Freshwoman Stuns at State Poetry Competition

Kristen St. Louis ’21 gave a stunning performance of all three of her poems at the Connecticut State Competition for Poetry Out Loud on Saturday, March 3. She was the only ninth grade student to make the finals, and she received many accolades from the judges and audience members alike. Lindsay Hodgman, Kristen’s English teacher, says, “Kristen brought the house down” with “Bleeding Heart,” the poem by Carmen Giménez Smith that earned her the top prize here at Walker’s.

Kristen says, “Overall, [it was] such a surreal experience.” Even one of the judges shook her hand and told her he was a “fan.” Kristen received several prizes for her fine performance, including a collection of poetry and two tickets to the Hill-Stead Museum’s 2018 Sunken Garden Poetry Festival. Though the top awards went to the older students, Ms. Hodgman feels that everyone in the room knew how moving Kristen’s recitation was.

Bravo to Kristen and to her teacher, for representing Walker’s so well!