Nilüfer Bektas, a junior at Harry S. Truman High School in Bristol Township, has been named the 2025 Bucks County High School Poet of the Year, officials at Bucks County Community College announced.
Bektas will read her winning poems at Bucks County Community College in Newtown Saturday, May 17.
Bektas rose to the top of more than 120 entries from all over the county, according to Professor Ethel Rackin, director of the Bucks County Poet Laureate Program, which includes the annual High School Poet of the Year contest. Bektas receives a $300 prize for her winning poems.
Rackin said the judges noted that all entries were strong for the 38th year for the program. Each student submitted three poems, which were judged by current Bucks County Poet Laureate Lake Angela and last year’s poet laureate Tara Tamburello.
The judges also named three runners-up in the contest. They are Evie Lee, a senior at Solebury School, first runner-up; Jack DeBoyace, a junior at Central Bucks East, second runner-up; and Addison Carr, a junior at Central Bucks West, third runner-up. More than a dozen finalists were also recognized by the judges.
A reading and celebration will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 17, in room 142 of Tyler Hall on the college’s Newtown campus. The event will feature winners, finalists, and judges.
Bucks County Community College is located at 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown, where there is ample free parking. Click here for a campus map and directions.
The 2025 final standings for the 38th Annual Bucks County High School Poet of the Year are as follows:
Winner: Nilüfer Bektas, Harry S. Truman High School, 11th Grade – Poems: “An Unspoken Eulogy,” “Heat Lightning,” and “Liberty”
1st Runner-up: Evie Lee, Solebury School, 12th Grade – Poems: “losing daylight,” “ahn yin,” and “February”
2nd Runner-up: Jack DeBoyace, Central Bucks High School East, 11th Grade – Poems: “Of,” “They Said,” and “Punctum”
3rd Runner-up: Addison Carr, Central Bucks High School West, 11th Grade – Poems: “Eelgrass,” “Anxiety is a Deer,” and “Dead Deer”
The finalists were:
Jennifer Alpert, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Steven Belder, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Avery Devlin, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Maisarah Aminah Dombrowski, Pennsbury High School, 10th
Sophia Evola, Central Bucks High School South, 10th
Anastasiya Golub, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Jaelyn Graham, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Patrick Hansell, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Evelyn Kerr, Central Bucks High School West, 9th
Jill Melson, Central Bucks High School West, 11th
Josiah Miller, Calvary Christian Academy, 11th
Brynn Minko, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Michael Shalevich, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Cooper Sherwood, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Sarah Ustenko, Council Rock High School South, 12th
Kalena Viera, William Tennent High School, 11th
Credit: Sunshine Foundation
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