The Heart of Stark:13 Stark teams shine at Power of the Pen creative writing tournament

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For many young students, creative writing skills are powerful tools to have during the formative years of their education and throughout the rest of their lives.

Power of the Pen is a local nonprofit providing middle school students in Stark County and beyond with opportunities to strengthen their writing skills, improve their confidence, enhance their leadership skills and experience teamwork.

More: The Heart of Stark: Program aims to train leaders in Stark County neighborhoods

Power of the Pen empowers students across Ohio to find and develop their own unique creative voice through participating in district, regional and state-level writing tournaments. Nearly 300 schools statewide currently compete, and 13 are located in Stark County.

Each school selects a coach, registers in the fall for tournaments and forms teams through creative writing clubs to prepare for competition in the winter and spring.

Across the state, 259 teams and 2,271 seventh and eighth grade students competed at the District Tournament level for the 2023-2024 season. Regional qualifiers were selected from these competitions to move on to the next level and continue their competitive writing journeys.

Thirteen teams from Stark County competed in the Eastern Region's District Tournament, and all of the local teams advanced to the regional tournament.

These teams represented Alliance Middle School, East Canton Middle School, Edison Middle School, Fairless Middle School, Jackson Memorial Middle School, Lake Middle High School, Marlington Local Middle School, Massillon Junior High, Northwest Middle School, Oakwood Middle School, St. Joan of Arc School, St. Mary's Catholic School and St. Michael School.

“The mission of Power of the Pen is helping young people find and develop a creative voice that is uniquely their own,” said Julie Lyberger, Power of the Pen board president.

“It helps inspire every teacher and challenge every student to truly embrace the art of creative expression through writing as a life skill. Power of the Pen enhances the quality of life in the community by supporting and celebrating the work of young writers, enabling them to acquire the communication skills and confidence to thrive in adulthood.”

As the regional tournaments conclude, an even more refined list of students will soon continue the competition at the state tournament. Even for those who aren’t continuing in the tournament, the lessons they have learned participating in Power of the Pen will continue to be applicable in their writing endeavors and everyday life.

“We are proud of the successes that our mission-driven programs have achieved,” said Lyberger. “Including Power of the Pen alumni who have pursued professional careers in writing, those who have entered the profession of teaching language arts, those who have become Power of the Pen writing team coaches and those who have expressed a strong interest in establishing chapters of Power of the Pen in other states where they now reside.”

Middle school students interested in participating are encouraged to talk to the Power of the Pen coach at their school to learn more about the program. If attending a school that does not already have an established team, email info@powerofthepen.org or call 330-672-0537.

Stark Community Foundation helps individuals, families, businesses and nonprofits achieve their philanthropic goals. Learn more at www.starkcf.org.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Stark County teams shine at Power of the Pen writing tourney