WATCH: Cinnaminson High Student Captures Poetry Out Loud NJ Title

CINNAMINSON, NJ — A Cinnaminson High School student has been recognized as a state champion in poetry.

Lilian Myers won the state title at the 2021 New Jersey Poetry Out Loud (NJ POL) State Finals competition, part of the National Poetry Out Loud recitation program, the school district announced.

She will now represent New Jersey as she pursues the national championship. The national winners will receive prizes, including college scholarships.

Voting in the statewide contest took place virtually, and a compilation video from the finals has been posted online and can be seen below.

Myers appears twice in the video. At the 15:25 mark, she recites, “Death Be Not Proud,” by Jon Donne. About 38 minutes in, she recites “Kubla Khan” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

When the contest began in the fall, there were more than 8,000 New Jersey students from 66 high schools across the state competing.

Myers first had to advance out of her classroom and her high school, then the region. There were 10 regional finalists featured in the video.

POL is a national poetry recitation program through which students learn to perform great works of classical and contemporary poetry.

In New Jersey, POL is a project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, in collaboration with Mayo Performing Arts Center, ArtPride New Jersey Foundation and a growing list of local partners, according to the NJ POL website.

POL Poetry Out Loud encourages students to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about literary history and contemporary life.