Young poets explore ‘collaboration and community’ in AUM High School Poetry Competition

Booker T. Washington Magnet High School senior Lillian Speigner captured first place in the third annual Auburn University at Montgomery High School Poetry Competition with her poem, “Echoes of Montgomery,” a reflection on violence, resilience, community, and hope in Montgomery.

Speigner’s poem was one of six entries recognized in this year’s competition, which invited students to reflect on the theme “Collaboration, Community, and Diverse Voices.” The competition also recognized the following Booker T. Washington Magnet High School student poets:

• Second Place (tie): “From Survival to Change” by Summer Stanford, 10th grade
• Second Place (tie): “Spilled Milk” by Tashod Jones, 10th grade
• Third Place: “Still Here” by Jayden Rudolph, 12th grade
• Honorable Mention (tie): “When Hate is Normalized” by Zulimar Reyes, 10th grade
• Honorable Mention (tie): “The Weight of Falling Things” by Ayannah Boone, 10th grade

Joyce Kelley, professor of English and the competition’s organizer, said this year’s submissions were marked by their emotional honesty and their powerful reflection on both individual and shared experiences.

“Our literary magazine is a collaborative space that foregrounds local creativity,” She said. “We hoped that for this year’s competition students would think deeply about issues of resistance, change, and collective growth, contemplating the ways communities are shaped by diverse voices while also articulating their individual experiences. We sought out voice-driven poetry for this competition, and each winning poem was emotionally resonant, connecting personal experiences to larger conversations about community.”

As the first-place winner, Speigner’s poem was featured in the print edition of “Common Thread,” AUM’s literary magazine. She also has been offered a $500 scholarship to AUM’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences should she choose to major in the college. The remaining winning poems were featured in the online edition of “Common Thread.”

“We would like to offer our sincere congratulations to these talented students,” Kelley said. “Their writing reminds us that poetry can be a powerful tool for creating dialogue, preserving stories, and helping individuals in communities come together to heal and better understand one another.”

Caption: Top row, from left: Lillian Speigner, Summer Stanford, and Tashod Jones. Bottom row, from left: Jayden Rudolph, Zulimar Reyes, Ayannah Boone. (Submitted photos)