Poetry Masters Compete for School Championship
Poetry Out Loud (POL) has always been one of my favorite academic events that our school holds; it honors the art of poetry, literature, and public speaking, all of which are beautiful skills that these students excel in. I’ve attended the past four years of POL, and I have to say that the participants this year truly blew me away.
When my AP Seminar teacher, Dr. P, first introduced it to the class, she also shared with us an announcement from the organization,
“In recognition of America’s 250th anniversary in 2026, the 2025-2026 Poetry Out Loud program will focus on poems that celebrate the rich tapestry of American history and culture.”
Considering the current American culture and state of the country, I found this to be a very interesting decision from the organization. Nonetheless, it is my understanding that the YSHS teachers decided to open it to any poem students would like to memorize for the class and schoolwide competition, which I think definitely helped to increase the participation overall.
On Thursday, December 11th, 2025, the school celebrated the 20th school-wide Poetry Out Loud competition in the auditorium. It was awesome to see not only the number of students who participated, but also the number of students in the auditorium seats supporting their peers. It was clear that the students performing were not only well prepared for the competition, but also had strong support from their friends and some family members.
The two winners for the 2026 YSHS POL Competition are sophomore Ismene Belajac and senior Reece Busse, who will advance to regionals in February! Both of their poems were delivered extremely well, and left the audience very impressed. I personally have no doubt that they will do wonderfully at regionals, and will make York Suburban proud.
Thank you to all the teachers, custodians, audience members, and participants for making this such an incredible event that I have enjoyed attending these past four years. If you’re a student reading this, participate next year! Whether you want to recite a cool poem, or support your best friend, this event has the Trojan Gazette’s full support!
