Poetry Out Loud Finalists

Yahoooo for high school students and poetry

State Final, Free and Open to Public, at Waterville Opera House March 14

AUGUSTA, ME–The art of performance and spoken word is alive and well in Maine high schools, as 39 individual students competed in two Poetry Out Loud Regional Finals last month.  The Maine Arts Commission, which administers the poetry competition at the state level, is pleased to announce the top 10 finalists who will compete in state finals at the Waterville Opera House on March 14 at 3:00 p.m.

Congratulations to the following finalists:

Northern Maine Regional Champions: The northern regional poetry recitation contest final was hosted by Hampden Academy.

• Lydia Caron, Grade 12, Bangor High School
• Katherine Kemper, Grade 12, Camden Hills Regional High School
• Lauren Dodge, Grade 12, Lee Academy
• Hannah Lavenson, Grade 12, Messalonskee High School
• Lauren Farmer, Grade 10, Rangeley Lakes Regional Schools

Southern Maine Regional Champions: The southern regional final was hosted by Westbrook Middle School.

• Allan Monga, Grade 11, Deering High School
• Abbie vanLuling, Grade 12, Gorham High School
• Richard Hilscher , Grade 12, North Yarmouth Academy
• Emma Lombardo, Grade 11, Westbrook High School
• Wyatt Bates, Grade 11, Yarmouth High School

After three rounds of competition, one state finalist will be named the overall winner and advance to the national competition, where s/he will compete for a total of $50,000 in awards and school stipends, as well as a $20,000 scholarship.

The Maine Poetry Out Loud state finals are March 14 at the Waterville Opera House. The doors will open at 2:30 p.m. for a 3 p.m. performance start. The event is free and open to the public, who are encouraged to attend. It will also be broadcast and streamed live throughout Maine in collaboration with Boothbay Region Television on the BRTV station and through Facebook Live.

For more information about the state and national finals, please visit Maine Arts Commission: Poetry Out Loud 2017 or contact Argy Nestor, Maine Arts Commission Director of Arts Education at argy.nestor@maine.gov or 207-287-2713.

 

In Today’s News

NYA Teacher Ian Ramsey 2017 Grammy Nominee

North Yarmouth Academy (NYA) is excited to announce that Ian Ramsey, Visual and Performing Arts Chair, was chosen as a quarterfinalist for the Music Educator Award presented by The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation. Ramsey was one of 3,300 nominated educators submitted from all 50 states. A total of 290 music teachers from 264 cities across 41 states were announced as quarterfinalists today.

According to the Grammy Foundation, the Music Educator Award “was established to recognize current educators (kindergarten through college, public and private schools) who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools.” The award is open to current U.S. music teachers and can be nominated by anyone. Semifinalists will be announced in September. One recipient from ten finalists will be recognized for their remarkable impact on students’ lives. The recipient will be honored during GRAMMY Week 2017.

“I’m excited and honored to be recognized by the Grammy Foundation as a national quarterfinalist for the 2017 Music Educator Award. In a world where there are so many great and inspiring music teachers, I feel lucky, and humbled, to be part of this process,” said Ramsey. He is not sure who nominated him, but suspects it is a music colleague in western Maine.

Ramsey, a Bowdoin resident, graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a degree in Music Education with a concentration in jazz. He earned a Masters of Fine Arts degree in 2015 from the Rainier Writing Workshop at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. He began working at NYA in 1999. In addition to chairing the arts department, he teaches a variety of music classes at NYA including music theory, wind ensemble, bluegrass ensemble, steel band, and jazz band, to name a few. Ramsey is known for tailoring his teaching to his students’ passions. He created an ensemble for four students who were interested in the Beatles, and continued with the group through the years working up to Abbey Road. In 2012, he led a student bluegrass ensemble to Chengdu, China to perform in the JinJiang-Jiaxiang International Students’ Arts Festival.

In 2013 he co-founded the Maine Acoustic Festival, the first statewide auditioned student roots music festival in America.  In 2016 he created NYA’s “Distinction in Music: Performance, Entrepreneurship and Community” program, which helps students develop excellence in music performance while developing skills around service, community involvement and entrepreneurship. Most recently, he created the Kauffmann Program in Environmental Writing and Wilderness Exploration which seeks to educate students and the larger community about the importance of wilderness and nature. Last June, he led this class to Glacier Bay, Alaska.

North Yarmouth Academy is an independent, college preparatory, coeducational school serving toddlers to students in grade twelve. Since 1814, NYA has fostered integrity, character, and intellect in its students. For more information, please contact NYA at 207-847-5423 or visit our website at nya.org.

All-State Music Conference

UMaine campus

It was great to see so many music educators at the All-State conference last week participating in professional development opportunities. The workshops were enriching and provided a variety of topics and presenters to deepen music educators learning. I enjoyed hearing the keynote by Scott Shuler, president of  National Association for Music Education. Attending the session were several of our teacher leaders from the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative. Some from the first phase and some of our second phase. Included in this post is a photo of some.

I am always moved by the intensity of the students who are practicing for the Saturday performance. The energy of the conductors, the sustained focus of the students, and the sheer number of students is so impressive. I was only sad I couldn’t attend the performances on Saturday. All reports were that they were fantastic!

Attending the banquet on Thursday evening was a wonderful opportunity to connect wtih teachers. Musicians from the North Yarmouth Academy delighted us with a handful of songs. The evening ended with the presentation of awards to outstanding music educators. Congratulations to the following:

• Carol Shumway, Mt. Blue High School – Hall of Fame recipient
• Tom Lizotte, Cape Elizabeth High School – Hall of Fame recipient
• Andy Forster, Messalonskee High School – Maine Music Educator Association Educator of the Year
• Steve Orlofsky, George Stevens Academy – Maine Musice Educator Association Educator of the Year

Andy was nominated by Steve Muise

Carol was nominated by Karen Beacham

Steve was nominated by GSA Headmaster, Paul Perkinson

Enjoying the banquet: Pam Kinsey, Sam Moore-Young, Nancy Curran

Greely High School and North Yarmouth Academy Exhibit

Greely High School and North Yarmouth Academy

Advanced Placement Studio Art

International Baccalaureate Studio Art

Untitled, 18" x 24" Mixed Media, Sarah Ingraham

Student Art Show at 317 Main Street, Yarmouth

An exhibit of work by students of Greely High School and North Yarmouth Academy

The exhibit will include drawings, paintings, mixed media, and photography.

Dainius Bukauskas AP NYA, Sarah Ingraham IB 1st year GHS, Olivia Ryder IB 1st year GHS, Lila Hall 1st year IB GHS, Emily Colesworthy AP GHS

OPENING RECEPTION Friday, April 6, 2012 6:00-7:30 pm

with live music by NYA Bluegrass Ensemble

Gallery Hours: 12:00-6:00 pm Monday-Friday through April 24, 2012

Open to the community!

317 Main St Community Music Center

Music Lessons, Jam Sessions, Cafe and Gallery. FMI call 846-9559 or visit www.317mainst.org