BETHLEHEM, Pa. — When Isavel Mendoza took the stage at George Washington University to recite poems by Kabir, E.E. Cummings and Keith S. Wilson, he enthusiastically enunciated the words.
Despite his ardent performance, Mendoza, a Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts senior, said he was shocked when it was announced he won the 2025 Poetry Out Loud National Champion — and the $20,000 cash prize that comes with it.
"I think it struck me, as I was watching these final performances: This kid was born to stand in front of people and share these beautiful things,"Diane Wagner, Isavel Mendoza's teacher
But his teacher, Diane Wagner, said that as she watched on, she had little doubt.
"I think it struck me, as I was watching these final performances: This kid was born to stand in front of people and share these beautiful things," Wagner said.
"He's fearless and authentic in a way that other people would never feel comfortable being.
"You can see and sense the fear in people in that situation. There is so much at stake, but Isavel is a performer who operates out of complete sincerity.
"It happens so naturally, so effortlessly. And his connection, whether he's standing up in front of a thousand people or sitting at a table and having a chat with one person, it's all the same."
The Poetry Out Loud competition, now in its 20th year, is a high school contest with partnerships among the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation and Mid Atlantic Arts.
Road to the win, Tupac
Mendoza was among 157,000 high schoolers who participated in Poetry Out Loud in 2025, and one of nine finalists.
All students compete at the classroom, school, regional, state and national levels, with the top students advancing to higher levels.
"My whole life, I've kind of just existed outside of the box, and I've been okay with it forever. I don't think there was a time when I ever tried to necessarily fit into the norm."Poetry Out Loud winner Isavel Mendoza
After winning Charter Arts' Poetry Out Loud at Charter Arts, Mendoza advanced to the regionals, held at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in January.
In March, Mendoza traveled to Harrisburg, where he won the state title, to advance to Poetry Out Loud nationals held May 6-7 in Washington, D.C.
In the finals, he performed "Brother, I've Seen Some," by Indian poet Kabir (translated by Arvind Krishna Mehrotra), "Black Matters" by Keith S. Wilson and "I Carry Your Heart With Me" by E.E. Cummings.
Mendoza credits Cummings' uniqueness for helping him perform the words onstage.
"I adore his work, and look up to some classics like Lord Byron and artist Jean-Michel Basquiat," Mendoza said. "In a lot of his work, there are so many poems, and I categorize him as a poet."
He said he also studied the work of a "Poetic Justice" star and the late influential rapper Tupac Shakur.
"A few years ago, my mom got me Tupac's journals, and from reading his poetry, I really categorized him as a poet as well," Mendoza said.
"That opened my eyes to see someone so successful as an artist and a rapper also be taken seriously as a poet."
Mendoza said he identified with Tupac's writings.
"My whole life, I've kind of just existed outside of the box, and I've been OK with it forever," he said. "I don't think there was a time when I ever tried to necessarily fit into the norm.
"I just existed the ways I wanted to, and with being kind and understanding that other people have perspectives on different things.
"I think that's opened me to just living the way I want to for kind of as long as I can remember."
Latin roots, plans to publish
After winning the coveted prize, Mendoza said, he received an outpouring of support from his classmates.
"It was like a total freak out," he said. "I couldn't have imagined something like that before.
"I came back to school on Friday [May 9], and most of it was from kids who I knew, but even some kids who I don't know were coming up to me, and we were hugging, and they congratulated me.
"I never experienced something so overwhelming, but in the best way possible."
Mendoza said he also learned more about his Latin American roots after his grandmother learned of the win.
"My family was above the world" over his win, he said.
"It was unreal because my grandma called to tell me how her grandparents were artists in the Dominican Republic and how she sees so much of their love of the arts in me," he said. "It's always been in my family."
Mendoza, said he began reading poetry in elementary school and starred in his first play, "A Servant of Two Masters," in seventh grade.
"There are things that I've believed I've understood since I was 8 years old about society, just because it's been right in front of me."Isavel Mendoza
He said he hopes to publish a book of poetry — a collection of poems he's penned from first grade to senior year.
"I want it to be focused on living life as a conscious person as a kid, because people love to say that kids don't understand things," he said.
"But there are things that I've believed I've understood since I was 8 years old about society, just because it's been right in front of me."
