CHARLESTON — Two local students will be part of a field of 42 competing in the 2025 Poetry Out Loud state finals this Friday and Saturday.

To be held at the Culture Center in Charleston, the semifinals will be held Friday, with Division I beginning at 9:30 a.m., and Division II at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s finals will begin at 1 p.m.

Among those set to compete are Corbin Deremer of Oak Glen High School and Sienna Finsley of Weir High School.

Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is designed to encourage high school students to learn about poetry through memorization, performance, and competition.

Participating students memorize and recite works by established poets, while assisting with the development of public speaking skills, and learning about literary history.

The state champion will receive a $200 prize and represent West Virginia in the national competition in Washington, D.C. in May, with their school awarded $500 to purchase poetry books and materials. Runners-up will receive $100, with the school awarded $200. Both the champion and runner-up will be awarded with trophies, handcrafted by West Virignia artist Matt Thomas.

All participating students and teachers will receive original works created by West Virginia artists.

Bill Lepp, storyteller, author, and recording artist, will serve as Saturday’s master of ceremonies. Saturday also will feature a greeting from 2024 West Virginia Poetry Out Loud state champion Willow Peyton, a performance by musician Mary Linscheid, and remarks from West Virginia poet laureate Marc Harshman.

Harshman also will serve as a judge, alongside writers and poets Torli Bush, Abbey Delk, Sara Henning, Joel Peckham, Doug Van Gundy, and Randi Ward.