Greetings from Lansing -- The Michigan Humanities Council (MHC) invites you to the Poetry Out Loud State Finals taking place this week on March 1 and 2 at the Lansing Crowne Plaza. As you may know, Poetry Out Loud<https://www.michiganhumanities.org/poetry-out-loud-3/> is a national high school poetry recitation contest that MHC coordinates through a partnership with the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, National Endowment for the Arts, the Poetry Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional support is generously provided by Meijer and the Liesel Litzenburger Meijer Fund. I've attached a flyer that shares some additional details about the program and our 2019 schedule, including the timeframes for each round of competition. You can also find updates via a recent press release about POL<https://www.michiganhumanities.org/michigan-high-school-students-bring-poetry-to-life-at-state-competition/> and on our POL Facebook page<https://www.facebook.com/MichiganPoetryOutLoud/>. This year marks our fourteenth State Finals competition, and we're anxiously awaiting two days of talented, courageous students taking the stage to recite known works of poetry for their peers, families, teachers, and a panel of judges. If you are available on the afternoon of Friday, March 1, or morning of Saturday, March 2, please consider joining us for the rounds of competition, which are open to the public. Finally, if you'd like a sneak peek of what's ahead for this year's Poetry Out Loud State Finals, you can view a short video<https://youtu.be/xRbX1R7e_EI> that we produced following last year's event. Questions about the POL program or State Finals? Please don't hesitate to reach out via phone or email. Best, Katie -------------------- Katie Wittenauer Director of Programs Michigan Humanities 119 Pere Marquette Drive, Suite 3B Lansing, MI 48912 (517) 372-7770, ext. 26 www.michiganhumanities.org<http://www.michiganhumanities.org/>