Northwood Student Wins NH Poetry Out Loud Championship For 2026; Winnacunnet Student Is Alternate

CONCORD, NH — Summer Brackett from Coe-Brown Northwood Academy has been named the winner of the 2026 New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud High School Championship.

Sophie Garcia from Winnacunnet High School in Hampton was selected as the alternate champion. The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts announced the results.

Brackett will represent New Hampshire at the national championship, which is scheduled for April 25 to April 27 in Washington, D.C. If Brackett is unable to attend, Garcia will represent the state at the event. Poetry Out Loud is a poetry recitation competition that aims to improve public speaking skills, build confidence, and teach literary history.

The competition is administered in New Hampshire by the State Council on the Arts and managed nationally by the National Endowment for the Arts. Approximately 3,000 New Hampshire high school students participated in Poetry Out Loud this year. School champions advanced to semi-finals, with top finishers competing at the state championship.

The state championship took place on March 9 in Representative's Hall at the State House. Contestants recited poems chosen from the 2025-2026 Poetry Out Loud collection. This collection included poems celebrating American history and culture, in recognition of America’s 250th anniversary in 2026.

Each student in the championship recited two poems in the qualifying round. The four highest-scoring students then moved to a final round to recite a third poem. Judges evaluated recitations based on physical presence, voice and articulation, evidence of understanding, interpretation, accuracy, and overall performance. Scores from all three rounds were tallied to determine the state champion.

As the state champion, Brackett receives $200, and Coe-Brown Northwood Academy receives a $500 stipend for poetry materials. Garcia will receive $100, with Winnacunnet High School receiving a $200 stipend for poetry materials. These monetary awards are provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.

The NEA also curates the Poetry Out Loud online poem anthology, supports state efforts through funding, and creates free lesson plans and educational materials. Support for Poetry Out Loud in New Hampshire also comes from various organizations, including Brightspot Consultants, the Currier Museum of Art, and the Putnam Foundation. The N.H. State Council on the Arts is a division of the N.H. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which began in 1965 to promote the arts in the community.