Tommy Nichol, a junior at Oxford High School, took home the second-place award at the Mississippi Poetry Out Loud Competition recently.

Nichol won $100 and earned $200 for the OHS and OIS libraries to purchase poetry books.

After winning first place in the OHS Poetry Out Loud and Northern Regional competitions, Nichol advanced to the state finals. After two rounds of competition in which each of the eight state finalists recited two poems, Tommy was one of three contestants with the highest score after round two.

He advanced to the third round of competition to recite one final poem to decide the winner. He placed second overall, the runner-up to the state champion.

This is his second year to compete in the state competition. In 2023, Nichol placed fourth overall.

The Mississippi Poetry Out Loud Competition was held on March 7, 2024, at Mississippi Public Broadcasting in Jackson, MS. The competition is sponsored by the Mississippi Arts Commission, under the direction of Katherine Brown.

To learn more about Poetry Out Loud, visit www.poetryoutloud.org.