Oregon State Poetry Association

•     Click here for a PDF copy of the Student Contest Rules 2009

  The 11th Annual Oregon Student Poetry Contest will accept entries after November 1, 2008. The deadline is February 2, 2008. Compete for 10 prizes in one of four categories:
  
  I (kindergarten-grade2)                       II (grades 3-5)
  III (grades 6-8)                                  IV (grades 9-12)
  

First Prize: $30.00
Second Prize: $20.00
Third Prize: $10.00
Honorable Mentions (7): $5.00

All 40 winners will receive certificates. The 40 winning poems will be published in Cascadia: The Oregon Student Poetry Contest Anthology.The top 10 poems in Categories III and IV will be entered in the 2009Manningham Trust Student Contest sponsored by the National Federationof State Poetry Societies, Inc. National winners receive cash prizesand publication in a national student anthology. (Oregon students won14 national awards, including First Place in 2004 and 2005!)

1. Submit one original poem (your own individual creative work) on anysubject, in any style or form, with a maximum of 40 lines (spacesbetween stanzas count as lines). A poem is eligible even if it has beenpublished, or has won in another contest. The poem must be titled,except for haiku, senryu, or limerick.
2. Type or computer-generateyour poem on a single sheet of standard 8 1/2 X 11 white paper, oneside only, in a standard type face; no fancy fonts, graphics, orillustrations.
3. Send two copies of your poem. ON THE FIRST COPY,in the upper right hand corner, type your category (I, II, III, or IV)and grade level, name, school, school address and phone number, and thename (first and last) of your writing teacher. Also on this copy, type,and sign the following statement: This poem is my own originalcreative work and has not been copied, in whole or in part, from anyother author's work, including poems posted on the Internet. ON THE SECOND COPY, type the category and grade level only—check to make sure your name does not appear anywhere on this copy.
4. Mail to: OSPA Student Contest, P.O. Box 2636, Oregon City, OR 97045. The deadline is February 2, 2009 (postmark).
    First Place: $30
    Second Place: $20
    Third Place: $10
    7 Honorable Mentions: $5
All 40 winners will receive certificates, and all 40 winning poems willbe published in Cascadia: The Oregon Student Poetry Contest Anthology.

2009 OSPA Student Poetry Contest Checklist

[  ] The one poem you are submitting is your own original
work
[  ] Your poem has no more than 40 lines; spaces between
    stanzas count as lines
[  ] Your poem is typed or computer-generated on one sheet on
standard 8.5x11 white paper
[  ] Your poem appears on one side of the paper only
[  ] Your poem is in a standard type face and 10 or 12 sized
font
[  ] You are sending two copies of your poem
[  ] One copy has your poem and, in the upper right corner,
    the Division (I, II, III, or IV), your grade, your name,
    your school, your school’s address and phone, and
    your teacher’s first and last name
[  ] On that copy, beneath your poem, you have typed and
    signed the following statement: THIS POEM IS MY
    OWN ORIGINAL CREATIVE WORK AND HAS
    NOT BEEN COPIED, IN WHOLE OR IN PART,
    FROM ANY OTHER AUTHOR’S WORK,
    INCLUDING POEMS POSTED ON THE INTERNET
[  ] On the second copy of your poem, in the upper right
    corner, you have typed only the Division (I, II, III, or
    IV) and your grade
[  ] You have made sure that your name does not appear
anywhere on the second copy of your poem
[  ] You have enclosed a stamped, self-addressed envelope
    to receive the Winner’s List (Optional)