Leanne Chun, senior, took first place in the Poetry Out Loud Kansas competition Sunday, March 1, in Salina, Kan., at the Salina Community Theater.

She is repeating as the state champion. Now she moves on to the national competition against 52 other state and territory champions in Washington, D.C., on April 28-29.

As the state winner, Chun receives an expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for her and a chaperone as well as $200. The school will also receive a stipend to promote poetry.

At the national competition, she will recite three poems: Eavan Boland’s “And Soul,” Marge Piercy’s “For the Young Who Want To” and John Donne’s “The Good Morrow.”  She also recited these at the state contest.

The national competition is in its 10th year and is sponsored by the Poetry Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. Over $50,000 in prizes will be awarded.

Chun qualified to compete at the state by winning the Region 7 competition Saturday, Jan. 31, at Shawnee Mission West.

This is Chun’s second year as the Region 7 representative and as the Kansas champion at the national Poetry Outloud contest in Washington, D.C.

All the Region 7 contestants received an autographed edition of poetry by Denise Low, former Kansas poet laureate. Low was one of the judges. Additionally, Chun received a paid membership to the Kansas Authors Club, which has provided support to Kansas writers since 1904.

Other local schools with contestants at the regional were Olathe North, Shawnee Mission West and Shawnee Mission North.

The Region 7 judges were Low, Errol Cade, Farrell Hoy Jenab, and Eve Ott. Jenab, Low and Ott are published poets and writers; Cade has experience at the national competition twice.