Speaking Her Mind

Pirtle (‘23) wins state poetry title, attends national contest

Waiting backstage at the Poetry Out Loud National Championship, Drew Pirtle (’23) was a bundle of nerves. Once she stepped out onto the stage for her turn to perform, however, that nervousness dissipated.

“Surprisingly, taking the stage at nationals was calming. As soon as I walked onto the stage, I felt confident. Looking out into the crowd, it felt good to be sharing what I could do and seeing how other champions reacted.”

Poetry Out Loud is a national arts education program that encourages the study of great poetry by offering free educational materials and a dynamic recitation competition for high school students across the country, according the program’s website.

Students recite selected poetry before a group of judges who score the students’ performance and recitation accuracy.

The national competition was held at the Lisner Auditorium in Washington, D.C., on May 8-10. Pirtle qualified for the national competition by winning the Poetry Out Loud Arkansas State Championship in March.

She was one of seven competitors from schools statewide to participate in the competition, which was sponsored by the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Division of Arkansas Heritage.

Pirtle earned a spot in the state competition by winning the school’s Poetry Out Loud competition earlier this spring. Layla Lammers (’23) also competed in the state competition as one of two alternates after placing second in the school competition.

Preparing for the national competition was more challenging compared to her preparation for the state competition. She knew Nationals would include the best competitors from each U.S. state and territory.

“I decided to ask for more help. I asked people who have competed in past competitions, judges, teachers, friends — any help I could get. I also really studied each poem thoroughly again to see if I could switch up the way I recited it previously.

Pirtle recited “You, If No One Else” by Tino Villanueva and translated by James Hoggard, “Before the Birth of One of Her Children” by Anne Bradstreet, and “Always Something More Beautiful” by Stephen Dunn. She chose the poems for a variety of reasons.

“I chose the first poem because I liked the message it gave,” Pirtle said. “The style of the poetry was similar to the speeches I would give for competitions at home, making it easier for me to connect with the poem.

“I chose the second poem because it shocked me. One of the criteria is that we had to choose

Oaklawn Foundation grant benefits restoration

ASMSA received a $100,000 grant from the Oaklawn Foundation in February for the Selig Hall restoration project.

The grant was dedicated for the Selig Hall Auditorium as part of a $5.5 million restoration of the former St. Joseph Hospital convent and chapel complex, which was completed in September 2022. The project converted the spaces into additional residential housing for students, a campus mental health hub with offices for professional counseling staff, a new student union, and an auditorium. The renovated facility is named in honor of former Hot Springs Mayor Helen Selig.

“The Oaklawn Foundation and its dedicated board of community advocates have played a critical role in promoting wellness and educational opportunities throughout Hot Springs,” said Corey Alderdice, ASMSA’s director. “ASMSA is grateful for the support of the Oaklawn Foundation toward the restoration of the former chapel as the Selig Hall Auditorium. We are excited to bring this space back to its former beauty while having another place for students to gather and welcome the community onto our campus for programs, concerts, and events.” a poem written before the 20th century. Most poems that I found in that category didn’t resonate with me, and I needed to figure out how to make myself sound convincing in this poem. But ‘Before the Birth of One of Her Children’ made me cry.

Sam Stathakis Jr., who serves as the chair of the Oaklawn Foundation board, said it was these kind of projects for which the foundation was created.

“This (project) really fits into what we do as a foundation to support great institutions like ASMSA. It’s an honor for us to participate in this project in this way,” Stathakis said.

“I chose the third poem because I liked the hidden message. The poem starts with a runner discussing a race they ran and how they would often become distracted. Even though they would become distracted, they stuck with the course, learning to do the same with any course in life.”

Sticking with the course could be the description of how Pirtle came to compete in ASMSA’s event. Pirtle placed second in ASMSA’s 2022 competition before winning this year’s school competition. She began competing in similar competitions at a young age.

“I have participated and performed in speech and poetry since I was eight. It would be awesome to share that talent with my peers here,” she said. “My parents were the ones who first introduced me to this craft. They have seen almost every performance I have done.”

That’s why it was important that at least one of her parents accompanied her on the trip to nationals. It was harder for them to see her perform while she attended ASMSA because of the distance. “We all agreed at least one of them needed to attend nationals since it is such an accomplishment,” she said.

Pirtle had been to D.C. once on a school trip while in fifth grade. On this trip, she and her father took advantage of visiting several local sites.

They visited local bakeries and cafés, since they were her favorite, as well as taking time to visit parts of the Smithsonian Institution.

Part of the national competition experience is watching the fellow competitors recite their poems.

“As a spectator, the competition was unreal. What was nice about the competition was that we all met each other beforehand, whether through social media or at the actual meet-and-greet. Even though we all were competing against each other, there was a feeling of camaraderie. We all supported each other on and off the stage. I would relive the moment if I could,” she said.

“My favorite contestant to listen to was Maryland. She wasn’t in my region, so I only heard her speak during the final. My jaw was just open every time she finished a poem; everyone was left in awe when she spoke.”

Pirtle encourages others to not let their fear of public speaking keep them from participating in speaking competitions such as Poetry Out Loud or others.

“A lot of people think that what I do is scary. I remember when (James) Katowich (a humanities Instructor of Excellence at ASMSA) told my class that public speaking is a common fear and that more people fear speaking public [than they] fear sharks. Words are powerful, and I encourage others to become more confident and speak.”