The words of great poets literally come to life in Poetry Out Loud, a literary arts  program created by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Poetry  Foundation. The Virginia Commission for the Arts (VCA) supports students across the  Commonwealth enriched by this arts education program that encourages memorization,  performance and public speaking skills. Since 2005, nearly 4.7 million students have  participated in the program and committed at least one poem to memory. In Virginia,  approximately 99,000 students have participated since the program’s inception. 

All regional competitions will be held virtually for 2021. The Virginia Finals are  tentatively slated to take place as an in-person event on Friday, March 12, 2021. 

Poetry Out Loud Contact Information: 

Casey Polczynski, PhD, Arts in Education Coordinator 

Virginia Commission for the Arts 

Main Street Centre 

600 East Main Street, Suite 330 

Richmond, VA 23219 

804.225.3132 casey.polczynski@vca.virginia.gov 

For additional information please contact: 

Debra Serio, dserio@bedford.k12.va.us 434-665-0170