Poet Laureate Program, which runs the Bucks County High School Poet of the Year contest.
The contest is open to freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors who live in Bucks County or attend a Bucks County high school. Home-schooled students may also enter. Previous winners are not eligible.
In addition to the prize money, the winner receives a proclamation from the Bucks County Commissioners, and the opportunity to read at a public reception. Runners-up and finalists in the contest will also be invited to read at the event.
“Entering the High School Poet of the Year contest may give students a chance to discover and develop a talent they may not have realized they had,” said Rackin, a language and literature professor at the college.
In addition, participating in the public poetry reading may help a student stand out in the college search, added Rackin.
“Mentioning the contest, public reading and anthology on college applications will demonstrate initiative, writing skills and public speaking experience,” she said. “Clearly, there’s a lot to gain from entering this contest.”
Each participant must submit three original poems with an application form at bucks.edu/hspoetentry.
The contest will be judged by the current Bucks County Poet Laureate Tara Tamburello and the former poet laureate Tom Mallouk.
To learn more about the Bucks County High School Poet of the Year program, visit bucks.edu/hs-poet. For more information, contact Rackin at [email protected].
