**Submissions for the 2014 contest are no longer being accepted. Please visit austinisd.org in fall 2016 for details on the 2016 contest.** 

The Austin ISD Literacy Work Group was established to develop a plan for literacy in the district. A Board-Approved AISD Strategic Priority for school year 2014–15 includes the implementation of the district literacy plan. As an initiative of the Literacy Work Group, the Office of Academics is creating a digital press,Voice, for students to publish their writing work online. By providing an electronic publishing mechanism, the district makes it possible for students from across the district to share and celebrate each other’s work.

Work published on Voice will be open to the general public, but only the student’s first name, last initial and school name will be published online. Information about the launch of Voice will be provided in the near future.

To populate Voice, Austin ISD is partnering with Austin Community College to implement “Vision and Voice,” a poetry competition for students grades K–12. All submitted poems will be published on Voice. One winning poem per grade will be selected by a panel of published poets. Winning poems will be combined with artwork by an ACC student and will be made into posters and billboards to be displayed throughout the city of Austin. An exhibit of winning posters will be displayed at Highland Mall, and a poetry reading and reception will be held in September.

Poems should be submitted online at Vision and Voice. Parents and teachers can download and upload the permission slip by using the Permission Slip tab at the link.

Austin ISD is working with ACC to make the poetry contest an annual event. We encourage parents and teachers to encourage students to submit poems. For more information on the contest, judges, and process, visit Vision and Voice.

If you have any questions, please call Asha Dane’el at (512) 414-1522. For questions regarding the uploading process, parents and teachers can call Polly Monear at (512) 223-3352.