Oklahoma Poetry Out Loud Partnership Grant
Forecasted
Oklahoma Poetry Out Loud Partnership Grant supports one organization running statewide high-school poetry recitation contests and national-contest preparation to build students’ skills and appreciation of poetry.
Funder: Oklahoma Arts Council
Due Dates (Anticipated): May 2027 (Application deadline)
Funding Amounts: Up to $20,000 per organization, contingent on National Endowment for the Arts funding; no match required
Summary: Supports one organization coordinating Oklahoma’s statewide high-school poetry recitation competition and the winning student’s national-contest participation.
Key Information: The selected partner must deliver statewide outreach, school support, competitions, and national-contest preparation and travel coordination.
Description
The Oklahoma Poetry Out Loud Partnership Grant selects one organization to partner with the Oklahoma Arts Council in coordinating and implementing the annual state competition in high schools across Oklahoma. Poetry Out Loud encourages young people to explore poetry through memorization and recitation. Its goals include strengthening public speaking, self-confidence, and analytical skills while helping students learn about literary history and contemporary life and develop a lifelong appreciation of poetry and creative writing.
The partner’s work includes promoting participation, distributing materials, assisting schools, facilitating recitation competitions, and preparing the state winner for the national contest. The Council encourages originality in implementation. Funding priorities emphasize arts access for rural and under-resourced communities and arts education that develops skills through sequential, hands-on learning.
