POetry Contest

2023 Contest Winners

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2023 Contest Winners 〰️

April is National Poetry Month. In celebration of this, and in an effort to recognize the great talent that resides within our District, Oregon City School District will be hosting a poetry contest. This is open to any and all stakeholders, students, staff, parents, and community members within the Oregon City School District. There will be a grand overall prize, and awards for different levels (elementary school, middle school, high school, staff member, and community member). All entries must be submitted by 5 pm on April 28th, or postmarked by April 21st.

Submission Guidelines

  1. Each entry may submit up to 3 poems in one Word / Google / PDF Document (if you’re mailing your submission in, this does not apply)

  2. Poems may be in any language (we will work with you to translate the poem(s) into English should you be chosen as a finalist).

  3. No identifying information of the poet may be present on the poems themselves.

  4. Please keep in mind the content and the audience of your poems.

  5. Poems may be on any subject, or written on one of the prompts listed below.

How to Submit your Poems.

Contestants may submit their poems using the form below, or they may mail their submissions, postmarked no later than April 20th, to:

Oregon City School District
attn: Caitlin Bergstrom
1417 12th St
Oregon City, OR 97045

Need Help Getting Started?

Here are a few ideas to get the creativity flowing!

  1. Write about what it means to be a part of Oregon City School District.

  2. Write about what you like most about your school / educator / friends.

  3. Write about your favorite memory of school.

  4. Write about what it is like to be a student in OCSD.

Prizes

  • Elementary School Grades (K-5)

    Each school will have a top winner in this grade range. This winner will receive the following:

    How to Write Poems by Joseph Coelho

    A perfect bound notebook

    A nice set of pens

  • Middle School Grades (6-8)

    Each school will have a top winner in this grade range. This winner will receive the following:

    I'm Just No Good at Rhyming: and Other Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-Ups by Chris Harris

    A perfect bound notebook

    A nice set of pens

  • High school Grades (9-12)

    Each school will have a top winner in this grade range. This winner will receive the following:

    A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver

    A perfect bound notebook

    A nice set of pens

  • OCSD Staff Member

    The Practicing Poet by Diane Lockward

    A perfect bound notebook

    A nice set of pens

  • OCSD Community Member

    The Practicing Poet by Diane Lockward

    A perfect bound notebook

    A nice set of pens

Grand Prize:

We will have two grand prize winners. The prizes will be based on their category.

Elementary & Middle (Grades K-8)

  • Grade Level Prize listed above

  • One Year Subscription to BookRoo

  • Kindle Paperwhite Kids eReader (with one year subscription to Amazon Kids+)

High School (Grades 9-12), Staff, & Community Member

  • Grade Level Prize listed above

  • One Year Subscription to Book of the Month

  • One Year Subscription to Poetry Foundations Magazine

  • The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms by Eavan Boland and Mark Strand

  • The Cambridge Guide to Reading Poetry by Andrew Hodgson

​Oregon City School District is working in partnership with the Oregon City Schools Foundation who has generously provided these prizes.