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The Jason Taylor Foundation<\/b> has kicked off the new year with a full array of poetry contests through its Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Network<\/b><\/a><\/span>. Students of all ages will have an opportunity to share their voice and showcase creative writing skills, as contests exist for elementary, middle, and high school writers. All three contests strategically build towards the Foundation\u2019s annual celebration of youth poetry, the Louder Than A Bomb Florida Poetry Festival<\/b><\/a><\/span>, which will take place from March 15 through April 23.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [image src=”http:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/bluapple_network_logo_clr_lg-300×300.png” shape=”img-rounded”]<\/a> \u00a0 [image src=”http:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/LTABFLA.logo_-300×300.jpg” shape=”img-rounded”]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cIt is our mission to foster opportunities for students to explore the power of poetry. Poetry develops literacy skills, as well as helps students build social and emotional skill sets including self-awareness, self-confidence, and oral presentation,\u201d said Shawntee\u2019 Herring<\/strong><\/a>, Director of Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Programs. \u201cThese contests will provide students at each level an opportunity to express themselves in a way that is engaging and rewarding for both poet and audience.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n The list of poetry contests include:<\/p>\n Organized in partnership with Hoffman\u2019s Chocolates<\/span><\/strong><\/a>, blu is for Apples is designed to promote interest in creative writing and literacy within elementary school students. Participating schools will be offered virtual writing workshops led by members of the foundation\u2019s bluapple Poetry team. Students will be challenged with writing a poem inspired by the prompt \u201cWhat seed would I like to plant?\u201d Children representing all grade levels will be recognized, with winners receiving prizes including free Hoffman\u2019s Ice Cream, custom caramel apples, recognition during the Jason Taylor Foundation\u2019s Louder Than A Bomb Florida Festival, and more. Additionally, the school with the highest percentage of participation will receive a $500 donation, as will the classroom of the educator whose student produces the winning poem.<\/p>\n The Jason Taylor Foundation has partnered with the NHL\u2019s Florida Panthers<\/strong><\/a><\/span> Hockey Club to launch the Panthers\u2019 Poetry Project. To kick off this competition, the Foundation\u2019s Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry team will conduct a pep rally tour at participating middle schools to generate excitement and interest in poetry. Students will be guided through writing workshops and led through the development of their original poems, which must incorporate the theme, \u201cIt\u2019s Time To Hunt.\u201d Children representing grades 6-8 will be recognized, with winners receiving prizes including tickets to Florida Panthers home games, recognition during the Jason Taylor Foundation\u2019s Louder Than A Bomb Florida Festival, and a professionally produced poetry video for the overall winning poet. Additionally, the school with the highest percentage of participation will receive a $500 donation, as will the classroom of the educator whose student produces the winning poem.<\/p>\n The South Florida Youth Poet Laureate competition is a joint program of the Jason Taylor Foundation and Urban Word<\/span><\/strong><\/a>, a New York-based literary arts education and youth development organization, with support from community leaders including the Miami Dolphins<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, UKG<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, and UPS<\/strong><\/a><\/span>. The program seeks to identify young writers and leaders, ages 14-19, who are committed to civic and community engagement, poetry and performance, human rights, diversity, and education across South Florida. Interested students must submit five original poems, raps, or performances to the Jason Taylor Foundation, along with a resume reflecting the student\u2019s accomplishments in the classroom, after-school, and within their community. Along with winning the prestigious title of South Florida Youth Poet Laureate, the winning poet will also earn the opportunity to publish his or her own poetry chapbook.<\/p>\n All three contests are now officially open for participation. Schools, educators, and students seeking more information or looking to apply should contact the Jason Taylor Foundation by emailing bluapple@jasontaylorfoundation.com<\/span><\/a> <\/strong>or by calling (954) 424-0799. Information can also be found at www.JasonTaylorFoundation.org<\/strong><\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In July 2004, Miami Dolphins legendary defensive end and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Jason Taylor, established the Jason Taylor Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) organization. The Foundation\u2019s mission is to support and create programs that facilitate the personal growth and empowerment of South Florida\u2019s children in need by focusing on improved health care, education and quality of life.<\/strong><\/p>\n Since opening its doors, the Jason Taylor Foundation has impacted tens of thousands of children through innovative programming including The Jason Taylor Reading Room<\/strong>, Cool Gear for the School Year<\/strong>, the Jason Taylor Children\u2019s Learning Center<\/strong>, Jason Taylor Scholars<\/strong> and the Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Network<\/strong>, among others. For more information on the Jason Taylor Foundation, please visit the organization\u2019s website at\u00a0visit the organization\u2019s website at www.JasonTaylorFoundation.org<\/strong><\/a><\/span> or follow on social media sites including Facebook<\/a><\/span><\/strong> or Twitter<\/a><\/strong><\/span> and Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/span>: @jtfoundation99.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" JASON TAYLOR FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES ARRAY OF 2022 POETRY CONTESTS The Jason Taylor Foundation has kicked off the new year with a full array of poetry contests through its Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Network. Students of all ages will have an opportunity to share their voice and showcase creative writing skills, as contests exist […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12326,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12313"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12313"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12330,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12313\/revisions\/12330"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasontaylorfoundation.com\/2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
blu is for Apples<\/u><\/strong><\/h4>\n
Panthers\u2019 Poetry Project<\/u><\/strong><\/h4>\n
South Florida Youth Poet Laureate<\/u><\/strong><\/h4>\n
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About the Jason Taylor Foundation<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n